CALENDAR OF OPERATIONS FOR MARCH. 



r)05 



In continued dry weather it is 

 beneficial to give a gentle watering 

 all over the foliage, but not in such 

 quantity as to penetrate the earth 

 much. 



Violets must be kept clean. Pro- 

 vision should be made at the end 

 of the month for the following sea- 

 son, by planting out the young 

 rooted runners in frames upon a 

 rich soil ; keep them close, and 

 shade them for a day or two ; then 

 air freely, and afterwards remove 

 the sashes altogether. Another 

 plan is now to scatter some frei^h 

 soil over the beds, in which the 

 young runners will root, and early 

 in autumn take them off and plant 

 them in prepared beds or frames, 



THE ROSE GARDEN. 



Those who take delight in a 

 succession of blooms should, the 

 first week in the mouth, prune one- 

 half the rough-barked Rose trees 

 that usually bloom in June. First 

 cut off the thin spindly branches 

 close to where they spring from, 

 then shorten the strong shoots 

 according to the form you wish 

 them to assume : the further back 

 they are cut the stronger the 

 shoots generally come. The pro- 

 portions of tree Eoses should be 

 like those of an Oak, an Elm, or 

 any other handsome tree ; the 

 head should be large in proportion 

 to the height of the stem ; the head 

 should, when fully grown, be quite 

 as large across as the stem is high 

 from the ground to the bottom 

 branches; therefore, in pruning, 

 cut sparingly while the Rose is 

 getting to its size, and, when once 

 it has attained this, the branches 

 that grow from season to season 

 may be shortened to even a single 

 eye, if desirable. It may be taken 

 as a general rule, that the less eyes 

 left to grow tlie more vigorous 



the growth. Those now pruned 

 will be rather later than if tht-y 

 were not pruned at all. The objret 

 of pruning half now, and half, as 

 we siiall recommend, next month, 

 is to have two complete seasons; 

 for next month the buds nearer 

 the ends of the branches will 

 iiave advanced considerably, aiid 

 those nearest the stem will have 

 been retarded by the growth of 

 tlie others. The pruning will 

 throw them back a month, and 

 thus give you two complete sea- 

 sons ; so that with care, and 

 pruning some back early, and 

 others late, a very continuous 

 bloom may be secured with the 

 various Eoses. The principal 

 pruning required by the China 

 and Noisette kinds is to cut out 

 the small spindly weak shoots 

 from all parts, and shorten the 

 principal branches and shoots. 

 Tall-growing Koses for pillars or 

 wails, or fronts of houses, sliould 

 have the weak shoots cut clean 

 out, and those strong enough to 

 bear liowers shortened, except 

 where you want the wood. Many 

 climbing Eoses should be spurred 

 from the bottom to the top, that 

 is, the shoots cut in to two or three 

 eyes, more or less, according to 

 the space they have to occupy. 



Fastenings. — Look well to the 

 fastenings and stakes, treading 

 the ground close about the roots, 

 and remove all suckers and shoots 

 of the stock. 



Eoses in Pots. — Eoses forcing, 

 small China Eoses for bedding out, 

 and cuttings ready to pot off, 

 should be attended to, so as to 

 keep them now upon the move. 



Cuttings for Grafting. — At the 

 end of the month gather all your 

 cuttings for grafting : the fresher 

 they are the better, and the wood 

 must be ripe. Those you have 



