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THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



a few blooma of Cloth of Gold, and 

 T. Madame Falcot, were the most im- 

 portant representatives of the yellow 

 class save two half-opened specimens 

 of that rara avis among roses, the 

 yellow Provence, and a cluster of Nar- 

 cisse in Mr. Fraser's stands, the best 

 sample of that kind upon the tables ; 

 that admirable kind, Gloire de Dijon, 

 was very meagrely represented, which 

 may be accounted for by its first 

 bloom having generally gone by — at 

 least it was so with mine. 



By the time I had made these ob- 

 servations the constantly increasing 

 company rendered examination, much 

 less criticism, difficult, if not impos- 

 sible, and navigation amidst the vor- 

 tex of silks and muslins extremely 

 perilous. Such ejaculations as, " May 

 I trouble you to raise your foot ?" 

 "Will you be so kind? The-enk 

 you," became so frequent as to re- 

 sult in a very tolerable imitation, on 

 my part, of the " goose step ;" so, ex- 

 tricating myself as well as possible, 

 I was fain to restore exhausted nature 

 with a copious libation of " Bass," 

 and a cigar in the open air. 



For the information of suburban 

 rosarians, I may as well just specify 

 such of the newer kinds enumerated 

 above as succeed with me, within the 

 four-mile radius, and which, conse- 

 quently, are likely to thrive anywhere 

 if properly treated. Every instruc- 

 tion to this end that the inexperienced 

 can desire, will be found in Mr. Hib- 

 berd's new work, "The Bose-Book," 

 perhaps the best work on the subject 

 that has yet appeared ; no rosarian's 

 library will be complete without it. 

 Charles Lefebvre, Madame Clemence 

 Joigneaux. John Hopper, Vicomte 

 Vigier, Madame C TJ ood, Triomphe 

 de Caen, Due de Rohan, and Bour- 

 bons Catherine Guillot and Emotion. 



It is not a grateful office to find 

 fault with judges' awards. In Class 

 10, however, I think they were open 

 to objection ; the terms of the sche- 

 dule, moreover, were unfortunately 

 vague. The class was described as 

 being for the roses of 1862-63, mean- 

 ing obviously the last two batches of 



new varieties — viz.. those introduced 

 in the autumns of 1862-63, and let out 

 in the spring of 1863 64 respectively. 

 In consequence of the latitude allow- 

 ed by this uncertainty of description, 

 some of the stands contained kinds 

 that had been in cultivation two full 

 seasons, and which were common in 

 the general stands — such as. Charles 

 Lefebvre, Prince C. de Mohan, etc. r 

 and even Reynold's Hole, shown, if I 

 mistake not, in 1861. If the object 

 of this section of prizes be to encou- 

 rage liberal experiment in new and 

 untried varieties, it must inevitably 

 fail unless the rewards are given to 

 those who exhibit most examples of 

 the very latest kinds, irrespective of 

 other considerations. It is manifestly 

 easier to exhibit specimens where the 

 budded quarters of brier and Manetti 

 are at command for cutting blooms, 

 than from a few French stools sent 

 over in the autumn, and severely cut 

 back for propagating purposes, or 

 from the young spring grafted plants 

 so propagated. In the interests of 

 fair play, and for the encouragement 

 of growers who import largely every 

 season, the chief means by which we 

 obtain sterling additions to our lists, 

 it would be better in future to consti- 

 tute the last season's varieties only a 

 distinct class. Looking at the stands 

 in this class from this point of view, 

 I thought Mr. Fraser's should have 

 been equal first, or only second at 

 least, to Mr. William Paul's, whose 

 own fine seedlings doubtless gave him 

 an advantage. 



I would further venture a remark 

 upon " disbudding," one of the means 

 by which monstrous roses are pro- 

 duced. It is not fair to competitors 

 who do not practise it : it is not fair 

 to purchasers who are deceived by it 

 as to the true character of the kinds 

 they buy. It is akin to chrysanthe- 

 mum dressing and other tricky prac- 

 tices, not redounding to the credit of 

 floriculture ; nor ought teas grown 

 wider glass to be allowed to compete 

 with those grown in the ordinary 

 manner in the open air. 



Homerton. W. D. Pbiob. 



