140 



IRISH GARDENING. 



SEPTEMBER 



time when the results of this rose, crossed with others, 

 come to us from our Northern nurserymen, as come 

 they will. Some may be better, but let us not forget 

 that owing solely to Pernet-Dncher sending us the 

 Lvon did we get these beauties when they do come. 

 One little hint about this rose and I am done about it, 

 pro tern. Try and plant it where some shade shall rest 

 on it during the heat of a July sun — she will repay you. 

 Has it ever struck you how some varieties which look 

 to be on the thin side (by this I mean those varieties 

 whose petals are somewhat flimsy and not stiff) can 

 stand such heat? Take Dean Hole, for instance ; it is 

 marvellous how much heat this flower, amongst others, 

 can bear, and why Ao most of the Teas last so well in 

 such grilling heat ? These are questions which I should 

 like some botanist to answer. There must be a reason 

 for this, and a botanist is the proper person to solve 

 it. I'he more I grow roses the more I see what 

 wonderful secrets nature has still which are unknown 

 to us. It is the noticing of these new ideas (new to me 

 at least) that makes rose-growing so fascinating. How 

 1 often wish for some great botanist as a friend to be 

 near — what questions I would give him to unravel. The 

 biggest question and the most interesting one to my 

 mind is how do two roses — neither of them yellow — 

 when crossed by a hybridist throw a yellow ? Is it that 

 running in some of these roses grandparents' blood 

 there is yellow blood, if I may call it such, or is it that 

 the combination of the two colours produces yellow, or 

 is it the result of the weather at the time of the cross- 

 ing? How I wish some of the readers of Irish 

 G.\RDEN"i.NG would try and solve these questions. One 

 of our greatest — nay, our very greatest — hybridizers 

 tells me we shall never solve this question. We inust^ 

 and that is all about it. 



Propagation of Roses by Cuttings 



As Tea-scented roses do best on their own roots, 

 .April is the right time to propagate them by cuttings. 

 Fill some six-inch pots with a sandy compost, two 

 parts loam, one part leaf-mould, one part silver sand. 

 Press it firmly into the pots. Put half an inch of silver 

 sand on top, then give a watering from a fine-rosed 

 watering-can. Make the cuttings from four to si.x 

 inches long, remove all the leaves e-xcept the top 

 one ; with a small stick make a hole the depth of the 

 cutting. Insert the cutting up to the top bud ; place 

 the cuttings close to the edge of the pot, and make the 

 earth firm round them. Give them a good soaking of 

 water, then stand them in a frame on a bottom of coal 

 ashes ; sprinkle them over-head with water on after- 

 noons of dry, hot days ; keep the frame close till they 

 are rooted, then gradually expose them to the open air, 

 when they may be planted out or potted up, if required, 

 in pots. J. Devine, Kilworth. 



Shrl'bs for Dry B.\.nks .\xd Poor .Soil.— Mr. W. 

 PalUmore, of Kew, recommends double, single and 

 dwarf gorse, lavender, rosemary, savin, brambles. 

 Putenlilla fruticosa, Cisius laurifoUus, C. ladaniferous. 

 C. recognitus, Berbcris aquifolia, and B. stciwphylta. 



Notes. 



The \ alle of F.\rmv.\rd M.\xlre is not entirely 

 due to its fertilising properties ; indeed, in a dry year its 

 chief value lies in the fact that it gives an increased 

 water-holding power to the soil. The luxuriant appear- 

 ance of crops growing under such manurial treatment 

 is mainly due to a more regular and plentiful water 

 supply by which the plants are able to keep up a steady, 

 vigorous growth, unretarded by distressing spells of 

 drought. It has been found, for example, from very 

 accurate determinations made at Kothamsted that the 

 first nine inches of soil in a dunged plot will, after heavy- 

 rains following a spell of dry weather, retain a great 

 deal more water than the soil of an adjoining plot that 

 was unmanured. In one case cited the extra amount of 

 water was equal to about thirty tons of water per acre. 

 The slow percolation of rain water through a soil rich 

 In humus is obviously of very great advantage to 

 growing crops : it secures a more constant suppl\- of 

 moisture, and hence a quicker growth and heavier 

 yield. 



Elder Berries. — These berries are now ripening, and 

 this suggests a note on the making of elderberrv- wine. 

 The berries are gathered and crushed, and the juice 

 strained into a clean vessel. To every three quarts of 

 juice is added one quart of water, and in each gallon of 

 liquid is dissolved three pounds of sugar. Then it is 

 allowed to ferment in a cask or earthenware jar, and 

 the level of the liquid kept the same by filling up with 

 water as it evaporates. When fermentation ceases 

 stop well and put aside for eight months before bottl- 

 ing off. Elder berries may be also used for tarts, 

 but they should have spices or lemon added to give 

 flavour. 



L.wender Bag. — The delicious smell of sweet 

 lavender from fresh linen is most luxurious to the 

 senses. Every garden should have its clump, or even 

 hedge, of lavender, and every housewife should prepare 

 bags of lavender flowers for her linen chests and ward- 

 robes. The flowers are gathered during a warm day 

 and pounded. To each ^ lb. of flowers are added 

 J2 oz. of dried thv'me and mint, ]^ oz. of ground cloves 

 and carraway seed, and i oz. of table salt. The 

 mixture is then tied up in bags, and hung in the ward- 

 robe or linen closet. Orris-root, it may be noted, is an 

 excellent medium for holding delicate perfumes for 

 perfumery bags. 



Perfume Jar. — Jars giving off the fragrance of our 

 favourite sweet-scented flowers or herbs may be easily 

 prepared by first making up a stock mixture, to which 

 may be added the perfume-giving flowers oi our par- 

 ticular fancy. Such a stock mixture may be com- 

 poinided by mixing together Yz lb. common salt, )^ oz. 

 storax, half a dozen cloves, a handful of dry bay leaves, 

 and another handful of lavender flowers. This basis 

 will last for years, and to it may be added from lime to 

 time handfulls of fragrant rose petals or other sweet- 

 scented flowers. Or to it may be added chips of 

 sandalwood, cinnamon, orris-root, or musk, according 

 to fancv. 



