February 1910 
A Single Platt of Cupid’ (Grown in a 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
13 
pot) i 
‘are also difficult to increase by seeds or 
divison of the roots. Now and again one 
meets with a plant which rarely produces 
_-a fertile seed in this country at all, and 
which is also almost impossible to increase 
by the ordinary methods of division. 
‘Such a plant is Senecio pulcher, an inval- 
uable plant during the late summer and 
early autumn months, and one but rarely 
seen in a good condition. Hence root 
‘propaagtion in such a case is of great 
value, and prevents so good a plant being 
lost to cultivation altogether. ‘Chen there 
‘are certain other plants which, while pro- 
ducing seeds in plenty end being available 
at a cheap rate, are so slow, and uncertain, 
‘often enough, to vegetate that other 
methods of increase show an unmistakable 
advantage in point of time. Of such 
- things the Statices afford a good example? 
and there are others where this same 
method of root propagation is a decided 
gain in this direction. 
From another point of view, root 
propagation is of great value to the 
‘specialist, as by its selected 
‘examples of certain plants which cannot 
be relied upon to come true from seeds 
_ may be readily increased and always prove 
‘to their kind ; that is to say, while the 
flowers or seeJs are exposed to cross- 
fertiilsation by insects,- the roots still 
retain the true character of the individual 
means 
plant in its entirety. Hence it cannot be 
denied that the root propagation of plants 
is to the gardener a most useful and 
valuable asset, and a means in certain 
instances to be made much of, 
Quite recently many of our readers 
have made enquiries into ttis method of 
plant propagation, and the subject being 
of a sedsonable nature, we give in greater 
or less detail the essentail items for its 
successful adoption. Happily for these 
interested, the work may be carried out 
during the winter season, and, indeed» 
the dormant period of the subjects is the 
best time. What has to be done is to 
lift a good-sized plant from the open 
ground and detach as many of its roots as 
may be deemed expedient and safe, 
The detached roots should then be taken 
to the potting-shed and cut into lengths of 
about 13 inches, taking care at this 
* juncture that the uppermost ends of the 
roots, ie., the end which was nearest to 
the rootstock before being cut away, are 
kept uppermost throughout. By laying 
the root lengths in order as cut, no 
subsequent confusion need exist on this 
head, 
completed, the root-cuttings should be 
forthwith The manner of 
dealing with these cuttings subsequently 
is to prepare some well-drained pots or 
pans, the former for preferance, and fill 
and the work of cutting up 
inserted. 
them rather more than half full of rather 
sandy soil. At this point it will be 
necessary to gauge the cuttings and to 
determine whether more soil shonld be 
added to the pots or some removed. 
When the cuttings are inserted and the 
work completed, the apical portion of the 
cutting should be just visible above the 
surface of the soil and level with the rim 
of the pot, the cutting being placed around 
the interior of the rim ina not quite upright 
position. In this way the operator can 
judge for himself as to the work being 
rightly done. The cuttings should be 
placed around at about a quarter of an 
inch apart or thereabouts, or at a greater 
distance if there is no sarcity of room, 
When the root-cuttings are in position, 
the remaining space should be filled with 
soil, taking care not to displace the cut- 
tings in doing this. By making the soil 
of a sandy nature new root-fibres are 
more quickly formed when, presently, 
top growth begins. The best position 
for these pots of root-cuttings is in the 
_ greenhouse frame, where aslight warmth, 
“say, of 458 or 50 obtains, 
Given one 
good watering when the work is completed, 
the pots in the position and warmth 
suggested will require uo more for a 
fortnight. If no frame is at command, 
the pots of plants may belunged into 
fibre or sand in pots of much larger size, 
