86 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
October 7, 1899- 
NATURAL PROPAGATION FROM A 
LEAF. 
I am sending you what I think is a rather interesting 
subject, a leaf of Gymnostachyum giganteum. It 
had been broken off the parent plant and had fallen 
on a Dendrobium pot, rich in sphagnum, and when 
ray eye caught it was nicely rooted, so I stuck it in 
again to see if it would form an eye, which to my 
surprise it has done, and is forming a plant as you 
may see. While nearly any plant will root by the 
leaf it is only a certain section that is capable of 
forming a bud, such as Begonias, Gloxinias, &c. I 
have tried Crotons frequently and rooted the leaves 
(without bud attachment) and kept them fresh for a 
year, but never yet have got them to grow a bud, no 
matter how long I kept them. I have two plants 
just now that have taken all the patience I have at 
command, viz., Tillandsia regeliana. As they were 
three years and six months before rooting, I wonder 
how many times they were turned out of the pots 
during that time to see if roots would ever form.— 
Geo. Russell, The Gardens, Redlands, Glasgow. 
[The accepted botanical name of the leaf sent by 
our correspondent is Fittoniagigantea.asub-shrubby, 
but dwarf stove plant, with carmine-red veins to the 
leaves, and grown as a fine foliaged subject. The 
leaf sent, or rather the basal half of a leaf, was 
swollen at the very base of the midrib or on the top 
of the stalk, and from the protuberance, three short 
leaf-bearing shoots had arisen, each capable of being 
removed with roots attached and ready to be grown 
into plants The plant used to be well known in 
gardens under the name of Gymnostachyum 
giganteum.— Ed] 
~ I— -— 
WINTER PRESERVATION OF 
ARTICHOKE SUCKERS. 
About the month of November, in the Paris climate 
chiefly, the Artichoke bunches are hilled up and 
covered with litter or leaves. But in spite of this, 
the plants during severe or wet winters are frozen, or 
decay on account of too much or protracted humidity. 
To form a new plant either seed must be employed 
or suckers purchased when any can be found, 
because growers or gardeners are often in the same 
predicament and cannot sell. 
Sowing in February or March on a hot-bed evi¬ 
dently avoids this accident; the plants shoot up 
rapidly and if rare is taken to replant them in pots 
good plants are obtained for the April-May planting. 
These young plants generally produce the same year 
in September-October. The evil then would be 
partially remedied if the seed did not give a large 
proportion of worthless plants, which are very spiny, 
quite similar t) the wild species, and can only be 
distinguished when the heads appear. The majority 
of these heads are very spiny, and their leaves in¬ 
stead of beiDg fleshy are very narrow and very cori¬ 
aceous. The plant itself is very spiny, but this 
characteristic is only manifested late. Consequently 
this method is not always favourable and cannot be 
recommended. 
Propagation of suckers presents very appreciable 
advantages compared with sowing. This mode of 
reproduction is more rapid, and surely and faithfully 
produces the characteristic of the plants from which 
the suckers are obtained. Suckering for winter 
preservation of young plants is operated at the end of 
October and the beginning of November. For this 
purpose the plants which have given the best and 
purest products are marked in advance, and at the 
time specified they are laid bare to the roots by aid 
of a wooden spatula or with the hand. All the 
suckers are broken off, or what is much better, cut 
with a knife, except two or three which are left on 
the stock. These suckers are then sorted, only those 
being kept which have five to eight leaves, of aver¬ 
age size, furnished with a rhizome or root-stem and 
some roots. The others are set aside as too weak 
because they do not always give a guarantee of 
growth and generally fructify too late, 
The wounds produced on the suckers by breaking 
are trimmed with the pruning knife, so that they can 
at once callus. This need not be done when they 
are cut and the roots are preserved intact. The 
faded leaves are then removed and the healthy leaves 
shortened to two-thirds of their length. Thus pre¬ 
pared they are placed one by one in pots 3J in. to 4J in. 
in diameter, containing a mixture of sand, dung com¬ 
post, and garden soil in equal parts ; the pots must 
be well drained and the soil properly compressed. 
Copious watering completes the operation. The 
pots are then placed by the side of each other in a 
box, and plunged in soil contained in the box, and 
then covered with a frame, which is left closed for 
some days, in order to faciliate emission of new 
roots. 
From time to time a little air is given the plants by 
opening the frame when the weather permits. When, 
on the other hand, the nights are cold, straw mats 
are placed over, and the box is surrounded with 
litter or leaves ; but these mats must be taken away 
in the daytime. 
Thus treated these plants are very vigorous, 
and can be put into place during the month of 
March. They fructify at the same time as 
the Artichokes planted the previous year. But an 
early crop can be grown by working as follows: — 
Towards the end of February the strongest plants 
are sorted from the preserved plants, and replanted 
in very fertile soil in pots 5 in. or 6 in. in diameter. 
The pots are then replaced under the frame and 
aired as previously. The roots grow in the new soil 
and the young Artichokes attain a stronger growth, 
especially when regularly watered and left under frame 
until the middle of April, giving them a daily airing 
to produce firm growth. By working in this manner 
a crop is obtained fifteen to twenty days earlier than 
with old plants and the other suckers likewise kept 
in frames during winter. These suckers may be 
repotted to obtain stronger plants, and placed back 
again as though they had not been repotted. 
This is an excellent method to prolong the crop, 
by which growers and amateurs can profit. This 
wintering under frames is not at all expensive, be¬ 
cause the frames employed are unoccupied at this 
season. 
For planting, after manuring and digging the soil 
deeply, lines are drawn lengthwise at a distance from 
each other of 32 in. to 39 in , and Artichokes planted 
therein at the same distance and as much apart in 
the row. To aid growth, some spadefuls of dung 
compost or other similar materials should be mixed 
with the soil. 
The Artichokes are then planted by aid of a trowel, 
taking care to remove them from the pots gently, so 
as not to break the clod; press down lightly and 
make a rather deep hollow to distribute the water. 
Finally, give them a first watering. 
It is excellent to mulch the plants around with 
short dung, which maintains coolness and aids 
growth. The work, until the crop appears, consists 
in frequent waterings, second tillage, and partial 
earthing up of the plants. 
I shall mention, by way of note, the method of 
preserving matured plants which can be utilised by 
those who have a vegetable conservatory or orangery. 
Matured plants are placed in large pots or boxes. 
Their products are, however, cot in advance of those 
obtained by the above method. One can easily 
understand the advantage of this method, as yet 
little known, which, together with assuring the crop, 
also enables one to obtain it earlier; whereas that 
grown from spring suckering is often uncertain, 
admitting that the plants to supply suckers have not 
perished during the winter — A. Maumene. 
-—**- 
PEOPLE WE HAVE MET. 
Mr. William Yeates Baker. 
It is with great pleasure that we take the oppor¬ 
tunity of presenting our readers with a portrait of 
this gentleman, the president at the 13th annual 
dinner of the United Horticultural Benefit and Provi¬ 
dent Society. 
For nearly fifty years Mr. Baker has been con¬ 
nected with, and is now proprietor of the Thames 
Bank Iron Company, of Upper Ground Street, 
Blackfriars, S.E., and in this connection he has 
supplied hot water boilers, &c., to many and many of 
*' the Stately Homes of England,” thereby becoming 
well known in the horticultural world. 
He is a prominent Freemason, having been 
Treasurer of the Hortus Lodge from its commence¬ 
ment. 
Far and wide, not only in his business circle, but 
in his private environment, Mr. Baker’s kindly and 
genial nature has won the respect and esteem of all 
with whom he has come into contact. 
As a practical supporter and earnest sympathiser 
in the work of the horticultural charities, Mr. Baker 
is heartily appreciate:!. He is chairman of the 
management committee of the Gardeners’ Royal 
Benevolent Institution, and has always evinced the 
warmest possible interest in its welfare and increas¬ 
ing usefulness. 
We have also heard of him as a supporter of the 
Mr. William Yeates Baker 
Royal Gardeners' Orphan fund, and now we trust 
that the kindly effort he is making on behalf of the 
Benefit and Provident Society will enable us in our 
next issue to give a most satisfactory account of a 
successful function. 
GARDEN TOOLS. 
May I as an amateur gardener say a few words on 
tools ? A good set greatly conduces to the comfort 
of the amateur gardener. 
I have at present a vegetable garden of about 
40 square yards. I dig this over at least four times 
a year, therefore I much appreciate good, handy 
tools well suited to their work. There is no doubt 
that a fork works more easy than a spade for 
general digging. 
I have just got from Messrs. A. and F. Parkes, 
Birmingham, a specially made flat prong fork 
(marked M.B.), which works most satisfactorily, and 
the fit is especially correct. I can strongly recom¬ 
mend amateurs and others to try it; any tool agent 
will get it. 
I think that one of the four diggings, the spring, 
should be done with a spade, as I notice the weeds 
do not grow so fast after the spade. I suppose it 
cuts them up more than the fork. That being so 
one must put up with a little extra labour as its use 
is beneficial to the ground, or hire a man to do it. 
I never have any help in my own garden. 
The D handle suits the amateur hand best; but 
these handles are generally made very short, giving 
the amateur the backache to no purpose. 
A handle of 2 ft. 9 in. high suits me best, but I can 
rarely find one of the lengib. I notice some makers 
affirm that their spades are perfect in every way. 
I should very much like to find a spade used ody 
in the garden that would clean itself in use and keep 
bright. Of course much depends on the scil.clay or 
sand ; mine is clay. 
Now I have only to add I should much like to 
discover a spade of the Scotch garden type, em 
bracing the above virtues, and fitted with a 2 ft. 9 in. 
handle. Such a spade would be a comfort to 
amateurs and those wanting a handy spade. I have 
been an amateur gardener for twenty years, but have 
not yet come upon such a tool. If any of your 
other readers have they should not hide their lights 
in their gardens, but publish them for the benefit of 
less fortunate gardeners. I certainly will when I find 
the tool. — C. Mullins. 
