SUGGESTIONS.—=128.= Name the plants that the gardener propagates
by means of cuttings. =129.= By means of grafts. =130.= The
cutting-box may be set in the window. If the box does not receive
direct sunlight, it may be covered with a pane of glass to prevent
evaporation. Take care that the air is not kept too close, else
the damping-off fungi may attack the cuttings, and they will rot
at the surface of the ground. See that the pane is raised a little
at one end to afford ventilation; and if the water collects in
drops on the under side of the glass, remove the pane for a time.
=131.= Grafting wax is made of beeswax, resin, and tallow. A good
recipe is one part (as one pound) of rendered tallow, two parts
of beeswax, four parts of resin; melt together in a kettle; pour
the liquid into a pail or tub of water to solidify it; work with
the hands until it has the colour and “grain” of taffy candy, the
hands being greased when necessary. The wax will keep any length
of time. For the little grafting that any pupil would do, it is
better to buy the wax of a seedsman. =132.= Grafting is hardly to
be recommended as a general school diversion, as the making of
cuttings is; and the account of it in this chapter is inserted
chiefly to satisfy the general curiosity on the subject. =133.= In
Chap. V we had a definition of a plant generation: what is “one
generation” of a grafted fruit tree, as Le Conte pear, Baldwin, or
Ben Davis apple? =134.= The Elberta peach originated about 1880:
what is meant by “originated”? =135.= How is the grape propagated
so as to come true to name (explain what is meant by “coming
true”)? currant? strawberry? raspberry? blackberry? peach? pear?
orange? fig? plum? cherry? apple? chestnut? pecan?
[Illustration: FIG. 168.—BUDDING. The “bud”; the opening to receive
it; the bud tied.]
CHAPTER XVII
HOW PLANTS CLIMB
We have found that plants struggle or contend for a place in which
to live. Some of them become adapted to grow in the forest shade,
others to grow on other plants, as epiphytes, others to _climb to the
light_. Observe how woods grapes, and other forest climbers, spread
their foliage on the very top of the forest tree, while their long
flexile trunks may be bare.
There are several ways by which plants climb, but most climbers
may be classified into four groups: (1) =scramblers=, (2) =root
climbers=, (3) =tendril climbers=, (4) =twiners=.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account