Layering

Getting roots to form on a piece of branch while it is still attached to the mother plant is called layering.

This is the whole difference between layering and cuttings, and it is the reason layering succeeds where cuttings fail. The branch is never cut off until it already has roots, so it is fed by the mother plant throughout the weeks it takes to grow them.

Layering is done in two ways:

Ground layering

Used for branches close to the ground. Select such a branch, make a small cut on its underside and bury that place in the soil. After a few weeks roots form there. The branch is then cut, separated from the mother plant and planted.

Examples — jasmine, wal dehi.

Aerial layering

Used to root branches that are high above the ground. Select such a branch, remove a small ring of bark, pack that place with a mixture of compost and coir dust and wrap it in polythene. After a few weeks roots form there. The branch is then cut, separated and planted.

Examples — pomegranate, lime.

Figure to be added

Figure 14.2 — the two methods of layering: ground layering, with a branch bent down and buried, and aerial layering, with a ringed branch wrapped in compost and polythene.

The following advantages can be gained through layering:

plants in which seeds do not form well can be propagated;
several plants can be obtained at one time.

Activity 14.2

Identify a plant in your garden that can be used for ground layering. Carry out ground layering on it in the proper way. After about two weeks have passed, lift the branch from the place that was buried in the soil and observe the way roots have formed.