BOTANICAL, INDEX. 
3 
long ; all the strength goes to the hud that starts first and the others remain dormant. 
Having got the roots cut up, boxes or seed-pans may be prepared for them the same 
as for ordinary cuttings, viz., filled with light sandy soil, adding a little peat for such 
plants as naturally like that kind of soil. The pieces of root should then be scattered 
over the surface of the pans and covered about their own depth according to the 
thickness of the roots used; give them a slight bottom-heat, and in a fortnight, or 
three weeks’ time, the young buds will be found rising above the soil and elbowing 
each other for room. Spring is the best time to put them in, although they may be 
inserted all" through the summer months. In the case of many hardy plants bottom- 
heat is unnecessary, unless where time is' an object, which in most cases it is. Care 
must be taken in hardening oft' plants struck in heat, as they will be found to suffer 
more than in the case of stem cuttings unless gradually inured to the cold. This 
is the whole process, and it has several advantages to recommend it. 1st. A good 
supply of roots may be got without at all destroying the appearance of the stock plant. 
2nd. The cuttings are more easily and quickly put in, and in the third place the 
results are more satisfactory; provided the roots are healthy, it is rare to find a piece 
which will not grow. The only difficulty is to learn what plants are capable of being 
propagated by means of roots,. and this can only be discovered by experiment, as 
there is nothing, so far as I can see, about the appearance of the roots themselves that 
would lead one to be certain whether they could be propagated in that way or not. 
The following plants I know, however, may be increased by means of pieces of roots. 
My first attempt was made with Aralia papyrifera, and then with Aralm japonica; I 
do not, however, yet know whether the new Aralias, such as Veitchi, elegantissima, 
and others of that section may be increased by roots or not; but most probably they 
may. In that case they would require to be on their own roots, and not grafted 
plants. All the kinds of Dracaenas may be propagated in this way; also Hellebores, 
particularly H. grandiflorus or maximiis. Pelargoniums thus treated will also suc- 
ceed, but not so well as by stem cuttings, with the exception of fancy Pelargoniums, 
which are often difficult to strike by means of stem cuttings. Monsonia lobata, 
another Geraniaceous plant, Pulsatilla bracteata, a somewhat rare Anemone which 
has fibrous roots (not a creeping rhizome like the Wood Anemone) may also be 
increased by root cuttings. Anemone japonica (which grows naturally from the 
roots), Clematis, and Ipecacuanha, may also be increased by means of root-cuttings. 
Plants of the Ipecacuanha were first sent out to India in Wardian cases, but it was 
afterwards found that, the roots alone could be successfully sent out by post, and 
several small boxes of them were sent out in that way by Prof. Balfour, along with 
printed instructions as to their propagation drawn up by Mr. McNab. The roots 
arrived in good condition, and on being treated as directed, abundance of plants was 
the result. Drosera dichotoma, a rare Australian Sundew, strikes readily by means 
of pieces of root. Cuttings of all kinds of Bouvardias are now commonly raised from 
roots, as are likewise Rosa rugosa and other species, and many of the hybrids, together 
with Senecio pulcher ; Scolymus grandiilorus, Viola pedata, Cephalotus follicularis 
(the Australian Pitcher plant), Passifloras, Melianthus, Greyia, Xanthoceras sorbi- 
folius, and Venus’s fly trap (Diontei muscipula). With regard to this plant it is 
certainly not the root that is propagated, but the bulbous enlargement formed by r the 
old leaf-stalks, the scales of which are pulled asunder in the same way as is often 
done in the case of Lily scales. Sarracenias and Darlingtonia californica may also 
be propagated in this way, but they are clearly rhizomes, not roots, that are used for 
the purpose.” 
This is a subject of so much importance to the American gardener, that we will 
request those who have had experience in propagating from root cuttings, to seud us 
for publication a supplementary article. 
NEW OB LITTLE KNOWN FERNS OF THE UNITED STATES. 
Under the above heading, Professor D. C. Eaton announces in the October number 
of the “Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club,” the discovery of four species of 
Ferns new to the United States. They are; Ceratopteris thalictroides, in Southern 
Florida, by Dr. A. P. Garber; Cheilanthes microphylla, on an island near the mouth 
of the St. John’s River, Florida, by A. PI. Curtiss; Asplenium firmum, at Ocala, Fla.; 
Asplenium cicutarium, and A. myriophyllum, near Lake Panasopkee, Fla., by W. H. 
Shockley. These are all tropical species, and Prof. Eaton expresses the opinion that 
there are still many other undiscovered species in the swamps ana hummocks of 
Florida. Lucien M. Underwood also describes in the same number of the “ Bulletin ” 
a new form of Aspidium marginale, from several localities in Western New York, also 
from near Worcester, Massachusetts. 
