Reproduction of plants
Reproduction is an important property of living things. Plants reproduce asexually and sexually. Vegetative propagation is a kind of asexual reproduction: a new plant grows from a root, rhizome, tuber, bulb, shoot or leaf. In nature Bermuda grass, Johnson grass and couch grass spread by rhizomes; tulip, boychechak (an early-spring bulb plant) and daffodil by bulbs; poplar, dog rose, licorice and alhagi by root suckers (young shoots from buds on roots); strawberry by runners; in a flood a willow branch may take root. In cultivated plants: cuttings — a piece of shoot (grape, fig, pomegranate, rose, blackcurrant; grape cuttings 45–50 cm long are prepared at autumn pruning, kept in a damp pit and planted in spring); tubers (potato); layering — burying a shoot without cutting it from the parent and separating it once it has rooted (grape, rose, currant); grafting — fixing a part of one plant (scion) onto another (rootstock): cleft grafting is done in early spring and budding (a T-shaped cut) mostly in August. The aims: quick multiplication and keeping the good traits of a variety.
| In nature | rhizome, bulb, root suckers, runners |
|---|---|
| In crops | cuttings, tubers, layering, grafting |
Practical: cut an 8–10 cm cutting from a houseplant shoot (pelargonium, tradescantia, coleus) with an adult’s help, put it in a jar of water or damp sand and watch for roots over 2–3 weeks, noting daily. Willow twigs can also be tried. Grafting is demonstrated only by an expert (sharp knife). Safety: sharp tools (knife, secateurs) only for adults; change the water every 2–3 days; wash hands.