Sentence:  With <WSD>stool</WSD> bedding, the plants are pruned back to the ground in the dormant season, and the shoots that form in the spring have juvenile characteristics and are called "juvenile reversion shoots." <WSD>Stool</WSD> bedding or <WSD>stool</WSD> bed layering is a common practice for the production of rootstocks of apple. ... The closer the apical meristem is to the roots of the plant, the more juvenile it is likely to be. This feature is exploited by techniques such as hedging or <WSD>stool</WSD> bedding that employ severe pruning to decrease the distance between the new growth and the root system, thus acting to rejuvenate the plant and benefit from the ease of rooting that is characteristic of the juvenile phase. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  A plant that has been cut down until its main stem is close to the ground, resembling a stool, to promote new growth.