each cutting, taken from a mother vine, is a clone of that vine. the way that a vine grower selects these cuttings can be described as either clonal or massal selection. in clonal selection, an ideal plant within a vineyard or nursery that has exhibited the most desirable traits is selected with all cuttings taken from that single plant. in massal (or "mass") selection, cuttings are taken from several vines of the same variety that have collectively demonstrated desirable traits.