CHE REFERENCE LIBRARY - Pole Shift Survival Information

PROPAGA TIOA’ B,- ME.4N.9 ffk’ C’IJTTINGS 93
permeable. Damping-off is less liable to occur iii such material
than in denser soils. The same advantages are to some
extent. present in sphagnum tnoss and coconut fiber, both of
which are sometitnes used in place of earth. The ” silver sand”
used by florists is a very cllean and white sand, which derives
its partic&r advatitagcs from t.he almost entire absence of
vegetable mat ten’ ; but it is not now r~onsidered so essential
to suc’ct5sfnl propagation as it, was formerly, and fully as good
tnateriul may often be found itt a common sand-bank.
(‘uttings that strike strongly and vigorously may be placed
in a soil tnade of light garden loam with twice its bulk of sand
added to it. All soils used for indoor work should be sifted
or srreenecl before using, to bring t.hctn t-0 a uniform texture.
Hardwood dormant ~~utt~itigs are cotnrnotil~~ planted outdoors
in mellow and light garden loam, well trenched. Only fine
and well-rotted manure should be applied to the cutting-bed,
at-d it should be well rnixecl with t,ltcb cart,lt. In most cases,
a well-drained soil givc5 best results, bitt sotrie cuttitigs root
and grow well in wlct soils, or WCJII in st~attding water, as poplars,
willows, some of the dogwoods, the plane-tree and others.
In fact, certain cuttings tnay be rooted in glasses of water, as
of the oleander.
‘I‘lw sttikiny of clittilz
When cuttitlgs emit roots and begin to grow, the gardener
says that they “ strike” or are “ struck.” The striking of
cuttings is the suc~~~ful rooting of them. The formation
of root-s is influenced by the way in which the cutting is made,
tlte earth or other mediutn itt which it is set, the temperature
il.ll(.l moisture conditions, and other factors.
As a rule, roots arise most readily from a joint, and it is a
common practice, therefore, to cut the base of the cutting just
below a bud, as shown in the grape cutting, Fig. 98. Sometimes
the ctliting is seI.ered at its point of attachment to the
ys