Cutting (plant)

“ A cutting has been truly defined as a part of a plant with growing appendages at either end, and a space between to keep them sufficiently apart, so that one part shall be in the soil to form roots, and the other in the air to form leaves and stem. They are usually obtained from the young wood, and strike most freely in sand. It is easy to determine whether a shoot be in a proper state for making a cutting: bend it carefully back, and if it breaks or snaps it is in a right condition, and if it bends without snapping it is then too hard. ”

“ Cutting Plants.—Cuttings should be taken from strong, healthy, vigorous-growing plants in the field, and placed in the cutting bed about the last of August, where they will quickly take root. As soon as the roots have developed to a length of from one-half to 1 inch the young plants are shifted to 3 or 4 inch pots, where they are allowed to develop until the blossom buds are well formed or the blossoms have expanded, when they should be planted on the bench where they are to mature their crop, in like manner as noted for seedling plants. ”

“ If cuttings are to be made, it will be necessary to start the roots early either in a hotbed or house. When the growth has reached 4 or 5 inches, they may be cut from the plant and rooted in sand. Care should be taken to cut just below the joint, as a cutting made between two joints will not form tubers. The most rapid method of propagation of named varieties is to grow from cuttings in this way. ”

“ But for general planting, especially direct in the field, seldom more than one or two cuttings can be made from a branch. The cutting should be cut immediately below an eye or joint. Such cuttings grow better, are easier to plant and are less apt to dry out. The more eyes a cutting contains the better is the cutting, as the roots mostly form at the joints. Many make the cuttings with a heel of old wood, but I do not believe such cuttings are in any way preferable to those made of only one season’s wood. ”

“ These cuttings are usually six to ten inches long. They are not idle while they rest. The lower end calluses or heals, and the roots form more readily when the cutting is planted in the spring. But if the proper season has passed, take cuttings at any time in winter, plant them in a deep box in the window, and watch. They will need no shading or special care. Grape, currant, gooseberry, willow, and poplar readily take root from the hardwood. Fig. ”

“ For cutting down the plants, a long knife or chopper is used. A man takes the plant with his left hand about 9 inches from the ground, and with the knife in his right hand, cuts through the stem of the plant just above the ground. If the plants are sufficiently “wilted,” he may lay them on the ground and proceed to cut down others; if, however, they are so brittle as to cause the leaves to be injured by laying them down, he should give them to another person, to carry them at once under shade. ”

“ Cuttings—may be from any wood you have to spare, and should be about a foot long, having two buds. Plant at an angle of forty-five degrees, one bud and two thirds of the cutting under the soil. A little shade and moisture will cause nearly all to grow. A little grafting-wax on the top will aid the growth, by preventing evaporation. The cutting, so buried as to have the top bud half an inch under fine mould, is said to be surer. Cuttings should be made late in fall, or early in winter, and preserved as scions for grafting. ”

“ This theory has for its support the fact, that there is in such a cutting a larger amount of organizable matter to be developed into the new parts to be produced, and certainly, if neglected, short cuttings will be very apt to suffer from drought, but in practice, it is found that the short cutting plants have better roots, which are near the surface, and even those plants, grown from single eyes, are better burnished than long cuttings produced upon the old plan, which placed the roots deep in the soil. ”

“ A word about the selection of cuttings will not be amiss, as failure to choose wisely often results in the loss of the cutting, or in a poor or straggly plant. Quick, tender growths are not suitable for cuttings, except in the case of the Chinese Hibiscus, where the extreme tips are used for rooting; hard or woody growths are equally undesirable. ”

“ Do not lift the jar for many a day, but keep the soil well watered.
After a number of weeks, most likely you will notice new leaves putting forth, and will know that the cutting has become a little plant with its own roots. Let it grow under the jar until the tip reaches the glass; then uncover.
It is not necessary to make cuttings especially for the purpose, for rose [I] bushes have been raised from the stem of a blooming rose after the blossom has faded.
[197]
Cuttings are inexpensive, and the method is an easy one for obtaining a large number of plants ”

“ Each cutting should have a prop, and the ground at its root is to be kept moist by a heap of stones around the stem.
The best practice in these plantations is to train the plants on espaliers reaching from one prop to another. Generally the props are themselves plant-cuttings, which bear leaves and so shelter the young plants from the excessive heat of the sun. In case the props are of dead timber, the shrubs which are to afford shade must be planted in the intervals between the vanilla-plants. ”

“ It is a great shock to a growing plant to lose half or more of its wood. It sometimes kills it, particularly if injudiciously watered. If severe cutting is required do it while the pot shrubbery is nearest at rest, and a little before renewed growth may be expected again. Usually this is about the close of mid-winter. Such shrubs as Rubber Plants, that bleed profusely, should have grafting wax or paint daubed on the end of cut branches. If nothing better is at hand paste a jacket of clay over the cut end until the wound can heal. Water with much moderation until new growth appears. ”

“ At the end of the fifth year the plants are ready for their first cutting, and the healthy ones will bear well for twelve or fifteen years. The cutting is begun at the base of the stem, where the leaves are more fully developed. Eight to ten are cut at a time, and usually three or four cuttings are made each year, so that the average yield of each plant is about thirty-two leaves annually. ”

“ Abstain generally from cutting or injuring the roots, only removing any dead parts or fibres; and if a plant has not completely filled the pot with roots, replant it in a clean one of the same size, for nothing is more fatal to such as are not growing vigorously, than a very large pot.
Cuttings of most of these plants, push out roots easily, but some with more difficulty. To succeed with the latter, it is necessary to use pure sand, and to be provided with Bellglasses, which fit the pots intended to be used, exactly. ”

“ This will insure a portion of the soil adhering to the roots and prevent the plants from wilting. If the plants have been properly thinned or transplanted it is often possible to run a knife or trowel between them, thus cutting the soil into cubes that are transferred with them to the garden. Where the soil does not adhere to the roots of the plants it is well to puddle them. In the process of puddling, a hole is dug in the earth near the plant bed, or a large pail may be used for the purpose, and a thin slime, consisting of clay, cow manure, and water, is prepared. ”

“ Varieties of the fig are multiplied with ease by layers, suckers and cuttings. Make cuttings of mature wood in autumn, cutting just below a bud. Scarce varieties may be multiplied by single eye cuttings. Fig cuttings are handled in the same way as grape cuttings. Some prefer, however, to place the cuttings where the tree is to stand. A well-grown plant will bear at two or three years of age. ”

“ The seeds should be planted very early. When it comes up the young plant has two leaves and does not develop any further leaf or stem growth during the first summer. The first two leaves do not look at all like those that follow. So, be careful or you will destroy your plants for weeds.
Plants may be readily propagated by cutting up the roots into pieces, say 1/4-inch long and placing these root cuttings in boxes of loamy sand in the autumn. By spring each root cutting will have developed a fine bud and be ready for transplanting, which should be done as early as possible. ”

“ Thus the labor of cutting is considerably reduced and, what is more important, larger pieces improve the chances of getting a good stand in an unfavorable season, because they have less exposed surface than two small pieces of equivalent weight, hence are less liable to dry out excessively when drought follows planting. ”

“ For nine days Mildred Thatcher lived as her neighbours, a life as thick and solid, as uninformed with the spirit as the rubber plant which stood neglected in the drawing-room by the pile of books—as yet unshelved—and the dusty upright piano. ”

“ Carnations grow readily from cuttings made of the suckers that form around the base of the stem, the side shoots of the flowering stem, or the main shoots before they show flower buds. The cuttings from the base make the best plants in most cases. These cuttings may be taken from a plant at any time through the fall or winter, rooted in sand and potted up, to be held in pots until the planting out time in the spring, usually in April, or any time when the ground is ready to handle. ”

“ The leaves of all cuttings should be taken off with a sharp knife as far as the cutting is meant to be planted in the sand, taking care not to bruise or tear the bark, and to cut the bottom perfectly even, just under the insertion of a leaf. ”

“ A cutting that has flagged is useless, as it never revives. Deciduous flowering shrubs are usually propagated by summer cuttings, which generally root well in a fortnight or less. Autumn cuttings are taken during August and September, and are made from the partially ripened growths of the current year, inserted in sandy soil, in a close frame, without bottom heat. Winter cuttings are made from thoroughly ripened wood at any time between October and March, and are laid in rather thickly in rows outdoors, and only about an inch or less is left above the soil. ”

“ Often the plants grown in window boxes may supply the early cuttings, which may be rooted in the house. Where a greenhouse is available, a few [Pg 36] plants may be transplanted in autumn either from the garden or from the bed of summer cuttings just mentioned, kept in a rather cool temperature during the winter and drawn upon for cuttings as the stems become sufficiently mature. The rooting may take place in a regular cutting bench, or it may occur in the soil out of doors, the plantlets being transplanted to pots as soon as they have rooted well. ”

“ Cuttings with soft, growing tips will apparently root more quickly than hardened shoots, but the leaves tend to turn brown and the plant dies. Conversely, cuttings from short, lateral growth, well-hardened, will retain their leaves better and eventually show a higher percentage of success. ”

“ Cuttings of the Everblooming Roses will all strike at any time during the summer, but they succeed much better either in the autumn, or after their first bloom. The heat of our midsummer sun is so great upon plants forced in the house, that cuttings often fail at that time. When a cutting is made near the old stem, it is better to take with it a portion of the old wood, which forms the enlarged part of the young branch. Where the cuttings are scarce, two buds will answer very well—one below the surface; and, in some cases, propagation has been successful with only one eye. ”

“ Currants are very seldom raised from [Pg 241] seed; as there is no particular desire for the production of new sorts. The usual mode of propagation is by cuttings, which are taken off the strongest shoots in autumn or early in spring, and planted in rich soil. The cuttings are generally about a foot long; and all the buds are taken off except five or six at the top: the cutting is then firmly inserted in the soil about six inches deep. No other care is required but pruning the young trees every year. ”

“ After trimming off all but a few of the upper leaves, which should be clipped to reduce transpiration, the cuttings—never more than 4 or 5 inches long—should be plunged nearly full depth in well-shaded, rather light, porous, well-drained loam where they should remain undisturbed until they show evidences of growth. Then they may be transplanted. While in the cutting bed they must never be allowed to become dry. This is especially true of greenwood cuttings made during the summer. These should always have the coolest, shadiest corner in the garden. ”

“ Pot them off as soon as the roots begin to grow.
Cuttings made by the two systems described above are usually taken in autumn, or in spring. When it is necessary to get new plants during June, July or August, a method called "layering in the air" will have to be resorted to if you would be certain of results. Instead of taking the cutting clean off, cut it nearly through; the smallest shred of wood and bark will keep it from wilting, but it should be kept upright, for if it hangs down the end of the shoot will immediately begin to turn up, making a U-shaped cutting. ”

“ Flowers large, golden yellow, pedunculate, bracteate. Capsule spherical, depressed, rough from rigid bristles. Leaves broad, alternate, entire or serrate. They thrive in a mixture of loam and peat. The best way to induce them to flower in this country is by cutting a ring round the bark of a large branch; by this means the growth is stopped. Well ripened cuttings should be planted in sand in heat, under a bell glass, which should be tilted occasionally, so as to give a little air to the cuttings, otherwise they are apt to damp off. ”