IV. _Garden Operations._

_Propagation._--The increase of plants, so far as the production of new

individuals of particular kinds is concerned, is one of the most

important and constantly recurring of gardening operations. In effecting

this, various processes are adopted, which will now be described.

1. _By Seeds._--This may be called the natural means of increasing the

number of any particular kind of plant, but it is to be remembered

that we do not by that means secure an exact reproduction of the

parent, especially in the case of plants raised or evolved in the

course of generations by hybridization and selection. We may get a

progeny very closely resembling it, yet each plant possessing a

distinct individuality of its own; or we may get a progeny very unlike

the parent, or a mixed progeny showing various degrees of divergence.

Many seeds will grow freely if sown in a partially ripened state; but

as a general rule seeds have to be kept for some weeks or months in

store, and hence they should be thoroughly ripened before being

gathered. They should be sown in fine rich soil, and such as will not

readily get consolidated. In the case of outdoor crops, if the soil is

inclined to be heavy, it is a good plan to cover all the smaller seeds

with a light compost. Very small seeds should only have a sprinkling

of light earth or of sand, and sometimes only a thin layer of soft

moss to exclude light and preserve an equable degree of moisture.

Somewhat larger seeds sown indoors may be covered to the depth of

one-eighth or one-fourth of an inch, according to their size. Outdoor

crops require to be sown, the smaller seeds from 1/2 to 1 in., and the

larger ones from 2 to 4 in. under the surface, the covering of the

smaller ones especially being light and open. Many seeds grow well

when raked in; that is, the surface on which they are scattered is

raked backwards and forwards until most of them are covered. Whatever

the seeds, the ground should be made tolerably firm both beneath and

above them; this may be done by treading in the case of most kitchen

garden crops, which are also better sown in drills, this admitting the

more readily of the ground being kept clear from weeds by hoeing. All

seeds require a certain degree of heat to induce germination. For

tropical plants the heat of a propagating house--75 deg. to 80 deg.,

with a bottom heat of 80 deg. to 90 deg.--is desirable, and in many

cases absolutely necessary; for others, such as half-hardy annuals, a

mild hot bed, or a temperate pit ranging from 60 deg. to 70 deg., is

convenient; while of course all outdoor crops have to submit to the

natural temperature of the season. It is very important that seeds

should be sown when the ground is in a good working condition, and not

clammy with moisture.

2. _By Offsets._--This mode of increase applies specially to bulbous

plants, such as the lily and hyacinth, which produce little bulbs on

the exterior round their base. Most bulbs do so naturally to a limited

but variable extent; when more rapid increase is wanted the heart is

destroyed, and this induces the formation of a larger number of

offsets. The stem bulbs of lilies are similar in character to the

offsets from the parent bulb. The same mode of increase occurs in the

gladiolus and crocus, but their bulb-like permanent parts are called

corms, not bulbs. After they have ripened in connexion with the parent

bulb, the offsets are taken off, stored in appropriate places, and at

the proper season planted out in nursery beds.

3. _By Tubers._--The tuber is a fleshy underground stem, furnished

with eyes which are either visible, as in the potato and in some

familiar kinds of _Tropaeolum_ (_T. tuberosum_) and of _Oxalis_ (_O.

crenata_), or latent, as in the Chinese yam (_Dioscorea Batatas_).

When used for propagation, the tubers are cut up into what are called

"sets," every portion having an eye attached being capable of forming

an independent plant. The cut portions of bulky sets should be

suffered to lie a short time before being planted, in order to dry the

surface and prevent rotting; this should not, however, be done with

such tropical subjects as caladiums, the tubers of which are often cut

up into very small fragments for propagation, and of course require to

be manipulated in a properly heated propagating pit. No eyes are

visible in the Chinese yam, but slices of the long club-shaped tubers

will push out young shoots and form independent plants, if planted

with ordinary care.

4. _By Division._--Division, or partition, is usually resorted to in

the case of tufted growing plants, chiefly perennial herbs; they may

be evergreen, as chamomile or thrift, or when dormant may consist only

of underground crowns, as larkspur or lily-of-the-valley; but in

either case the old tufted plant being dug up may be divided into

separate pieces, each furnished with roots, and, when replanted,

generally starting on its own account without much check. Suffruticose

plants and even small shrubs may be propagated in this way, by first

planting them deeper than they are ordinarily grown, and then after

the lapse of a year, which time they require to get rooted, taking

them up again and dividing them into parts or separate plants.

Box-edging and southernwood are examples. The same ends may sometimes

be effected by merely working fine soil in amongst the base of the

stems, and giving them time to throw out roots before parting them.

5. _By Suckers._--Root suckers are young shoots from the roots of

plants, chiefly woody plants, as may often be seen in the case of the

elm and the plum. The shoots when used for propagation must be

transplanted with all the roots attached to them, care being taken not

to injure the parent plant. If they spring from a thick root it is not

to be wantonly severed, but the soil should be removed and the sucker

taken off by cutting away a clean slice of the root, which will then

heal and sustain no harm. Stem suckers are such as proceed from the

base of the stem, as is often seen in the case of the currant and

lilac. They should be removed in any case; when required for

propagation they should be taken with all the roots attached to them,

and they should be as thoroughly disbudded below ground as possible,

or they are liable to continue the habit of suckering. In this case,

too, the soil should be carefully opened and the shoots removed with a

suckering iron, a sharp concave implement with long iron handle (fig.

14). When the number of roots is limited, the tops should be

shortened, and some care in watering and mulching should be bestowed

on the plant if it is of value.

[Illustration: FIG. 14.--Suckering Iron.]

6. _By Runners._--The young string-like shoots produced by the

strawberry are a well-known example of runners. The process of rooting

these runners should be facilitated by fixing them close down to the

soil, which is done by small wooden hooked pegs or by stones;

hair-pins, short lengths of bent wire, &c., may also be used. After

the roots are formed, the strings are cut through, and the runners

become independent plants.

7. _By Proliferous Buds._--Not unlike the runner, though growing in a

very different way, are the bud-plants formed on the fronds of several

kinds of ferns belonging to the genera _Asplenium_, _Woodwardia_,

_Polystichum_, _Lastrea_, _Adiantum_, _Cystopteris_, &c. In some of

these (_Adiantum caudatum_, _Polystichum lepidocaulon_) the rachis of

the frond is lengthened out much like the string of the strawberry

runner, and bears a plant at its apex. In others (_Polystichum

angulare proliferum_) the stipes below and the rachis amongst the

pinnae develop buds, which are often numerous and crowded. In others

again (_Woodwardia orientalis_, _Asplenium bulbiferum_), buds are

numerously produced on the upper surface of the fronds. These will

develop on the plant if allowed to remain. For propagation the

buibiferous portion is pegged down on the surface of a pot of suitable

soil; if kept close in a moist atmosphere, the little buds will soon

strike root and form independent plants. In _Cystopteris_ the buds are

deciduous, falling off as the fronds acquire maturity, but, if

collected and pressed into the surface of a pot of soil and kept

close, they will grow up into young plants the following season. In

some genera of flowering plants, and notably in Bryophyllum, little

plants form on various parts of the leaves. In some Monocotyledons,

ordinarily in Chlorophytum, and exceptionally in Phalaenopsis and

others, new plants arise on the flower stems.

[Illustration: FIG. 15.--Propagation by Layers--a, tonguing; b,

ringing.]

8. _By Layers._--Layering consists in preparing the branch of a plant

while still attached to the parent, bending it so that the part

operated on is brought under ground, and then fixing it there by means

of a forked peg. Some plants root so freely that they need only

pegging down; but in most cases the arrest of the returning sap to

form a callus, and ultimately young roots, must be brought about

artificially, either by twisting the branch, by splitting it, by

girding it closely with wire, by taking off a ring of bark, or by

"tonguing." In tonguing the leaves are cut off the portion which has

to be brought under ground, and a tongue or slit is then cut from

below upwards close beyond a joint, of such length that, when the cut

part of the layer is pegged an inch or two (or in larger woody

subjects 3 or 4 in.) below the surface, the elevation of the point of

the shoot to an upright position may open the incision, and thus set

it free, so that it may be surrounded by earth to induce it to form

roots. The whole branch, except a few buds at the extremity, is

covered with soil. The best seasons for these operations are early

spring and mid-summer, that is, before the sap begins to flow, and

after the first flush of growth has passed off. One whole summer,

sometimes two, must elapse before the layers will be fully rooted in

the case of woody plants; but such plants as carnations and picotees,

which are usually propagated in this way, in favourable seasons take

only a few weeks to root, as they are layered towards the end of the

blooming season in July, and are taken off and planted separately

early in the autumn. Fig. 15 shows a woody plant with one layer

prepared by tonguing and another by ringing.

In general, each shoot makes one layer, but in plants like the

_Wistaria_ or _Clematis_, which make long shoots, what is called

serpentine layering may be adopted; that is, the shoot is taken

alternately below and above the surface, as frequently as its length

permits. There must, however, be a joint at the underground part where

it is to be tongued and pegged, and at least one sound bud in each

exposed part, from which a shoot may be developed to form the top of

the young plant.

9. _By Circumposition._--When a plant is too high or its habit does

not conveniently admit of its being layered, it may often be increased

by what is called circumposition, the soil being carried up to the

branch operated on. The branch is to be prepared by ringing or

notching or wiring as in layering, and a temporary stand made to

support the vessel which is to contain the soil. The vessel may be a

flower-pot sawn in two, so that the halves may be bound together when

used, or it may be a flower-pot or box with a side slit which will

admit the shoot; this vessel is to be filled compactly with suitable

porous earth, the opening at the slit being stopped by pieces of slate

or tile. The earth must be kept moist, which is perhaps best done by a

thick mulching of moss, the moss being also bound closely over the

openings in the vessel, and all being kept damp by frequent

syringings. Gardeners often dispense with the pot, using sphagnum moss

and leaf-mould only when propagating india-rubber plants, perpetual

carnations, dracaenas, &c.

10. _By Grafts._--Grafting is so extensively resorted to that it is

impossible here to notice all its phases. It is perhaps of most

importance as the principal means of propagating our hardy kinds of

fruit, especially the apple and the pear; but the process is the same

with most other fruits and ornamental hardy trees and shrubs that are

thus propagated. The stocks are commonly divided into two

classes:--(1) free stocks, which consist of seedling plants, chiefly

of the same genus or species as the trees from which the scions are

taken; and (2) dwarfing stocks, which are of more diminutive growth,

either varieties of the same species or species of the same or some

allied genus as the scion, which have a tendency to lessen the

expansion of the engrafted tree. The French Paradise is the best

dwarfing stock for apples, and the quince for pears. In determining

the choice of stocks, the nature of the soil in which the grafted

trees are to grow should have full weight. In a soil, for example,

naturally moist, it is proper to graft pears on the quince, because

this plant not only thrives in such a soil, but serves to check the

luxuriance thereby produced. The scions should always be ripened

portions of the wood of the preceding year, selected from healthy

parents; in the case of shy-bearing kinds, it is better to obtain them

from the fruitful branches. The scions should be taken off some weeks

before they are wanted, and half-buried in the earth, since the stock

at the time of grafting should in point of vegetation be somewhat in

advance of the graft. During winter, grafts may be conveyed long

distances, if carefully packed. If they have been six weeks or two

months separated from the parent plant, they should be grafted low on

the stock, and the earth should be ridged up round them, leaving only

one bud of the scion exposed above ground. The best season for

grafting apples and similar hardy subjects in the open air is in March

and April; but it may be commenced as soon as the sap in the stock is

fairly in motion.

_Whip-grafting_ or _Tongue-grafting_ (fig. 16) is the most usual mode

of performing the operation when there is no great difference in

thickness between the stock and scion. The stock is headed off by an

oblique transverse cut as shown at a, a slice is then pared off the

side as at b, and on the face of this a tongue or notch is made, the

cut being in a downward direction; the scion c is pared off in a

similar way by a single clean sharp cut, and this is notched or

tongued in the opposite direction as the figure indicates; the two are

then fitted together as shown at d, so that the inner bark of each may

come in contact at least on one side, and then tied round with damp

soft bast as at e; next some grafting clay is taken on the forefinger

and pushed down on each side so as to fill out the space between the

top of the stock and the graft, and a portion is also rubbed over the

ligatures on the side where the graft is placed, a handful of the clay

is then taken, flattened out, and rolled closely round the whole point

of junction, being finished off to a tapering form both above and

below, as shown by the dotted line f. To do this deftly, the hands

should be plunged from time to time in dry ashes, to prevent the clay

from sticking to them. Various kinds of grafting wax are now

obtainable, and are a great improvement upon the clay process. Some

cold mastics become very pliable with the warmth of the hands. They

are best applied with a piece of flat wood; or very liquid waxes may

be applied with a brush.

[Illustration: FIG. 16.--Whip-grafting or Tongue-grafting.]

_Cleft-grafting_ (fig. 17) is another method in common use. The stock

a is cleft down from the horizontal cut d (but not nearly so much as

the sketch would indicate), and the scion, when cut to a thin wedge

form, as shown at c and e, is inserted into the cleft; the whole is

then bound up and clayed as in the former case. This is not so good a

plan as whip-grafting; it is improved by sloping the stock on one side

to the size of the graft.

[Illustration: Fig. 17.--Cleft-grafting.]

[Illustration: Fig. 18.--Crown-Grafting.]

_Crown-grafting_ or _Rind-grafting_ (fig. 18) is preferable to

cleft-grafting, inasmuch as it leaves no open spaces in the wood. The

stock b is cut off horizontally or nearly so in January or February.

At grafting time a slit is cut in the bark f, f, a wedge-shaped piece

of iron or a small chisel being inserted to raise the bark; the scion

is then cut to the same wedge-shaped form g, h, and inserted in the

space opened for it between the alburnum and the bark, after which it

is tied down and clayed or waxed over in the manner already described.

_Side-grafting_ is performed like whip-grafting, the graft being

inserted on the side of a branch and not at the cut end of the stock.

It may be practised for the purpose of changing a part of the tree,

and is sometimes very useful for filling out vacant spaces, in trained

trees especially.

_Inarching_ is another form of side-grafting. Here the graft is fixed

to the side of the stock, which is planted or potted close to the

plant to be worked. The branches are applied to the stock while yet

attached to the parent tree, and remain so until united. In the case

of trained trees, a young shoot is sometimes inarched to its parent

stem to supply a branch where one has not been developed in the

ordinary way.

For the propagation by grafts of stove and greenhouse plants the

process adopted is whip-grafting or a modification of it. The parts

are, however, sometimes so small that the tongue of the graft is

dispensed with, and the two stems simply pared smooth and bound

together. In this way hardy rhododendrons of choice sorts, greenhouse

azaleas, the varieties of the orange family, camellias, roses, rare

conifers, clematises and numerous other plants are increased.

Raffia--which has taken the place of bast--is generally used for

tying, and grafting wax is only used occasionally with such plants

under glass. All grafting of this kind is done in the propagating

house, at any season when grafts are obtainable in a fit state--the

plants when operated on being placed in close frames warmed to a

suitable temperature. Roses and clematis, however, are generally

grafted from January to March and April.

_Root-grafting_ is sometimes resorted to where extensive increase is

an object, or where stem-grafting or other means of propagation are

not available. In this case the scion is grafted directly on to a

portion of the root of some appropriate stock, both graft and stock

being usually very small; the grafted root is then potted so as to

cover the point of junction with the soil, and is plunged in the bed

of the propagating house, where it gets the slight stimulus of a

gentle bottom heat. Dahlias (fig. 19), paeonies, and Wistarias may be

grafted by inserting young shoots into the neck of one of the fleshy

roots of each kind respectively--the best method of doing so being to

cut a triangular section near the upper end of the root, just large

enough to admit the young shoot when slightly pared away on two sides

to give it a similar form. In the case of large woody plants thus

worked (fig. 20) the grafted roots, after the operation is completed,

are planted in nursery beds, so that the upper buds only are exposed

to the atmosphere, as shown in the figure.

[Illustration: FIG. 19.--Root-grafting of Dahlia.]

[Illustration: FIG. 20.--Root-grafting of Woody Plant.]

11. _By Buds._--Budding is the inserting of a bud of a choice variety

cut with a portion of bark into the bark of the stock of an inferior

nature where it is bound gently but firmly. Stone fruits, such as

peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, &c., are usually propagated in

this way, as well as roses and many other plants. In the propagating

house budding may be done at any season when the sap is in motion; but

for fruit trees, roses, &c., in the open air, it is usually done in

July or August, when the buds destined for the following year are

completely formed in the axils of the leaves, and when the bark

separates freely from the wood it covers. Those buds are to be

preferred, as being best ripened, which occur on the middle portion of

a young shoot, and which are quite dormant at the time.

[Illustration: FIG. 21.--Shield-budding.]

The simplest and most generally practised form of budding is that

called _shield-budding_ or T-_budding_ (fig. 21). The operator should

be provided with a sharp budding knife having a thin ivory or bone

handle, for raising the bark of the stock. A horizontal incision is

made in the bark quite down to the wood, and from this a perpendicular

slit is drawn upwards to the extent of perhaps an inch, so that the

slit has a resemblance to the letter T, as at a. A bud is then cut by

a clean incision from the tree intended to be propagated, having a

portion of the wood attached to it, and so that the whole may be about

1 in. long, as at d. The bit of wood e must be gently withdrawn, care

being taken that the bud adheres wholly to the bark or shield, as it

is called, of which f is a side view. The bark on each side of the

perpendicular slit being then cautiously opened, as at b, with the

handle of the knife, the bud and shield are inserted as shown at c.

The upper tip of the shield is cut off horizontally, and brought to

fit the bark of the stock at the transverse incision. Slight ties of

soft cotton wool or worsted, or moist raffia, are then applied. In

about a month or six weeks the ligatures may be removed or slit with

the knife to allow for the swelling stem, when, if the operation has

been successful, the bud will be fresh and full, and the shield firmly

united to the wood. In the following spring a strong shoot will be

thrown out, and to prevent its being blown out by the wind, must be

fastened to a stake, or to the lower portion of the old stock which

has been left for the purpose.

To be successful the operation should be performed with a quick and

light hand, so that no part of the delicate tissues be injured, as

would happen if they were left for a time exposed, or if the bud were

forced in like a wedge. The union is effected as in grafting, by means

of the organizable sap or cambium, and the less this is disturbed

until the inner bark of the shield is pressed and fixed against it the

better. Trees to be grown in the form of a bush are usually budded low

down on the stem of the stock as near the root as possible to obviate

the development of wild suckers later on. Standard trees, however, are

budded on a sturdy young shoot close to the top. In either case the

stocks should have been carefully planted at least the previous

November when the work is to be done in the open air the following

July or August.

[Illustration: FIG. 22.--Propagation by Cuttings.]

12. _By Branch Cuttings._--Propagation by cuttings is the mode of

increase most commonly adopted, next to that by seeds. It is effected

by taking a portion from a branch or shoot of the plant, and placing

it in the soil. There are great differences to be observed in the

selection and treatment of cuttings. Sometimes soft green leafy

shoots, as in _Verbena_ (fig. 22, a), are used; sometimes the shoots

must be half-ripened, and sometimes fully matured. So of the mode of

preparation; some will root if cut off or broken off at any point and

thrust into wet earth or sand in a warm place (fig. 22, a); others

require to be cut with the utmost care just below a joint or

leaf-base, and by a keen blade so as to sever the tissues without

tearing or bruising; and others again after being cut across may be

split up for a short distance, but there seems to be no particular

virtue in this. It is usual and in most cases necessary to cut away

the lower portion of a cutting up to just below the node or joint

(fig. 22, b, d, e). The internodal parts will not often divide so as

to form separate individual plants; sometimes, however, this happens;

it is said that the smallest piece of _Torenia asiatica_, for

instance, will grow. Then as to position, certain cuttings grow

readily enough if planted outdoors in the open soil, some preferring

shade, others sunshine, while less hardy subjects must be covered with

a bell-glass, or must be in a close atmosphere with bottom heat, or

must have the aid of pure silver sand to facilitate their rooting

(fig. 22, c). Cuttings should in all cases be taken from healthy

plants, and from shoots of a moderate degree of vigour. It is also

important to select leafy growths, and not such as will at once run up

to flower. Young shoots which have become moderately firm generally

make the best cuttings, but sometimes the very softest shoots strike

more readily. For all indoor plants in a growing state spring is a

good time for taking cuttings, but at any time during the summer

months is also favourable if cuttings are obtainable.

Cuttings of deciduous plants should be taken off after the fall of the

leaf. These cuttings should be about 6 in. to 1 ft. in length, and

should be planted at once in the ground so as to leave only the top

with the two or three preserved buds exposed. If a clean stem,

however, is desired, a longer portion may be left uncovered.

Gooseberries, currants, roses and many hardy deciduous trees and

shrubs are easily propagated in this way if the cuttings are inserted

in well-drained soil about the end of October or early in November.

Cuttings of growing plants are prepared by removing with a sharp

knife, and moderately close, the few leaves which would otherwise be

buried in the soil; they are then cut clean across just below a joint;

the fewer the leaves thus removed, however, the better, as if kept

from being exhausted they help to supply the elaborated sap out of

which the roots are formed. Free-rooting subjects strike in any

lightish sandy mixture; but difficult subjects should have thoroughly

well-drained pots, a portion of the soil proper for the particular

plants made very sandy, and a surfacing of clean sharp silver sand

about as deep as the length of the cutting.

[Illustration: FIG. 23.--Leaf Cuttings.]

Such difficult plants as heaths are reared in silver sand, a stratum

of which is placed over the sandy peat soil in a specially prepared

cutting pot, and thus the cuttings, though rooting in the sand under a

bell-glass, find at once on the emission of roots congenial soil for

them to grow in (fig. 22, c).

Hardy plants, such as pinks, pansies, &c., are propagated by cuttings

planted during early summer in light rich soil. The cuttings of pinks

are called pipings (fig. 22, d), and are planted about June, while

pansies may be renewed in this way both in spring and in autumn.

13. _By Leaf Cuttings._--Many plants may be propagated by planting

their leaves or portions of the leaves as cuttings, as, for example,

the _Gloxinia_ (fig. 23, a) and _Gesnera_, the succulent

_Sempervivum_, _Echeveria_, _Pachyphytum_ and their allies, and such

hard-leaved plants as _Theophrasta_ (fig. 23, b). The leaves are best

taken off with the base whole, and should be planted in well-drained

sandy soil; in due time they form roots, and ultimately from some

latent bud a little shoot which forms the young plant. The treatment

is precisely like that of branch cuttings. Gloxinias, begonias, &c.,

grow readily from fragments of the leaves cut clean through the thick

veins and ribs, and planted edgewise like cuttings. This class of

subjects may also be fixed flat on the surface of the cutting pot, by

means of little pegs or hooks, the main ribs being cut across at

intervals, and from these points roots, and eventually young tubers,

will be produced (fig. 24).

[Illustration: FIG. 24.--Leaf-Propagation of Begonia.]

14. _By Root Cuttings._--Some plants which are not easily increased by

other means propagate readily from root cuttings. Amongst the indoor

plants which may be so treated, _Bouvardia_, _Pelargonium_, _Aralia_

and _Wigandia_ may be mentioned. The _modus operandi_ is to turn the

plant out of its pot, shake away the soil so as to free the roots, and

then select as many pieces of the stouter roots as may be required.

These are cut up into half-inch lengths (more or less), and inserted

in light sandy soil round the margin of a cutting pot, so that the

upper end of the root cutting may be level with the soil or only just

covered by it. The pots should be watered so as to settle the soil,

and be placed in the close atmosphere of the propagating pit or frame,

where they will need scarcely any water until the buds are seen

pushing through the surface.

There are various herbaceous plants which may be similarly treated,

such as sea-kale and horseradish, and, among ornamental plants, the

beautiful autumn-blooming _Anemone japonica_, _Bocconia cordata_,

_Dictamnus Fraxinella_--the burning bush; the sea hollies

(_Eryngium_), the globe thistle (_Echinops ritro_), the Oriental poppy

(Papaver orientale), the sea lavender (_Statice latifolia_), _Senecio

pulcher_, &c. The sea-kale and horseradish require to be treated in

the open garden, where the cut portions should be planted in lines in

well-worked soil; but the roots of the others should be planted in

pots and kept in a close frame with a little warmth till the young

shoots have started.

Various hardy ornamental trees are also increased in this way, as the

quince, elm, robinia and mulberry, and the rose amongst shrubs. The

most important use to which this mode of propagation is put is,

however, the increase of roses, and of the various plums used as

stocks for working the choicer stone fruits. The method in the latter

case is to select roots averaging the thickness of the little finger,

to cut these into lengths of about 3 or 4 in., and to plant them in

lines just beneath the surface in nursery beds. The root cuttings of

rose-stocks are prepared and treated in a similar way.

[Illustration: FIG. 25.--Cutting of Single Eye.]

15. _By Cuttings of Single Eyes._--This mode of propagation is by

cutting the ripened young branches into short lengths, each containing

one well-matured bud or eye, with a short portion of the stem above

and below. It is a common mode of propagating vines, the eyes being in

this case cut from the ripened leafless wood. The eyes (fig. 25, a)

are planted just below the surface in pots of light soil, which are

placed in a hot bed or propagating pit, and in due time each pushes up

a young shoot which forms the future stem, while from about its base

the young roots are produced (fig. 25, b) which convert it into an

independent plant. In the case of plants with persistent leaves, the

stem may be cut through just above and below the bud, retaining the

leaf which is left on the cutting, the old wood and eye being placed

beneath the soil and the leaf left exposed. In this way the

india-rubber tree (_Ficus elastica_), for example, and many other

tender plants may be increased with the aid of a brisk bottom heat.

Many of the free-growing soft-wooded plants may also be grown from

cuttings of single joints of the young wood, where rapid increase is

desired; and in the case of opposite-leaved plants two cuttings may

often be made from one joint by splitting the stem longitudinally,

each cutting consisting of a leaf and a perfect bud attached to half

the thickness of the stem.

_Planting and Transplanting._--In preparing a fruit tree for

transplantation, the first thing to be done is to open a trench round it

at a distance of from 3 to 4 ft., according to size. The trench should

be opened to about two spades' depth, and any coarse roots which may

extend thus far from the trunk may be cut clean off with a sharp knife.

The soil between the trench and the stem is to be reduced as far as may

seem necessary or practicable by means of a digging fork, the roots as

soon as they are liberated being fixed on one side and carefully

preserved. By working in this way all round the ball, the best roots

will be got out and preserved, and the ball lightened of all superfluous

soil. The tree will then be ready to lift if carefully prized up from

beneath the ball, and if it does not lift readily, it will probably be

found that a root has struck downwards, which will have to be sought out

and cut through. Whenever practicable, it is best to secure a ball of

earth round the roots. On the tree being lifted from its hole the roots

should be examined, and all which have been severed roughly with the

spade should have the ends cut smooth with the knife to facilitate the

emission of fibres. The tree can then be transported to its new

position. The hole for its reception should be of sufficient depth to

allow the base of the ball of earth, or of the roots, to stand so that

the point whence the uppermost roots spring from the stem may be 2 or 3

in. below the general surface level. Then the bottom being regulated so

as to leave the soil rather highest in the centre, the plant is to be

set in the hole in the position desired, and steadied there by hand.

Next the roots from the lower portion of the ball are to be sought out

and laid outwards in lines radiating from the stem, being distributed

equally on all sides as nearly as this can be done; some fine and

suitable good earth should be thrown amongst the roots as they are thus

being placed, and worked in well up to the base of the ball. The soil

covering the roots may be gently pressed down, but the tree should not

be pulled up and down, as is sometimes done, to settle the soil. This

done, another set of roots higher up the ball must be laid out in the

same way, and again another, until the whole of the roots, thus

carefully laid, are embedded as firmly as may be in the soil, which may

now receive another gentle treading. The stem should next be supported

permanently, either by one stake or by three, according to its size. The

excavation will now be filled up about two-thirds perhaps; and if so the

tree may have a thorough good watering, sufficient to settle the soil

closely about its roots. After twenty-four hours the hole may be

levelled in, with moderate treading, if the water has soaked well in,

the surface being left level and not sloping upwards towards the stem of

the tree. In transplanting trees of the ornamental class, less need be

attempted in respect to providing new soil, although the soil should be

made as congenial as practicable. Generally speaking, fruit trees are

best transplanted when three or four years of age, in which time they

will have acquired the shape given by the nurseryman, who generally

transplants his stock each autumn to produce large masses of root

fibres. Nowadays, however, quite large trees, chiefly of an ornamental

character, and perhaps weighing several tons, are lifted with a large

ball of soil attached to the roots, by means of a special tree-lifting

machine, and are readily transferred from one part of the garden to

another, or even for a distance of several miles, without serious

injury. The best season for transplanting deciduous trees is during the

early autumn months. As regards evergreens opinions are divided, some

preferring August and September, others April or May. They can be

successfully planted at either period, but for subjects which are at all

difficult to remove the spring months are to be preferred.

In transplanting smaller subjects, such as plants for the flower garden,

much less effort is required. The plant must be lifted with as little

injury to its rootlets as possible, and carefully set into the hole, the

soil being filled in round it, and carefully pressed close by the hand.

For moving small plants the garden trowel is a very convenient tool, but

we are inclined to give the preference to the hand-fork. For larger

masses, such as strong-growing herbaceous plants, a spade or

digging-fork will be requisite and the soil may be trodden down with the

feet.

When seedlings of vigorous plants have to be "pricked out," a dibble or

dibber is the best implement to be used. The ground being prepared and,

if necessary, enriched, and the surface made fine and smooth, a hole is

made with the dibble deep enough and large enough to receive the roots

of the seedling plants without doubling them up, and the hole is filled

in by working the soil close to the plant with the point of the dibble.

The pricking out of seedlings in pots in the propagating pit is effected

in a similar way. The plants, indeed, often require to be removed and

set from 1/2 in. to 1 in. apart before they have become sufficiently

developed to admit of being handled with any degree of facility, and for

these a pointed stick of convenient size is used as a dibble. In

delicate cases, such as seedling gloxinias and begonias, it is best to

lift the little seedling on the end of a flattish pointed stick, often

cleft at the apex, pressing this into the new soil where the plant is to

be placed, and liberating it and closing the earth about it by the aid

of a similar stick held in the other hand.

[Illustration: FIG. 26.--Section of Pot showing Crocks.]

_Potting and Repotting._--Garden pots are made with a comparatively

large hole in the bottom, and those of the largest size have also holes

at the side near the bottom; these openings are to prevent the soil

becoming saturated or soured with superabundant water. To prepare the

pot for the plant, a broadish piece of potsherd, called a "crock," is

placed over the large hole, and if there be side holes they also are

covered. The bottom crock is made from a piece of a broken garden pot,

and is laid with the convex side upwards; then comes a layer of

irregular pieces of crock of various sizes, about 1 in. deep in a 5-in.

pot, 2 in. in an 11-in. or 12-in. pot, &c. The mode of crocking a pot is

shown in fig. 26. A few of the coarser lumps from the outer edge of the

heap of potting soil are spread over the crocks. The same end, that of

keeping the finer particles of the soil from mixing with the drainage

crocks, may be attained by shaking in a little clean moss. A handful or

two of the soil is then put in, and on this the plant with its roots

spread out is to be set, a trifle higher than the plant should stand in

the pot when finished off; more soil is to be added, and the whole

pressed firmly with the fingers, the base of the stem being just below

the pot-rim, and the surface being smoothed off so as to slope a little

outwards. When finished off, the pots should be watered well, to settle

the soil; but they should stand till the water has well drained away,

since, if they are moved about while the fresh soil is very wet, there

will be a risk of its becoming puddled or too much consolidated. Larger

plants do not need quite such delicate treatment, but care should be

taken not to handle the roots roughly. The soil for these may be

somewhat coarser, and the amount of drainage material more ample. Larger

bodies of soil also require to be more thoroughly consolidated before

watering; otherwise they would settle down so as to leave an unsightly

void at the pot-rim.

Some plants, especially when potted temporarily, may be dealt with in a

simpler way. A single crock may be used in some cases, and in others no

crock at all, but a handful of half-decayed leaves or half-decayed dung

thrown into the bottom of the pot. This mode of potting does well for

bulbs, such as hyacinths, which are either thrown away or planted out

when the bloom is over. The bedding plants generally may be potted in

this way, the advantage being that at planting-out time there is less

risk of disturbing the roots than if there were potsherds to remove.

Plants of this character should be potted a little less firmly than

specimens which are likely to stand long in the pot, and indeed the soil

should be made comparatively light by the intermixture of leaf-mould or

some equivalent, in order that the roots may run freely and quickly into

it.

For epiphytal plants like orchids the most thorough drainage must be

secured by the abundant use of potsherds, small pots being sometimes

inserted inside the larger ones, or by planting in shallow pots or pans,

so that there shall be no large mass of soil to get consolidated. For

most of these the lightest spongy but sweet turfy peat must be used,

this being packed lightly about the roots, and built up above the

pot-rim, or in some cases freely mixed before use with chopped sphagnum

moss and small pieces of broken pots or nodules of charcoal. The plants

under these conditions often require to be supported by wooden pegs or

sticks. Some of the species grow better when altogether taken out of the

soil and fixed to blocks of wood, but in this case they require a little

coaxing with moss about the roots until they get established. In other

cases they are planted in open baskets of wood or wire, using the porous

peat and sphagnum compost. Both blocks and baskets are usually suspended

from the roof of the house, hanging free, so that no accumulation of

water is possible. These conditions of orchid-growing have undergone

great changes of late years, and the plants are grown much as other

stove and greenhouse plants in ordinary pots with composts not only of

peat but of leaf-mould, and fibres from osmunda and polypodium ferns.

When repotting is adopted as a temporary expedient, as in the case of

bedding-out plants which it is required to push forward as much as

possible, it will suffice if provision is made to prevent the drainage

hole from getting blocked, and a rich light compost is provided for the

encouragement of the roots. When, however, a hard-wooded plant has to be

repotted, the case is different; it may stand without further potting

for one year or two years or more, and therefore much more care is

necessary. The old ball of earth must be freed from all or most of the

old crocks without doing injury to the roots, and the sharp edge of the

upper surface gently rubbed off. If there be any sour or sodden or

effete soil into which the roots have not run, this should be carefully

picked out with a pointed stick. The ball is to be set on the new soil

just high enough that when finished the base of the stem may be somewhat

below the pot-rim, and the space between the old ball and the sides of

the pot is to be filled in gradually with the prepared compost, which is

from time to time to be pressed down with a blunt-ended flat piece of

wood called a potting-stick, so as to render the new soil as solid as

the old. The object of this is to prevent the plant from starving by the

water applied all running off by way of the new soil, and not

penetrating the original ball of earth. When this amount of pressure is

necessary, especially in the case of loamy composts, the soil itself

should be rather inclined to dryness, and should in no case be

sufficiently moist to knead together into a pasty mass. In ordinary

cases the potting soil should be just so far removed from dryness that

when a handful is gently pressed it may hang together, but may lose its

cohesion when dropped.

When plants are required to stand in ornamental china pots or vases, it

is better, both for the plants and for avoiding risk of breakage, to

grow them in ordinary garden pots of a size that will drop into the more

valuable vessels. Slate pots or tubs, usually square, are sometimes

adopted, and are durable and otherwise unobjectionable, only, their

sides being less porous, the earth does not dry so rapidly, and some

modification of treatment as to watering is necessary. For large

conservatory specimens wooden tubs, round or square, are frequently

used; these should be coated with pitch inside to render them more

durable.

Various other contrivances take the place of garden pots for special

purposes. Thus shallow square or oblong wooden boxes, made of light,

inexpensive wood, are very useful for seed-sowing, for pricking out

seedlings, or for planting cuttings. When the disturbance of the roots

incidental to all transplanting is sought to be avoided, the seed or

plant is started in some cases in squares of turf (used grassy-side

downwards), which can when ready be transferred to the place the plant

is to occupy. Cucumber and melon plants and vines reared from eyes are

sometimes started in this way, both for the reason above mentioned and

because it prevents the curling of the roots apt to take place in plants

raised in pots. Strips of turf are sometimes used for the rearing of

early peas, which are sown in a warmish house or frame, and gradually

hardened so as to bear exposure before removal to the open air.

_Watering._--The guiding principle in watering plants is to do it

thoroughly when it is required, and to abstain from giving a second

supply till the first has been taken up.

When watering becomes necessary for kitchen-garden crops, the hose

should be laid on and the lines of esculents allowed to drink their

fill, if fresh succulent vegetables are desired. So also, if

well-swelled and luscious fruits, such as strawberries, are required,

there must be no parching at the roots. This applies even more strongly

to conservatory borders and to forcing-houses than to the outside

fruit-tree borders, because from these the natural rain supply is in

most cases more distinctly cut off. In the case of forcing-houses, the

water should be heated before being applied to the borders containing

the roots of the trees.

In the watering of pot plants the utmost care is requisite if the plant

be a shy-growing or valuable one, and yet it is almost impossible to

give any intelligible instruction for performing the operation. The

roots should never be suffered either to get thoroughly dry or to get

sodden with excess of water. An adept will know by the ring of the pot

on striking it with his knuckles whether water is wanted or not,

according as it rings loud and clear or dull and heavy. With very choice

subjects watering may be necessary two or three times a day in drying

summer weather. It is a wrong though common practice to press the

surface of the soil in the pot in order to feel if it is moist enough,

as this soon consolidates it, and prevents it from getting the full

benefit of aeration.

In all heated houses the water used should be warmed at least up to the

temperature of the atmosphere, so as to avoid chilling the roots. This

is also necessary in the case of water used for syringing the plants,

which should be done two or three times a day in all stoves and

forcing-houses, especially during the period when the young growth is

being developed. The damping of all absorbent surfaces, such as the

floors or bare walls, &c., is frequently necessary several times a day

in the growing season, so as to keep up a humid atmosphere; hence the

advantage of laying the floors a little rounded, as then the water draws

off to the sides against the kerbstone, while the centre remains dry for

promenaders.

In cooler structures it becomes necessary in the dull season of the year

to prevent the slopping of water over the plants or on the floor, as

this tends to cause "damping off,"--the stems assuming a state of

mildewy decay, which not infrequently, if it once attacks a plant, will

destroy it piece by piece. For the same reason cleanliness and free

ventilation under favourable weather conditions are of great importance.

_Pruning._--Pruning is a very important operation in the fruit garden,

its object being twofold--(1) to give form to the tree, and (2) to

induce the free production of flower buds as the precursors of a

plentiful crop of fruit. To form a standard tree, either the stock is

allowed to grow up with a straight stem, by cutting away all side

branches up to the height required, say about 6 ft., the scion or bud

being worked at that point, and the head developed therefrom; or the

stock is worked close to the ground, and the young shoot obtained

therefrom is allowed to grow up in the same way, being pruned in its

progress to keep it single and straight, and the top being cut off when

the desired height is reached, so as to cause the growth of lateral

shoots. If these are three or four in number, and fairly balanced as to

strength and position, little pruning will be required. The tips of

unripened wood should be cut back about one-third their length at an

outwardly placed bud, and the chief pruning thereafter required will be

to cut away inwardly directed shoots which cross or crowd each other and

tend to confuse the centre of the tree. Bushy heads should be thinned

out, and those that are too large cut back so as to remodel them. If the

shoots produced are not sufficient in number, or are badly placed, or

very unequal in vigour, the head should be cut back moderately close,

leaving a few inches only of the young shoots, which should be pruned

back to buds so placed as to furnish shoots in the positions desired.

When worked at the top of a stem formed of the stock, the growth from

the graft or bud must be pruned in a similar way. Three or four leading

shoots should be selected to pass ere long into boughs and form a

well-balanced framework for the tree; these boughs, however, will soon

grow beyond any artificial system the pruner may adopt.

[Illustration: FIG. 27.--Dwarf-Tree Pruning.]

To form a dwarf or bush fruit tree the stock must be worked near the

ground, and the young shoot produced from the scion or bud must be cut

back to whatever height it is desired the dwarf stem should be, say

1(1/2) to 2 ft. The young shoots produced from the portion of the new

wood retained are to form the framework of the bush tree, and must be

dealt with as in the case of standard trees. The growth of inwardly

directed shoots is to be prevented, and the centre kept open, the tree

assuming a cup-shaped outline. Fig. 27, reduced from M. Hardy's

excellent work, _Traite de la taille des arbres fruitiers_, will give a

good idea how these dwarf trees are to be manipulated, a showing the

first year's development from the maiden tree after being headed back,

and b the form assumed a year or two later.

[Illustration: FIG. 28.--Pyramid Pruning.]

In forming a pyramidal tree, the lateral growths, instead of being

removed, as in the standard tree, are encouraged to the utmost; and in

order to strengthen them the upper part of the leading shoot is removed

annually, the side branches being also shortened somewhat as the tree

advances in size. In fig. 28, reduced from M. Hardy's work, a shows a

young tree with its second year's growth, the upright shoot of the

maiden tree having been moderately headed back, being left longer if the

buds near the base promise to break freely, or cut shorter if they are

weak and wanting in vigour. The winter pruning, carried out with the

view to shape the tree into a well-grown pyramid, would be effected at

the places marked by a cross line. The lowest branch would have four

buds retained, the end one being on the lower side of the branch. The

two next would be cut to three buds, which here also are fortunately so

situated that the one to be left is on the lower side of the branches.

The fourth is not cut at all owing to its shortness and weakness, its

terminal bud being allowed to grow to draw strength into it. The fifth

is an example where the bud to which the shoot should be cut back is

badly placed; a shoot resulting from a bud left on the upper side is apt

instead of growing outwards to grow erect, and lead to confusion in the

form of the tree; to avoid this it is tied down in its proper place

during the summer by a small twig. The upper shoots are cut closer in.

Near the base of the stem are two prominent buds, which would produce

two vigorous shoots, but these would be too near the ground, and the

buds should therefore be suppressed; but, to strengthen the lower part,

the weaker buds just above and below the lowest branch should be forced

into growth, by making a transverse incision close above each. Fig. 28,

b, shows what a similar tree would be at the end of the third year's

growth.

In order to bring a young tree into the cordon shape, all its side

branches are shortened back, either to form permanent spurs, as in the

case of pears, or to yield annual young shoots, as in peaches and

nectarines. The single-stemmed cordon may be trained horizontally,

obliquely at any required angle, or vertically if required, the first

two arrangements being preferable. If a double cordon is required, the

original young stem must be headed back, and the two best shoots

produced must be selected, trained right and left, and treated as for

the single cordon.

The forms chiefly adopted for trees trained to walls and espalier rails

are the fan-shaped, the half-fan and the horizontal, with their various

modifications.

The maiden tree is headed down, and two shoots led away right and left.

Two laterals should be allowed to grow from the upper side of them, one

from near the base, the other from near the middle, all others being

pinched out beyond the second or third leaf during summer, but cut away

to the last bud in winter. The tree will thus consist of six shoots,

probably 3 ft. to 4 ft. long, which are not to be pruned unless they are

unequal in strength, a defect which is rather to be remedied by summer

pinching than by winter pruning. The second year three young shoots are

to be left on each of the six, one close to the base, one about the

middle, and one at the point, the rest being rubbed off. These three

shoots will produce laterals, of which one or two may be selected and

laid in; and thus a number of moderately strong fertile shoots will be

obtained, and at the end of the season a comparatively large tree will

be the result.

[Illustration: FIG. 29.--Pruning for Fan-shaped Tree.]

[Illustration: FIG. 30.--The same--third year.]

[Illustration: FIG. 31.--The same--fourth year.]

The method of pruning formerly adopted for the formation of a fan-shaped

tree was to head down the maiden plant to about two eyes, so placed as

to yield a young shoot on each side (fig. 29), the supernumerary shoots

being rubbed off while quite young, and the reserved shoots trained

against the wall during the summer so as to get them well matured. The

next year they were cut back again; often nearly to the base, in order

that the lower pair of these shoots might each produce two well-placed

young shoots, and the upper pair three young shoots. The tree would thus

consist of ten shoots, to be laid out at regular distances, and then if

closely cut the frame-work of the tree would be as in fig. 30. These

main shoots were not again to be shortened back, but from each of them

three young shoots were to be selected and trained in two, on the upper

side, one near the base, and the other halfway up, and one on the lower

side placed about midway between these two; these with the leading

shoot, which was also to be nailed in, made four branches of the current

year from each of the ten main branches, and the form of the tree would

therefore be that of fig. 31. The other young shoots produced were

pinched off while quite young, to throw all the strength of the tree

into those which were to form its basis, and to secure abundant light

and air. In after years the leading shoot was not to be cut back, but

all the lateral shoots were to be shortened, and from these year by year

other shoots were to be selected to fill up the area occupied by the

tree.

[Illustration: FIG. 32.--Pruning for Horizontally trained Tree.]

[Illustration: FIG. 33.--The same--third year.]

[Illustration: FIG. 34.--The same--fifth year.]

In pruning for a horizontal tree the young maiden tree has to be headed

back nearly to its base, and from the young shoots three are to be

selected, the two best-placed lower ones to form an opposite or nearly

opposite pair of main branches, and the best-placed upper one to

continue the erect stem (fig. 32). This upper shoot is at the next

winter pruning to be cut down to within about a foot of the point whence

it sprung, and its buds rubbed off except the upper one for a leader,

and one on each side just below it to furnish another pair of side

shoots; these being trained in position, the tree would appear as in

fig. 33. The same course is to be followed annually till the space is

filled. Sometimes in very favourable soils and with vigorous trees two

pairs of branches may be obtained in one season by summer-stopping the

erect shoots and selecting others from the young growths thus induced,

but more commonly the trees have to be built up by forming one pair of

branches annually. The shoots are not at first lowered to the horizontal

line, but are brought down gradually and tied to thin stakes; and while

the tree is being formed weak shoots may be allowed to grow in a more

erect position than it is ultimately intended they should occupy. Thus

in four or five years the tree will have acquired something of the

character of fig. 34, and will go on thus increasing until the space is

filled.

The half-fan is a combination of the two forms, but as regards pruning

does not materially differ from the horizontal, as two opposite side

branches are produced in succession upwards till the space is filled,

only they are not taken out so abruptly, but are allowed to rise at an

acute angle and then to curve into the horizontal line.

In all the various forms of cordons, in horizontal training, and in fan

and half-fan training, the pruning of the main branches when the form of

the tree is worked out will vary in accordance with the kind of fruit

under treatment. Thus in the peach, nectarine, apricot, plum and cherry,

which are commonly trained fan-fashion, the first three (and also the

morello cherry if grown) will have to be pruned so as to keep a

succession of young annual shoots, these being their fruit-bearing wood.

The others are generally pruned so as to combine a moderate supply of

young wood with a greater or less number of fruit spurs. In the pear and

apple the fruit is borne principally on spurs, and hence what is known

as spur-pruning has to be adopted, the young shoots being all cut back

nearly to their base, so as to cause fruit buds to evolve from the

remaining eyes or buds. Cordons of apples and pears have to be similarly

treated, but cordons of peaches and nectarines are pruned so as to

provide the necessary annual succession of young bearing wood.

Fruit trees trained as espaliers, fans or cordons against walls,

trellises or fences, are not only pruned carefully in the winter but

must be also pruned during the early summer months. Many of the smaller,

useless shoots are rubbed out altogether; the best are allowed to grow

perhaps a foot or more in length, and then either have the tips pinched

out with the finger and thumb, or the ends may be cracked or broken, and

allowed to hang down, but are not detached completely. This is called

summer pruning, and is an important operation requiring knowledge on the

part of the gardener to perform properly. Shoots of peaches, nectarines

and morello cherries are "laid in," that is, placed in between fruiting

shoots where there is the space to be ripened for next year's crop.

[Illustration: FIG. 35.--Summer Pruning for Spurs.]

_Summer Pruning_ should be performed while the shoots are yet young and

succulent, so that they may in most cases be nipped off with the

thumb-nail. It is very necessary in the case of trees trained to a flat

surface, as a wall or espalier rail, to prevent undue crowding. In some

cases, as, for example, with peaches, the superfluous shoots are wholly

removed, and certain selected shoots reserved to supply bearing wood for

next year. In others, as pears, the tops of the young shoots are

removed, leaving three or four leaves and their buds at the base, to be

developed into fruit buds by the additional nourishment thus thrown into

them (fig. 35, a). One or two may push out a late summer growth, b; this

will serve as a vent for the vigour of the tree, and if the lowermost

only go to the formation of a fruit spur, the object will have been

gained. They are cut to the last dormant bud in winter.

But summer pruning has been much extended since the introduction of

restricted growth and the use of dwarfing stocks. Orchard-house trees,

and also pyramidal and bush trees of apples, pears and plums, are mainly

fashioned by summer pruning; in fact, the less the knife is used upon

them, except in the necessary cutting of the roots in potted trees, the

better. In the case of orchard-house plants no shoots are suffered to

lengthen out, except as occasionally wanted to fill up a gap in the

outline of the tree. On the contrary, the tops of all young shoots are

pinched off when some three or four leaves are formed, and this is done

again and again throughout the season. When this pruning is just brought

to a balance with the vigour of the roots, the consequence is that fruit

buds are formed all over the tree, instead of a thicket of sterile and

useless wood. Pyramidal and bush trees out of doors are, of course,

suffered to become somewhat larger, and sufficient wood must be allowed

to grow to give them the form desired; but after the first year or two,

when the framework is laid out, they are permitted to extend very

slowly, and never to any great extent, while the young growths are

continually nipped off, so as to clothe the branches with fruit buds as

closely placed as will permit of their healthy development.

The nature of the cut itself in pruning is of more consequence,

especially in the case of fruit trees, than at first sight may appear.

The branches should be separated by a clean cut at an angle of about

45 deg., just at the back of a bud, the cut entering on a level with the

base of the bud and passing out on a level with its top (fig. 36, a),

for when cut in this way the wound becomes rapidly covered with new

wood, as soon as growth recommences, whereas if the cut is too close the

bud is starved, or if less close an ugly and awkward snag is left. Fig

36, b and c, are examples of the former, and d, e, f of the latter. In

fact there is only one right way to cut a shoot and that is as shown at

a.

The _Pruning of flowering plants_ is generally a much lighter matter

than the pruning of fruit trees. If a young seedling or cutting of any

soft-wooded plant is to be bushy, it must have its top nipped out by the

thumb-nail or pruning-scissors at a very early stage, and this stopping

must be repeated frequently. If what is called a well-furnished plant is

required, an average of from 2 to 3 in. is all the extension that must

be permitted--sometimes scarcely so much--before the top is nipped out;

and this must be continued until the desired size is attained, whether

that be large or small. Then generally the plant is allowed to grow away

till bloom or blooming shoots are developed. To form a pyramidal plant,

which is a very elegant and useful shape to give to a decorative pot

plant, the main stem should be encouraged to grow upright, for a length

perhaps of 6 or 8 in. before it is topped; this induces the formation of

laterals, and favours their development. The best-placed upper young

shoot is selected and trained upright to a slender stake, and this also

is topped when it has advanced 6 or 8 in. further, in order to induce

the laterals on the second portion to push freely. This process is

continued till the required size is gained. With all the difficult and

slow-growing plants of the hard-wooded section, all the pruning must be

done in this gradual way in the young wood as the plant progresses.

[Illustration: FIG. 36.--Cuts--Good and Bad.]

[Illustration: FIG. 37.]

Some plants, like pelargoniums, can only be kept handsomely formed and

well furnished by cutting them down severely every season, after the

blooming is over. The plants should be prepared for this by keeping them

rather dry at the root, and after cutting they must stand with little or

no water till the stems heal over, and produce young shoots, or "break,"

as it is technically termed. The appearance of a specimen pelargonium

properly pruned is shown in fig. 37, in which a shows a young plant, the

head of which has been taken off to form a cutting, and whose buds are

ready to break into young shoots. Three shoots will be produced, and

these, after growing from 4 to 6 in. in length, should be stopped by

pinching out the point, this giving rise to lateral shoots. These will

blossom in due course, and, after being ripened thoroughly by full

exposure to the sun, should be cut back as shown at b. This is the

proper foundation for a good specimen, and illustrates how all such

subjects should be pruned to keep them stocky and presentable in form.

_Root-pruning_ is most commonly practised in fruit-tree cultivation. It

is often resorted to as a means of restoring fertility in plants which

have become over rank from an excess of nourishment in the soil, or

sterile from want of it. The effect of root-pruning in the first case is

to reduce the supply of crude sap to the branches, and consequently to

cause a check in their development. In the second case all roots that

have struck downwards into a cold uncongenial subsoil must be pruned off

if they cannot be turned in a lateral direction, and all the lateral

ones that have become coarse and fibreless must also be shortened back

by means of a clean cut with a sharp knife, while a compost of rich

loamy soil with a little bone-meal, and leaf-mould or old manure, should

be filled into the trenches from which the old sterile soil has been

taken. The operation is best performed early in autumn, and may be

safely resorted to in the case of fruit trees of moderate age, and even

of old trees if due care be exercised. In transplanting trees all the

roots which may have become bruised or broken in the process of lifting

should be cut clean away behind the broken part, as they then more

readily strike out new roots from the cut parts. In all these cases the

cut should be a clean sloping one, and made in an upward and outward

direction.

The root-pruning of pot-plants is necessary in the case of many

soft-wooded subjects which are grown on year after year--pelargoniums

and fuchsias, for example. After the close pruning of the branches to

which they are annually subjected, and when the young shoots have shot

forth an inch or two in length, they are turned out of their pots and

have the old soil shaken away from their roots, the longest of which, to

the extent of about half the existing quantity, are then cut clean away,

and the plants repotted into small pots. This permits the growing plant

to be fed with rich fresh soil, without having been necessarily

transferred to pots of unwieldy size by the time the flowering stage is

reached.

_Ringing._--One of the expedients for inducing a state of fruitfulness

in trees is the ringing of the branches or stem, that is, removing a

narrow annular portion of the bark, by which means, it is said, the

trees are not only rendered productive, but the quality of the fruit is

at the same time improved. The advantage depends on the obstruction

given to the descent of the sap. The ring should be cut out in spring,

and be of such a width that the bark may remain separated for the

season. A tight ligature of twine or wire answers the same end. The

advantages of the operation may generally be gained by judicious root

pruning, and it is not at all adapted for the various stone fruits.

[Illustration: FIG. 38.--Diagram illustrating Branch Distribution.]

_Training._--What is called training is the guiding of the branches of a

tree or plant in certain positions which they would not naturally

assume, the object being partly to secure their full exposure to light,

and partly to regulate the flow and distribution of the sap. To secure

the former object, the branches must be so fixed as to shade each other

as little as possible; and to realize the second, the branches must have

given to them an upward or downward direction, as they may require to be

encouraged or repressed. Something of the same vegetative vigour which

is given to a plant or tree by hard pruning is afforded by training in

an upward direction so as to promote the flow of the sap; while the

repression effected by summer pruning is supplemented by downward

training, which acts as a check. One main object is the preservation of

equilibrium in the growth of the several parts of the tree; and for this

various minor details deserve attention. Thus a shoot will grow more

vigorously whilst waving in the air than when nailed close to the wall;

consequently a weak shoot should be left free, whilst its stronger

antagonist should be restrained; and a luxuriant shoot may be retarded

for some time by having its tender extremity pinched off to allow a

weaker shoot to overtake it.

By the prudent use of the knife, fruit trees may be readily trained into

the forms indicated below, which are amongst the best out of the many

which have been devised.

The training of standard and bush trees in the open ground has been

already referred to under the section _Pruning_. When the growth of

pyramids is completed, the outline is something like that of fig. 39,

and very pretty trees are thus formed. It is better, however, especially

if the tendency to bear fruit is rather slack, to adopt what the French

call _en quenouille_ training (fig. 40), which consists in tying or

weighting the tips of the branches so as to give them all a downward

curve. Pear trees worked on the quince stock, and trained en quenouille,

are generally very fertile.

[Illustration: FIG. 39.--Pyramidal Training.]

[Illustration: FIG. 40.--Training _en quenouille_.]

Wall trees, it must be evident, are placed in a very unnatural and

constrained position, and would in fact soon be reduced to a state of

utter confusion if allowed to grow unrestricted; hence the following

modes of training have been adopted.

[Illustration: FIG. 41.--Horizontal Training.]

[Illustration: FIG. 42.--Forms of Horizontal Training.]

_Horizontal Training_ (fig. 41) has long been a favourite form in

England. There is one principal ascending stem, from which the branches

depart at right angles, at intervals of about a foot. Horizontal

training is best adapted to the apple and the pear; and for the more

twiggy growing slender varieties, the forms shown in fig. 42 have been

recommended. In these the horizontal branches are placed wider, 18 to 20

in. apart, and the smaller shoots are trained between them, either on

both sides, as at a, or deflexed from the lower side, as at b. The

latter is an excellent method of reclaiming neglected trees. Every

alternate branch should be taken away, and the spurs cut off, after

which the young shoots are trained in, and soon produce good fruit.

In _Fan Training_ (fig. 43) there is no leading stem, but the branches

spring from the base and are arranged somewhat like the ribs of a fan.

This mode of training is commonly adopted for the peach, nectarine,

apricot and morello cherry, to which it is best adapted. Though

sometimes adopted, it is not so well suited as the horizontal form for

apples and pears, because, when the branches reach the top of the wall,

where they must be cut short, a hedge of young shoots is inevitable. A

modification of the fan shape (fig. 44) is sometimes adopted for stone

fruits, such as the plum and apricot. In this the object is to establish

a number of mother branches, and on these to form a series of

subordinate members, chiefly composed of bearing wood. The mother

branches or limbs should not be numerous, but well marked, equal in

strength and regularly disposed. The side branches should be pretty

abundant, short and not so vigorous as to rival the leading members.

[Illustration: FIG. 43.--Fan Training.]

[Illustration: FIG. 44.--Modified Fan Training.]

The _Half-fan_ mode of training, which is intermediate between

horizontal and fan training, is most nearly allied to the former, but

the branches leave the stem at an acute angle, a disposition supposed to

favour the more equal distribution of the sap. Sometimes, as in fig. 45,

two vertical stems are adopted, but there is no particular advantage in

this, and a single-stemmed tree is more manageable. The half-fan form is

well adapted for such fruits as the plum and the cherry; and, indeed,

for fruits of vigorous habit, it seems to combine the advantages of both

the foregoing.

[Illustration: FIG. 45.--Half-Fan Training.]

Trees must be fixed to the walls and buildings against which they are

trained by means of nails and shreds (neat medicated strips are now sold

for this purpose), or in cases where it is desired to preserve the wall

surface intact, by permanent nails or studs driven in in regular order.

Sometimes the walls are furnished with galvanized wires, but this has

been objected to as causing cankering of the shoots, for which, however,

painting is recommended as a remedy. By crossing the tying material

between the wire and the wood, however, and so preventing them from

coming in contact, there is no danger. If they are adopted, the wires

should be a few inches away from the wall, to allow free circulation of

air between it and the tree, and thus avoid the scorching or burning of

leaves and fruits during the summer months in very hot places. Care

should be taken that the ties or fastenings do not eventually cut into

the bark as the branches swell with increased age. When shreds and nails

are used, short thick wire nails and "medicated shreds" are the best;

the ordinary cast iron wall nails being much too brittle and difficult

to drive into the wall. It must be remembered that nails spoil a wall

sooner or later, whereas a wire trellis is not only much neater, but

enables the gardener to tie his trees up much more quickly.

For tying plants to trellises and stakes soft tarred string or raffia

(the fibre from the Raphia palm of Madagascar) is used.

[Illustration: FIG. 46.--Clematis trained on Balloon-Shaped Trellis.]

In training greenhouse plants the young branches should be drawn

outwards by means of ties fastened to a string or wire under the

pot-rim; the centre then fills up, and slender stakes are used as

required; but the fewer these are in number the better. Climbers are

trained from the bottom around or across trellises, of which the

cylindrical or the balloon-shaped, or sometimes the flat oval or

circular, are the best forms. The size should be adapted to the habit of

the plant, which should cover the whole by the time flowers are

produced. Bast fibre and raffia fibre are to be preferred for light

subjects of this character, as they can be split to any degree of

fineness. Very durable trellises for greenhouse climbers are made of

slender round iron rods for standards, having a series of hooks on the

inner edge, into which rings of similar metal are dropped; the rings may

be graduated so as to form a broad open top, or may be all of the same

size, when the trellis will assume the cylindrical form. Fig. 46 shows a

pot specimen of clematis trained, over a balloon-shaped trellis.

The training of certain bedding plants over the surface of the soil is

done by small pegs of birch wood or bracken, by loops of wire or cheap

hair-pins, or sometimes by loops of raffia having the ends fixed in the

soil by the aid of the dibble. The object is to fill up the blank space

as quickly and as evenly as possible.

_Forcing_ is the accelerating, by special treatment, of the growth of

certain plants, which are required to be had in leaf, in flower or in

fruit before their natural season,--as, for instance, the leaves of mint

at Eastertide or the leafstalks of sea-kale and rhubarb at Christmas,

the flowers of summer in the depth of winter, or some of the choicest

fruits perfected so much before their normal period as to complete, with

the retarded crops of winter, the circle of the seasons.

In the management of artificial heat for this purpose, a considerable

degree of caution is required. The first stages of forcing should, of

course, be very gentle, so that the whole growth of the plants may

advance in harmony. The immediate application of a very hot atmosphere

would unduly force the tops, while the roots remained partially or

wholly inactive; and a strong bottom heat, if it did not cause injury by

its excess, would probably result in abortive growth.

Any sudden decrease of warmth would be very prejudicial to the progress

of vegetation through the successive stages of foliation, inflorescence

and fructification. But it is not necessary that one unvarying range of

temperature should be kept up at whatever pains or risk. Indeed, in very

severe weather it is found better to drop a little from the maximum

temperature by fire heat, and the loss so occasioned may be made good by

a little extra heat applied when the weather is more genial. Night

temperatures also should always be allowed to drop somewhat, the heat

being increased again in the morning. In other words, the artificial

temperature should increase by day and decrease by night, should rise in

summer and fall in winter, should, in short, imitate as nearly as

possible the varying influence of the sun.

For the growth of flowers generally, and for that of all fruits, every

ray of light to be obtained in the dull winter season is required, and

therefore every possible care should be taken to keep the glass clean. A

moist genial atmosphere too is essential, a point requiring unremitting

attention on account of the necessity of keeping up strong fires. With

moisture as with heat, the cultivator must hold his hand somewhat in

very severe or very dull weather; but while heat must not drop so as to

chill the progressing vegetation, so neither must the lack of moisture

parch the plants so as to check their growth.

There are some few subjects which when forced do not require a light

house. Thus amongst flowers the white blossoms of the lilac, so much

prized during winter, are produced by forcing purple-flowered plants in

darkness. Rhubarb and sea-kale among esculents both need to be forced in

darkness to keep them crisp and tender, and mushrooms also are always

grown in dark structures. In fact, a roomy mushroom house is one of the

most convenient of all places for forcing the vegetables just referred

to. The lilac would be better placed in a dark shed heated to about 70

deg. or 80 deg., in which some dung and leaves could be allowed to lie

and ferment, giving off both a genial heat and moisture.

One of the most important preliminaries to successful forcing is the

securing to the plants a previous state of rest. The thorough ripening

of the preceding season's wood in fruit trees and flowering plants, and

of the crown in perennial herbs like strawberries, and the cessation of

all active growth before the time they are to start into a new growth,

are of paramount importance. The ripening process must be brought about

by free exposure to light, and by the application of a little extra heat

with dryness, if the season should be unfavourable; and both roots and

tops must submit to a limitation of their water supply. When the

ripening is perfected, the resting process must be aided by keeping the

temperature in which they await the forcing process as low as each

particular subject can bear. (See _Retardation_ above.)