10 THE MOSS ROSE. 



this, for it would be very interesting to know 

 how and where this general favourite originated ; 

 probably when first noticed, gardening was of 

 such small consideration, that the discovery of a 

 rose, however remarkable, would not be thought 

 worth registering. That it is merely an acci- 

 dental sport of the common Provence Eose is 

 strengthened by the fact, that plants produced by 

 the seed of the Moss Rose do not always show 

 moss : perhaps not more than two plants out of 

 three will be mossy, and as I have often proved, 

 those that are not so are most evidently pure 

 Provence Eoses, possessing all their characters. 

 To show, also, the singular propensity of the 

 varieties of Eosa centifolia to vary, I may here 

 mention that the common Moss Eose often pro- 

 duces shoots entirely destitute of moss. In the 

 summer of 1836 I observed a luxuriant branch of 

 the Crimson, or Damask, which is generally more 

 mossy than the Old Moss Eose, having a remark- 

 able appearance. On examination I found it 

 nearly smooth. The next season it had entirely 

 lost its moss, and had produced semi-double 

 flowers, the exact resemblance of the Scarlet 

 Provence. The White Moss is another instance 

 of this singular quality, for that originated from 

 a sporting branch ; the Mossy de Meaux is also a 

 curious deviation, the history of which will be 

 given in the descriptive enumeration following ; 

 the Crested Moss, or Provence, is another case in 



