1879.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



35 



valuable, and the mingling of their large white 

 flowers with the glossy green foliage of the Rho- 

 dodendron in August and September is a desid- 

 eratum. But the flowers of H. paniculata grandi- 

 flora do not long remain white. The side exposed 

 to the sun soon becomes of a dull pink, or rather 

 of a dirty brown color; the heavy panicle of 

 flowers needs support, and even then the plant 

 is rather ungainly looking. H. paniculata on the 

 contrary needs no support, and the flower re- 

 tains its white color much longer. It is therefore 

 in my opinion, a much more desirable plant than 

 the former. I know nothing of the introduction 

 of H. paniculata, but in all probability it has been 

 in this country as long as the other, which being 

 more showy at first sight, has somewhat over- 

 shadowed it. For this reason its propagation 

 has been neglected,' and consequently it is yet 

 scarce. 



CULTIVATION OF THE ROSE. 



BY ANGUS W. M'INTOSH. 

 (Read before the Germantown Horticultural Society.) 



I am aware that the subject which I have se- 

 lected for my essay this evening, has been so fully 

 treated of at various times that nothing really 

 new can be added. And yet it is at all times an 

 interesting topic, for not only is the rose a gen- 

 eral favorite at the present day, but from the 

 earliest ages it has been in cultivation among 

 the civilized nations of Europe and Asia, and 

 justly esteemed "The Queen of Flowers." 



I might here introduce a brief history of the 

 rose, and notice a few of the many beautiful 

 sentiments that have been expressed regarding 

 it; but all this, while doubtless interesting to a 

 certain extent, would not materially aid me in 

 perfecting the design of this essay, which is to 

 assist, if possible the amateur Rosarian, by con- 

 sidering briefly a few of the most essential par- 

 ticulars of rose culture. And as the object before 

 us should always be perfection, it will be neces- 

 sary in order to attain our object that particular 

 attention be given in the first place to the matter 

 of soil. 



Soil. — Although the rose will grow in any or- 

 dinary fertile ground, it succeeds Jjest in a deep, 

 rich, creamy soil, rather stiff than otherwise, but 

 free from stagnant moisture. If your ground is 

 a heav}' clay it may be sufficiently improved by 

 a dressing of good sharp sand, and leaf mould or 

 burnt clay. On the other hand if the ground 

 should be of a very light and gravelly nature, 



give a good dressing of turfy loam and well rot- 

 ted cow manure. 



Planting. — During the latter part of October 

 any necessary transplanting maybe attended to, 

 but the planting of young roses should be de- 

 ferred until Spring. The ground intended for 

 them should be well trenched in the Fall, and 

 when about to plant in the Spring give it a good 

 forking over, working in at the same time a dress- 

 ing of manure, and as the rose requires to be 

 liberally treated it will be necessary (except in 

 the case of uncommonly rich soils) to manure the 

 ground every year. During the Summer keep the 

 rose beds clean and free from weeds ; be careful 

 to remove all decayed flowers, as they only tend 

 to weaken the plant, and frequent stirring of the 

 ground will be necessary to prevent the ground 

 from becoming baked and hard, and also to en- 

 courage a vigorous growth of the plants. 



Pruning. — A very few words on the subject of 

 pruning will be sufficient at this time. Hybrid 

 perpetuals should have their shoots slightly 

 shortened after the first crop of bloom is over. 

 And in the Spring give them a liberal pruning. 

 Teas, Chinas, Bourbons, etc., also require severe 

 pruning, as they flower from young wood. Climb- 

 ing Roses require little, the removal of all dead 

 and feeble wood and very slight shortening back 

 of the shoots will be sufficient for them. 



Pot Roses. — But at this season of the year the 

 rose is particularly valuable as a pot plant, and 

 certainly no collection of Winter blooming plants 

 can be considered complete without it. Plants 

 intended for this purpose, requires to be grown 

 in pots during the Summer, as roses potted in 

 Fall from the open ground seldom bloom before 

 March or April, even under the most favorable 

 treatment, while pot grown plants will bloom 

 freely all through the Winter. In treating 

 roses as Avindow plants it is simply necessary to 

 avoid keeping them too warm ; give a good sunny 

 position, keep the plants clean and free from in- 

 sects by frequent sprinkling and sponging of the 

 foliage, and give suflicient water at the roots 

 without allowing the plant to stand in water. 



Protection through the Winter. — Roses of a ten- 

 der nature of course require suflicient protection 

 during the Winter, and with many amateurs the 

 practice is to pot them, placing the plants in a 

 Avarm room and watering liberally, but this is a 

 mistaken kindness for in this state of their 

 growth roses are much better without heat at 

 all. The best plan is to place the plants 

 when potted in a cold frame or pit, plunging the 



