1873] FORCING THE ROSE. 251 



FORCIlSrG THE ROSE. 



Or all forced flowers in use for the spring decoration of tlie conserva- 

 tory there is perhaps none more desirable than the Rose ; nothing gives 

 so great satisfaction when a good and successful result is obtained. It 

 is showy, its fragrance unsurpassed, the foliage noble when at its best. 

 The Rose seems to grow to be cut, for a long stalk may be taken with 

 the flower, and the plant is not injured, and a succession of flowers are 

 maintained for a long time on the same plant. The Rose being the 

 queen of flowers, it is peculiarly the gentlemen's as well as the ladies' 

 flower, and certain bachelors of our acquaintance will tolerate no 

 other flowers about their grounds. But it is about the forcing of the 

 Rose we have to write ; it does not need our prosaic praise. 



The early-forced Roses are now nearly over, and are being gradually 

 moved out into the open air in a sheltered place to rest and harden. 

 This appears to us to be really the starting-point from whence to pre- 

 pare the plants for another year's forcing ; and we think also that now 

 is a good time for those who have not got a stock of plants in pots, 

 and who intend forcing another year, to get the desired quantity 

 together. This may be done by ordering plants established in 6-inch 

 or larger pots from the nursery, or we should prefer plants in smaller 

 pots of our own selection, unless we could depend on our nurseryman 

 doing us justice. If to spare, the desired number of plants might be 

 lifted from the open ground at home and potted, but this plan is not 

 always satisfactory, unless there be a stock of young plants at com- 

 mand, as the roots of old plants are not easily accommodated to pots of 

 handy dimensions j and cutting away the roots of a Rose in order to 

 fit it to a pot of convenient size is barbarous, and fraught with disaster 

 to the plant ; we therefore prefer beginning with young pot-plants. 



Most varieties of the Rose are capable of being forced; but the 

 Hybrid Perpetuals are much to be preferred as a whole, and it is of 

 them that the great bulk of our stock is composed. A few of the old 

 Cabbage and common Moss Roses are desirable on account of their 

 fragrance and delicate colours — besides, the Moss makes the finest but- 

 ton-hole Rose j they are both also very prolific bloomers. A few also 

 of the summer-blooming Roses are indispensable, such as Coup 

 d'Hebe, Charles Lawson, Paul Ricaut, Maiden's Blush, and a few others. 

 But it is among the Hybrid Perpetuals that the grandest Roses are to 

 be found and the greatest variety selected. Baroness Rothschild is 

 a magnificent light-coloured Rose for forcing, and a strong grower ; 

 Duke of Edinburgh, a dark Rose, also fine ; La France, a superb Rose ; 

 Miss Poole, Jules Chretien; and of older Roses, Jules Margottin is very 

 prolific ; Senateur Vaisse and General Jacqueminot are two old Roses 

 of fine scent and colour ; Souvenir de la Malmaison is a sure and dis- 



