B. CUTTINGS
Cuttings (of various types) are the easiest and most popular
means of propagating trees and plants of all kinds. The particular
part that is cut varies a little according to the plant but should
almost invariably be a new growth, and needless to say, the
parent growth should be a really healthy specimen.
The most suitable times in which to take cuttings are: willows,
poplars, etc., in the spring; conifers, roses, etc., in late summer;
flowering shrubs, alpines, and most rock plants immediately after
flowering, usually in late summer or early autumn; succulents at
any time, but mid-summer for preference.
In taking a cutting from a tree or shrub a newly grown shoot
is cut from the stem of a parent tree so that the cutting includes
the "heel" where the shoot bends to join the stem. Any little
skin that is torn in removal is trimmed off before planting. To
prepare the cutting for setting in the compost, all side shoots and
little buds are nipped off the bottom end of the shoot for about
one-third of the length. This will be about 11/2 inches.
Most of the alpine plants develop offsets which are like tiny
plants attached to the parent and which have not yet grown roots
of their own. An offset is separated from the parent plant and
planted in the seeding compost. Plants that form little rosettes
are an excellent example as each rosette can be considered as an
embryo plant.
Succulents are readily propagated from cuttings taken from
the body, stems, offsets or other parts, according to the class. The
Crassulas, for instance, can be propagated from a leaf broken off
the plant and set in the compost where it will develop roots. Any
part of a sedum can be cut or broken off and will develop into an
individual plant even if the piece is only dropped on the compost.
Cuttings from all of the succulents should be allowed to dry out
at the cut before they are set in compost, but cuttings from all
other plants should be set promptly.
Root cuttings. Just as any part broken from a sedum will develop
into a plant, there are also several varieties (usually those having
long, creeping tendrils), of which a piece of broken-off root will
grow into a normal plant. Cuttings of this kind, when used,
should be set in a more or less vertical position.
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