FOREIGN NOTICES. 



279 



of a plant — after that those buds that have only 

 small shoots to support them are done away with, 

 and by this time perhaps one-third of tlie whole 

 crop is gone, and that is enough on good rose soil, 

 where the plants grow very well ; but on thin 

 land, and where roses do but moderately, one-half 

 of the flower buds ought to be taken off, and the 

 other half left on the best and strongest shoots to 

 flower. Some people say, that if you want good 

 late flowers, and to spare your plants, all the first 

 show of flower-buds should be destro3'ed ; and I 

 have tried that many a time, but I do not believe 

 in the doctrine at all, for I never could make out 

 that half a crop in June did any harm to that of 

 the October following. Others, again, cut back 

 the shoots at the end of May, to get late roses, 

 but that is an extraordinary bad fashion, which no 

 one would indulge in who knew anything of vege- 

 table life. It is just as if a farmer were to let his 

 calves suck the cows dry, and expect to have 

 cream and fresh butter nevertheless. The leaves 

 being the representatives of the cows, tlic garden- 

 er who cuts down his roses in the middle of the 

 growing season is that of the sucking calves, and 

 the buds and full blown roses the cream and but- 

 ter. Instead of two crops of roses by this system 

 of cutting back the shoots at the end of May, the 

 fact is, that the poor plants are forced to give 

 three crops of moderate bloom instead of two 

 good ones. At that early season the next bud or 

 two below the cut part are in leaf in ten days, and 

 in bloom by the end of June, so that cutting back 

 hinders the autumnal crop verj' much, instead of 

 easing the plants, as some knowing folks suppose. 

 The first crop is put off oidy three weeks in 

 some seasons, and not more than a month or five 

 weeks at anj' time ; and cut as we may we cannot 

 alter the nature of a rose-tree more than that of 

 any other plant; and it is in the nature of Per- 

 petual roses to make a fresh growth of wood as 

 soon as a crop of roses is ready to cut for the but- 

 ton-hole or bouquets and glasses — no matter what 

 time, that is from the end of May to the middle or 

 end of August — by not cutting off any of the 

 leaves in May and June ; and by reducing the 

 vigor of the plants a little, with having a crop of 

 flowers, we kill three instead of two birds with 

 the same stone. We have so many flowers : the 

 leaves digest the proper food for the next crop at 

 the proper time, the height of their growing sea- 

 son; and the plant is made to take a longer time 

 before it makes a second growth ; for the merest 

 observer can perceive, that after a rose-bush has 

 flowered it rests awhile, before it makes another 

 attempt at growing ; whereas when a plant is cut 

 early in the summer it will not rest, as we have 

 just seen, but makes a second growth in a hurry, 

 flowers in a hurry, and will be ready by the mid- 

 dle of July to make a third instead of a second 

 growth. It is true, that where roses do well, and 

 where there are plenty of them, if one does not 

 flower well after a few seasons of bad manage- 



ment, another will which escaped the ordeal, or 

 which had a stronger constitution, and the cause 

 of failure in the first plant is overlooked; but 

 when one's ground is very small, and the best is 

 to be made of a limited number of plants, atten- 

 tion to small matters like this is really of some 

 consequence. 



I do not mean to say that the bad effects of a 

 wrong system is to be seen the first or even in the 

 next season, but depend upon it, sooner or later, 

 it must and will tell; and that is the reason why 

 wc are so particular in asking our correspondents 

 for the past history of such plants as they write to 

 us about for cause and cure. By the time a rose- 

 bush has finished its growth, and put ofl' a crop 

 of flowers, the bottom of the young growth gets 

 hard or ripe; as then we say, or find, that the 

 bark will not " run," if we want to bud on it; 

 and at this stage, no matter what time of the sea- 

 son, the bottom leaves get hard and dry also; 

 their office is in a great measure fulfilled, and 

 black specks and blotches tell the fact ; and here 

 the young grower takes alarm ; he thinks it must 

 be something inimical to the health of the plant 

 has caused the leaves to look so, but the healthiest 

 oak leaf in the forest shows exactly the same 

 symptoms at the proper time, and we think no- 

 thing of it; the frost is at hand^ and down they 

 come. Well, in August and September we do 

 get frost at times, but not hard enough to cast 

 down the ripened leaves on the lower parts of our 

 rose-bushes ; then it is that we ourselves should 

 be so frosty-natured as to do the work instead— 

 that is, pull off all the ripened leaves with the 

 hand. We thus get rid of the contagion froin the 

 black and yellow blotches, and also let in the sun 

 and air to play among the branches, by which 

 they are ripened still more; and the fresh leaves 

 above have also a better chance of doing their part 

 more effectually. This, then, is the first process 

 of September dressing: — the old, useless, dry, 

 blotched leaves are stripped off, and we see where 

 all the shoots have sprung from; also which of 

 them are strong, and which are not. Such as are 

 below a medium size are now cut right out: this 

 gives still more light and air to the strong ones, 

 and the sap that would go into the little ones 

 must from hence find its way into the large ones; 

 and if it does not make them still larger, it will 

 add to their strength to flower better. Now we 

 must look up among the branches, and find out 

 those places where the first June blossoms were 

 made, and here two or three weak or little shoots 

 will be found also; and one or more strong ones 

 which issued from a stronger bud lower down has 

 taken the lead, and left the weak ones completely 

 in the shade, and of course they can be of no use; 

 therefore, the best plan is to cut theni off also — 

 cutting close to the bottom of the best leaders. 

 This, in its turn, throws more sap, more air, and 

 more light into and against all the strong leading 

 shoots; and surely under all these advantages they 



