The layering is a form of vegetative Multiplication making it possible to multiply a Plante while placing a branch still connected to the foot of the plant mother in a wet substrate.

The part of the plant placed in the substrate emits then adventitious root S. When they are sufficiently developed, one can cut the branch to separate the young seedling from the plant mother. To accelerate the layering, one can notch the bark at the place where one wants to see appearing roots.

Species with natural layering

The layering occurs naturally for many species, with more or less of facilities according to the species and the size of the plant.

Among smallest, the strawberry plant S savages or cultivated multiply thus very quickly because they emit specialized stems, the Stolon S. At the other end of the scale of the sizes, it arrives completely exceptionally that Arbre S as the Chêne marcottent. It is more frequent at some Conifère S, like the Cyprès of Leyland, whose low branches are enracinent spontaneously in contact with the ground. It is thus formed a crown of young trees around the old trees. One can see of them examples with the Arboretum de Chèvreloup (Rocquencourt, Yvelines).

Technique

The layering can be practiced in two ways:

• either by curving certain stems to the ground to bury them partially,
• or if that is not practicable, while creating around a stem or of a branch a hygrophile sleeve of substrate (foam, compost…).

The layering differs from the Bouturage in what the branch is separated from the foot of the plant mother only after the formation of the root S, which guarantees the best begun again of the young seedling.

In Vine growing, the caused layering of the vine is called provining.

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