16 SOILS AND THEIE PEBPARATION. 



rock, natural giant pots could be formed to grow 

 Roses. To give the extra depth, I planned all beds to 

 be raised on the principle of a rockery, and, beyond 

 the carting in of the soil for the actual beds, the rest 

 was simple. It is seldom that we are faced with an 

 impossible solution to a problem in the garden world, 

 but when such seems to be the case, it is found not so 

 much in the soil as it is in aspect and general surround- 

 ings. You cannot grow Roses like ivy under trees ; 

 neither can you grow them successfully on a con- 

 tinually wind-swept and exposed site, such as we find 

 round the coast, where even the stunted and half 

 limbless trees show by the angle at which they are 

 growing the path of the prevailing winds. Roses 

 must smile at the sun, moon, and stars, and Roses 

 must have shelter, be it the thatched hurdle or the 

 distant wood. Look at the wild Rose growing in the 

 field or hedgerow, and note when it does best on a 

 variety of soils. It does best where the soil in which 

 it is growing is shaded, as in the hedgerow of a 

 country lane or the border of a wood. Why? Be- 

 cause such shade conserves the moisture in the soil; 

 also, the thorn or material over which it grows lends 

 support against rough winds. When considered, the 

 aspect is in nearly every case the best that could be 

 got, and the surroundings are found to be those that 

 are most congenial. This is natural, and when we 

 think it over it is only what we should expect, for, 

 although rose seed is scattered everywhere by birds, it 

 grows and thrives only in the choicest sites, and 

 according to the soil it has survived to reproduce itself 

 on the same land for very many years. In dealing with 

 soils, it is necessary that we discuss the root growth of 

 the Rose, and here we shall find that, although every 

 plant, tree, and shrub possesses habits peculiar to its 

 kind and is shallow or deep rooted, yet soil to a large 

 extent controls the natural growth. 



The elm tree is naturally a surface-rooting tree, 

 but in some soils the roots run deep, developing inta 

 what are commonly known as tap-roots. This I have 



