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                                  THE

                             NURSERY-BOOK


                           A COMPLETE GUIDE
                                TO THE
               Multiplication and Pollination of Plants


                           _By L. H. BAILEY_


                               New York:
                     The Rural Publishing Company
                                 1891


_By the Same Author._


Horticulturist's Rule-Book.

A Compendium of Useful Information for Fruit Growers, Truck Gardeners,
Florists and others. New edition, completed to the close of 1890. Pp.
250. Library edition, cloth, $1. Pocket edition, paper, 50 cents.


Annals of Horticulture

FOR THE YEARS 1889 AND 1890.

A Witness of Passing Events, and a Record of Progress. Being records
of introductions during the year, of new methods and discoveries in
horticulture, of yields and prices, horticultural literature and work
of the experiment stations, necrology, etc. _Illustrated._ 2 vols.
Library edition, cloth, $1 per vol. Pocket edition, paper, 50 cents per
vol.


COPYRIGHTED 1891,
BY L. H. BAILEY.

ELECTROTYPED AND PRINTED
BY J. HORACE M'FARLAND, HARRISBURG, PA.




PREFACE.


This little handbook aims at nothing more than an account of the
methods commonly employed in the propagation and crossing of plants,
and its province does not extend, therefore, to the discussion of
any of the ultimate results or influences of these methods. All such
questions as those relating to the formation of buds, the reciprocal
influences of cion and stock, comparative advantages of whole and piece
roots, and the results of pollination, do not belong here.

In its preparation I have consulted freely all the best literature
of the subject, and I have been aided by many persons. The entire
volume has been read by skilled propagators, so that even all such
directions as are commonly recommended in other countries have also
been sanctioned, if admitted, as best for this. In the propagation of
trees and shrubs and other hardy ornamentals, I have had the advice of
the head propagator of one of the largest nurseries in this country.
The whole volume has also passed through the hands of B. M. Watson,
Jr., of the Bussey Institution of Harvard University, a teacher of
unusual skill and experience in this direction, and who has added
greatly to the value of the book. The articles upon orchids and upon
most of the different genera of orchids in the Nursery List, have been
contributed by W. J. Bean, of the Royal Gardens, Kew, who is well
known as an orchid specialist. I have drawn freely upon the files of
magazines, both domestic and foreign, and I have made particular use
of Nicholson's Illustrated Dictionary of Gardening, Vilmorin's Les
Fleurs de Pleine Terre, Le Bon Jardinier, and Rümpler's Illustriertes
Gartenbau-Lexikon.

It is believed that the Nursery List contains all the plants which are
ordinarily grown by horticulturists in this country either for food
or ornament. But in order to give some clew to the propagation of any
which are omitted, an ordinal index has been added, by which one can
search out plants of a given natural order or family. It cannot be
hoped that the book is complete, or that the directions are in every
case best for all regions, and any corrections or additions which will
be useful in the preparation of a second edition are solicited.

                                                         L. H. BAILEY.

Ithaca, N. Y., _Jan. 1, 1891_.




CONTENTS.


CHAPTER I.

  Seedage                                     9-24
    Regulation of Moisture                       9
    Requirements of Temperature                 14
    Preparatory Treatment of Seeds              15
    Sowing                                      19
    Miscellaneous Matters                       21
    Spores                                      24

CHAPTER II.

  Separation                                 25-31

CHAPTER III.

  Layerage                                   32-38

CHAPTER IV.

  Cuttage      39-62
    Devices for Regulating Heat and Moisture    39
    Soils and General Methods                   46
    Particular Methods--Kinds of Cuttings       51
      1. Tuber Cuttings                         52
      2. Root Cuttings                          53
      3. Stem Cuttings                          54
      4. Leaf Cuttings                          60

CHAPTER V.

  Graftage                                   63-96
    General Considerations                      63
    Particular Methods                          67
      Budding                                   67
      Grafting                                  76
    Grafting Waxes                              92

CHAPTER VI.

  The Nursery List                          97-285

CHAPTER VII.

  Pollination                              286-298
    General Requirements                       287
    Methods                                    291
    Crossing of Flowerless Plants              297

[Illustration]


NURSERY.--_An establishment for the rearing of plants. In America the
word is commonly used in connection with the propagation of woody
plants only, as fruit-trees and ornamental trees and shrubs. This is
erroneous. The word properly includes the propagation of all plants by
whatever means, and in this sense it is used in this book._


Tabular Statement of the Ways in which Plants are Propagated.


  _A._ By Seeds.--_Seedage._

           {              {                { Root-tips.
           {              {                { Runners.
           {              {  1. By         { Layers proper:
           {              {  undetached    {        Simple.
           {              {  parts.--      {        Serpentine.
           {              {  _Layerage._   {        Mound.
           {              {                {        Pot or Chinese.
           {              {
           { I. On their  {                { 1. By undivided parts.--
           { own roots.   {                { _Separation_ (Bulbs, corms,
           {              {                { bulbels, bulblets,
           {              {                { bulb-scales, tubers, etc).
           {              {                {
           {              { 2. By detached {               { Division.
           {              { parts.         { 2. By divided { Cuttings
           {              {                { parts.--      { proper:
           {              {                { _Cuttage._    {    Of tubers.
  _B._     {              {                {               {    Of roots.
  By Buds. {              {                {               {    Of stems.
           {              {                {               {    Of leaves.
           {
           {              {                { I. Budding: Shield, flute,
           {              {                { veneer, ring, annular,
           {              {                { whistle or tubular.
           {              {                {
           {              {                { II. Grafting:
           {              {                {         Whip.
           { II. On roots {                {         Saddle.
           { of other     { 1. By detached {         Splice.
           { plants.--    { scions.        {         Veneer.
           { _Graftage._  {                {         Cleft.
           {              {                {         Bark.
           {              {                {         Herbaceous.
           {              {                {         Seed.
           {              {                {         Double.
           {              {                {         Cutting.
           {              { 2. By undetached scions.--Inarching.




CHAPTER I.

SEEDAGE.

=Seedage.=--The process or operation of propagating by seeds or spores,
or the state or condition of being propagated by seeds or spores.


There are three external requisites to the germination of
seeds--moisture, free oxygen, and a definite temperature. These
requisites are demanded in different degrees and proportions by seeds
of different species, or even by seeds of the same species when
differing widely in age or degree of maturity. The supply of oxygen
usually regulates itself. It is only necessary that the seeds shall not
be planted too deep, that the soil is porous and not overloaded with
water. Moisture and temperature, however, must be carefully regulated.

[Illustration: Fig. 1. Double Seed-Pot.]

=Regulation of Moisture.=--Moisture is the most important factor
in seedage. It is usually applied to the seeds by means of soil or
some similar medium, as moss or cocoanut fiber. Fresh and vigorous
seeds endure heavy waterings, but old and poor seeds must be treated
sparingly. If there is reason to suspect that the seeds are weak,
water should not be applied to them directly. A favorite method of
handling them is to sow them in a pot of loose and sandy loam which
is set inside a larger pot, the intermediate space being filled with
moss, to which, alone, the water is applied. This device is illustrated
in Fig. 1. The water soaks through the walls of the inner pot and is
supplied gradually and constantly to the soil. Even in this case it
is necessary to prevent soaking the moss too thoroughly, especially
with very weak seeds. When many pots are required, they may be simply
plunged in moss with the same effect. The soil should be simply very
slightly moist, never wet. Moisture is sometimes supplied by setting
the seed-pot in a shallow saucer of water, or it may be sufficient to
simply place it in the humid atmosphere of a propagating-box. Large
seeds may be laid upon the surface of the soil in a half-filled pot,
covered with thin muslin, and then covered with loose and damp loam.
Every day the pot is inverted, the covering taken off and fresh soil
is added. A modification of this plan for small seeds can be made by
placing the seeds between two layers of thin muslin and inserting them
in damp loam, which is frequently renewed to avoid the extremes which
would result from watering or from allowing the soil to become dry.
In these last operations,