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HORTICULTURE 



January 17, 1920 



Christmas Rose Possibilities 



Wellesley, Mass., Jan. 6, 1920. 



Some one asks — Is it possible to 

 make a success — a commercial — suc- 

 cess of Christmas rose liereabouts. 

 The answer is, yes, if one will take 

 the trouble to meet their cultural re- 

 quirements. 



We have tried Christmas roses, here 

 and there — in New Jersey and Massa- 

 chusetts — as rock plants, and in shel- 

 tered nooks, both in sun and shade, 

 but we have failed to make them the 

 success worth while. They will live 

 for a few years, but seldom thrive in 

 the open. If you get them vigorous 

 enough to bloom, climatic conditions 

 are against them in other aspects. 

 Their natural blooming season is 

 from November onwards, and when 

 nicely started, along comes frost, and 

 shuts them off until spring. Their 

 blooming season, is, so say, divided, 

 and all the fine vigorous buds on the 

 way to bloom in December, and 

 through the winter, are killed, and 

 nothing is left for spring, but weak- 

 lings. That is the record for Massa- 

 chusetts, and New Jersey not much 

 better. 



The best success I have seen in this 

 vicinity was at the Powers' place — 

 that was — and now Butterworth's in 



Framingham. When Butterworth was 

 Powers' manager, about 20 years ago, 

 he used to have about halt a dozen 

 cold frames filled with Christmas 

 roses. They were on the shady side 

 of the house, and opened up north. 

 They were seldom disturbed, fed. and 

 watered well, and were a thrifty lot. 

 The frames were protected In winter 

 with glass, mats and shutters, so as to 

 make conditions • as near natural as 

 possible, and some fine flowers were 

 produced all winter. 



I don't think Butterworth has con- 

 tinued their culture probably because 

 "it did not pay," The flowers last a 

 month when cut, and go through the 

 changes from green tinted when cut, 

 to pink tinted, and green tinted when 

 ageing. Such flowers ought to be 

 worth 25 cents each, and really one 

 ought to get that for them to make 

 them pay. If they could be popular- 

 ized, people would be willing to pay, 

 what it costs to grow them. They 

 should be put In the class with or- 

 chids, for to grow them successfully 

 they need fully as much care. 



Very few people make the differ- 

 ence between Christmas roses and 

 Lenten roses. They belong to two en- 

 tirely different types. Tbe Christmas 

 roses, Helleborus Niger, have scape- 



like inflorescences — that is, come up 

 directly from the rootstocks, with usu- 

 ally only one, but occasionally two 

 nodding, white or slightly pink tinted 

 flowers. 



The Lenten roses are mostly varie- 

 ties of Helleborus orientalis. They do 

 not bloom until winter is past, or 

 thereabouts. They need the protec- 

 tion of a mulching, more than any- 

 thing to keep them from starting out 

 too early, as occasionally they get 

 nipped. Sometimes winter frosts de- 

 stroy the foliage, which badly mars 

 their beauty, but even so they bloom 

 well, and make a fresh lot of leaves. I 

 should say, in speaking of Christmas 

 roses, in respect to winter injury to 

 the foliage, that the loss of that is 

 most detrimental to future growth, as 

 evidently they are to a greater extent, 

 evergreen. 



Lenten roses carry a branched pan- 

 icle of bloom, bearing several flowers, 

 which opens in succession, and gives 

 them a long season of bloom, but they 

 do not have the substance of Christ- 

 mas roses, and do not last as long 

 when cut. 



There are several distinct varieties 

 of Helleborus orientalis, which' in 

 some places are given the rank of spe- 

 cies. But that they are only varieties 

 may be proved by raising them from 

 seeds — they seldom or never come 

 true, and from one batch of seedlings 



Helleborus niger 



