404 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
Februaex 24. 
peau species is foiiml growing on the mountains of the 
Canary Islands, in the clefts of rugged mountains, where 
, it grows to a groat size in circmnference, though not 
; in heiglit, seldom exceeding, in that particular, more 
than seventy feet. In Devonshire and Cornwall it lives 
in the open air with imj)unity, but more northerly should 
either be jirotected or grown in a lofty conservatory. 
PiNus Gerardiana (Gerard’s Pino).—A low-growing 
tree, with shorter leaves than any species in this section; 
j not particularly handsome, but it is the hardiest of the 
I Nepaul species. 
; PiNus JNsiGNis (Remarkable Pine).—I have, in my 
I “.Jottings by the Way,” frequently mentioned having 
i seen fine specimens of this most remarkable Vine. There 
j are also some fine trees of it in the famous Pinetum at 
Dropinore, the seat of Lady Grenville. So different 
; from all other Pines is this fine species, that it may be 
i known at a considerable distance. It grows very dense, 
and the foliage is of a bright green. No collectiori, 
however small, can b% com 2 )lete without at least one 
specimen. Too much in its praise cannot he said or 
written, and as the wood is said to be excellent, it ought 
j to be extensively planted, which, no doubt, it will be 
when the i)rioe is lower. Native of California, where it 
attains the height of 1(10 feet. 
PiNus Llaveana (La Llave’s Pine).—In the grounds 
at Delapre Abbey, near Northampton, there is a fine 
tiee of this handsome species. The cones are nearly 
w'ithout scales, a remarkable distinction, and the seeds 
are used as food. The branches are slender and sju’cad- 
iiig, and arc thickly clothed wdth foliage, which give out 
a pleasant perfume. Though a native of Mexico it is 
perfectly hardy. T. Appi.eby. 
(?'o be coiilinued.) 
THE PELARGONIUM. 
( Ooitliuiied /rum peye OMT.) 
Propagation : by Cuttings. —The grand secret in 
success of propagation by cuttings consists in having 
the wood or shoots in right condition. It should 
neither be too young nor too old; very young shoots 
(juickly damp off, and old ones are slow and not sure in 
making roots. Short stubby shoots make the best cut¬ 
tings, and the ]>oint where the bottom of the cutting 
should be made should ho in a half-ripened state. 1 
remember, when 1 first had the ambition to try my 
skill in propagation, reading, in Cushing's Exotic Gar¬ 
dener, how to strike cuttings of Pelargoniums. He 
directs them to be jmt in pure loam, and gives the 
sensible reason lor it that jnire loam contains the least 
amount ot putrescent matter. I put his recommenda¬ 
tion into practice with considerable success; perhajis 
nearly, if not quite equal to the success that would attend 
mo now with all my, as I supjiose, superior experience. 
Propagators use now another article to plant cuttings in 
which most certainly contains still less of any decaying 
matter that would cause cuttings to rot than even ^lure 
loam, and that is pure silver sand. To be more certain 
ot success, the following articles are necessary:—clean 
cutting pots (the size named in the pottery large 48’s) 
which are fivo-inchos-and-a-half in diameter, inside 
measure; clean drainage, formed with broken potsherds; 
pure loam, sifted through a coarse sieve; and the pure 
silver sand. 
Then the place to put them in—either a good pro- 
(lagating house, under a small frame covered with 
glass, and sot upon a heated surface of charcoal or coal 
ashes;—or a frame set up on a gentle hotbed made of 
well-tempcrod stable litter and loaves, and six inches 
thick with sawdust or coal ashes. With these conve¬ 
niences, and a due attention to choosing cuttings in a 
jiroper state, with a constant siqjervisiou in shading. 
giving air, and potting off’ as soon as roots are formed, ' 
there is no doubt of success-^almost every cutting will 
grow. 
The best time for the operation is the month ol 
March or April, though cuttings will strike well 
through all the summer months. Nurserymen, who pro¬ 
pagate this class of plants on a large scale, juit in cut¬ 
tings most largely when the plants arc cut down after 
the season for llowering is over; but such late-put-in- 
cutlings do not make such fine plants the following 
year as those that are struck in early spring. For the 
amateur, who only desires two or three plants of a kind, 
the first season is by far the best; and it must be a 
jioor jilant indeed from which that number of plants 
cannot be taken then. 
Having fixed upon the time, go over the plants and ! 
take off' as many cuttings as will fill one ]iot, choosing 
them as described above. With a very sharp knife cut : 
the bottom of each cutting right across, close to a 
joint: this is called an horizontal cut, and should 
be made, if jiossible, just at the point where the old 
wood terminates and the new begins, and then cut off' 
the bottom leaves, leaving two or three to each cutting. 
Place a mark, either a number, or the name, to each 
variety, as soon as all the cuttings of that variety are 
made, and so proceed till all that are taken off are made 
and marked. Let them lay on the bench till the pot is 
prepared to receive them. This short time will do them 
good, by drying up the wounds made with the knife. 
Then take the pot, and put a large piece of jrotsherd 
over the hole, propping it up on one side with a very 
small bit of the same material. This is to allow the 
superabundant water to escajie freely and readily. Over 
this potsherd place fully two inches of smaller broken 
potsherds, and upon them put a thin layer of the turfy 
sifting out of the loam. Then fill the pot to within an 
inch of the top, with the sifted loam, and that remaining 
inch with the pure white sand, give a gentle watering, 
and let it stand till the water settles, and the sand is 
firm. With a small smooth stick insert the cuttings 
round the edge of the pot, pressing the sand firmly to 
the bottom of each. Take care to place the mark to 
each variety as they are put in. The stick will leave a 
little hollow to each cutting, these hollows should be filled 
up with some dry sand; when this is done, give a gentle 
watering again, and the operation is complete for that 
pot. Proceed so till all the cuttings intended to be put 
in are comjdeted, then place them in the (iropagating- 
house or frame on a hotbed. 
The attention they require after this, is to shade 
them from bright sun, and give a little air occasionally 
to lot out the damp) steam, but do not shade them too ; 
long, but accustom them to bear the sun by degrees. i 
As they form a callosity (a swelling at the base of 
each cutting), they will soon bear the full light, and 
will then emit plenty of roots. To ascertain this, take 
up a pot and turn it upside down, and give it a gentle 
stroke, holding one hand ready to catch the ball. If 
they are rooted, the white tender roots will be seen 
running down outside the ball, between it and the pot. 
Should that be so, pot them immediately into small pots 
in a more generous soil, consisting of loam and loaf 
mould in equal parts, with a free admixture of sand. 
Replace them in the frame for a week or ten days, 
giving them tepid water once or twice as they need it. 
'Then gradually inure them to bear the full sun and air, 
and jilace them on the shelves of the greenhouse near 
to tho glass. After that treat them as the rest of the 
older jilants. 
Some of the fancy varieties are very difficult to 
strike by cuttings in the ordinary way. The cuttings 
of these should bo jilanted in shallow pans tilled with 
sand entirely, the bottom of each cutting touching the 
bottom of the pan. These should be placed on a shelf 
