260 



THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



next year, which will leave space for the fuller treatment of the fruits 

 and flowers most in request amongst our readers. But our principal 

 object in commencing this address was not so much to talk of what we 

 have done, or what we intend to do, as to return thanks for the gene- 

 rous support we have so long enjoyed, ask pardon for all shortcomings, 

 and especially in cases where any item of correspondence has been 

 unavoidably neglected, and, lastly, to wish all our readers 



§1 gf.crrn dnjristmas tmfo n lOajmg gfcfo |Tc:tr ( 



EOSE GOSSIP.— No. X. 



A RECKONING WITH EOSES. 



These are many signs and tokens 

 of encouragement for rosarians of 

 the present day, promising to revo- 

 lutionize the style of flowers which 

 has been so much in vogue during 

 the last few years. The rage for 

 mere size, unaccompanied with other 

 important properties, is beginning to 

 be questioned, to the discomfiture of 

 the hosts of bad " Jacqueminots," 

 differing little from each other ex- 

 cept in name. It is true that this 

 notable rose has been the progenitor 

 of a few, very few, varieties of tran- 

 scendent merffc, especially those in 

 which the Bourbon blood (Rose de Bo- 

 samene) of the parent has been espe- 

 cially developed ; but the majority 

 of its seedlings have been inferior in 

 qualities, though, from the exigencies 

 of the " trade," they have displaced 

 older and better kinds from the lists. 

 Of what use are those large, flaunt- 

 ing, loose-petalled flowers, changing, 

 in a few hours after opening, to dull, 

 foxy purples, which bear the same 

 relation to what a good rose ought 

 to be that " soup maigre" does to 

 roast beef, or that the attenuated 

 French coquette does to a buxom 

 English belle. They only serve to 

 inflict discouragement and disap- 

 pointment upon deluded purchasers, 

 often inducing them to give up rose- 

 growing in disgust. Some of our 

 eminent florists appear to have be- 

 come alive to this, and to recognize 

 the fact that no rose without double- 

 ness, distinctness, and, above all, 

 hardiness of constitution, is fit for 

 cultivation in our insular climate. 



Mr ; Wm. Paul, in particular, has 1 

 shown what we can produce in his 

 Beauty of Waltham, Lord Macaulay, 

 and Princess of Wales ; nor must 

 John Hopper and King's Acre be 

 omitted — sterling and original roses, 

 really hardy in constitution, and 

 thoroughly tested before being sent 

 out. We have no objection to 

 French varieties, if really fine, but 

 they ought to be much more severely 

 proved before we buy them ; and 

 even then it is a lottery, in some 

 respects, whether they will succeed 

 here or not. 



Upon critically examining the 

 catalogues of roses introduced since 

 1859, I find, out of the annual im- 

 portations of some sixty to seventy 

 novelties, only the following of first- 

 rate excellence — a small percent- 

 age upon, perhaps, four hundred 

 new kinds. The hybrid perpetuals 

 are, Anna Alexieff", Comtesse Cha- 

 brilland, Senateur Vaisse, Victor 

 Verdier, G-loire de Santhenay (a fine 

 rose, ivlien you get it), Due de Cazes, 

 Mad. Clemenee Joigneaux, Mad. 

 Chas. Wood, Charles Lefebvre (the 

 finest of its class), Francais La- 

 charme, Prince Camille de Bohan, 

 Due de Bohan, Vicomte Vigier (per- 

 haps), Sceur des Anges (on account 

 of its colour), Ls Bhone, Mad. Wm. 

 Paul, Jean Groujon, and Vainqueur 

 de Goliath. These are distinct acqui- 

 sitions. I do not include Mad. 

 Furtado, for, though a beautiful 

 flower, it is an unsatisfactory grower, 

 fit only for exceptional situations, 

 and which will, in consequence, soon 



