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GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



(OF AMERICA) 

 Devoted to the Science of Floriculture and Horticulture 



I Vol. XXVI 



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MARCH. 1922 



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No. 3 I 



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Things and Thoughts of the Garden 



MONTAGUE FREE 



"Akcays be merry if thou may, 

 But i^'astc i;of the good ahcay, 

 Have Iiatte of flozccrs fresh as May, 

 Chapelet of Roses on Whit Sunday. 

 For siieh arraie lie costeth but lite." 



CHAUCER, "The father of English poetry,"' was 

 perhaps the first to make mention of the rose in the 

 written English language. Long before his time, 

 of course, the rose occurs in literature. We read of an 

 Arab writer of the 12th century, B. C, who tells of the 

 Magi's Rose being "entrusted to the guardianship of a 

 special angel." Theophrastus and Pliny made observa- 

 tions on roses as they knew them, and, continuing down 

 to our own time, there has been a constant stream of in- 

 formation and misinformation, comment, and eulogy on 

 the Queen of flowers. Poets have sung of the rose, gar- 

 deners and others have written reams of practical, but not 

 necessarily prosaic, information concerning its cultiva- 

 tion ; and, to all seeming, this will continue so long as 

 time endures and roses blow. 



In spite of widespread interest evidenced by many ref- 

 erences to the rose in the literature of the ancients it 

 was not until the close of the 18th century that it was 

 honored by a book to itself. According to Miss Will- 

 mott in "The Genus Rosa": "The first illustrated book 

 exclusively on roses is Miss Lawrance's folio volume, 

 with ninety beautiful plates, published in 1799." 



Since that time the production of books on the rose 

 has been enormous, one might almost say appalling. 

 There are books from nearly every conceivable angle^ 

 scientific works dealing with the description and classifi- 

 cation of Rosa, practical books telling us how to grow 

 them, and talky. talky books designed presumably to 

 while away an idle hour. 



Of scientific books. John Lindley's "Rosarum ^lono- 

 graphia," published in 1820. is perhaps the most impor- 

 tant of the older works. Coming to the modern times. 

 Ellen \\'illmott's "The Genus Rosa" in two weighty vol- 

 umes, splendidly illustrated, takes its place as the most 

 sumptuous descriptive work on the rose that has ever 

 been published. 



One of the most readable books is "A Book About 

 Roses," by the late S. Reynolds Hole. The genial Dean 

 is always' interesting, but especially so when writing 

 about his favorite flower, and in this book there is much 

 sound information agreeably spiced with witty anecdote. 



"Roses for English Gardens," by Gertrude Jekyll and 

 Edward l\Iawlev"is another extremely valuable English 



publication, not only for the text, but also fo.r the excel- 

 lent photographic illustrations. 



When writing of books on roses, it is difficult to knovjr 

 when to stop as the subject is so broad. Therefore we 

 thought to pass on to other matters at this point, before 

 getting any farther involved, but it would not do to omit 

 all reference to the excellent American rose literature 

 which, after all, so far as cultural directions are con- 

 cerned, is more applicable to American conditions. We 

 think the most informative and valuable publication on 

 the rose is "The American Rose Annual," a serial pub- 

 lished by the American Rose Society. This should be 

 in the hands of all rose lovers. "Commercial Rose Cul- 

 ture," by Eben Holmes, treats admirably of this side of 

 the subject. Amongst the older books, "The Rose, Its 

 History and Culture," by S. B. Parsons, published in 

 1847, is interesting, as also is "The Rose," by H. B. 

 Ellwanger. 



The rose is England's national flower and England has 

 long been famous for the excellence of its roses, whether 

 growing in opulent ducal gardens or clambering over 

 humble thatch-roofed cottages. Although 1921 was not 

 a favorable year for roses in England, because of the 

 drought, a few notes inspired by the editor and by our 

 recent visit may not be amiss in this "Rose Number" of 

 The Chronicle. 



Although Kew does not specialize to any great extent 

 in roses, its representation of the genus is more than ade- 

 quate and there is much of interest to the rose lover 

 practically throughout the whole year. For, although 

 there may not be blooms to see in the large collection 

 of rose species there is always something of interest, 

 even during the Winter, either in the form of brilliant 

 colored fruits such as we get in Rosa pomifera, R. 

 Helencc, and R. setipoda. or in strange and conspicuous 

 spines as in R. omeiensis var. pteracantha. 



The garden roses, hybrid perpetuals and teas, are 

 planted in a series of beds in the vicinity of the great 

 palm house. In almost every case only one variety is 

 grown in a bed and these, give a stunning display when 

 at their best. Here are many groups of standard roses, 

 or, as they are called in this country, "tree roses," and, 

 for a ground cover in these beds, the bedding violas are 

 largely used. 



Much could be said in favor of planting a ground cover 

 beneath those roses whose habit of growth admits of this 

 treatment. Those who advocate it claim that these low 

 growing plants serve to shade the ground and thus help 



