124 THE ROSE BOOK 



We do not ask so much of our flowering shrubs, 

 such as the Lilac, the Mock Orange, or the Weigela, but 

 somehow it is not thought at all unreasonable to demand 

 that roses should be always in bloom. 



The Wichuraiana roses have made scarcely less 

 astonishing progress than the Hybrid Teas. They are 

 peculiarly amenable to cross-fertilisation. Already the 

 Wichuraiana has been crossed with a Moss rose, and the 

 resulting variety, Wichmoss, possesses the character- 

 istics of both parents. The cross-breeding of the Wichur- 

 aiana with the dwarf Polyantha roses has evolved the 

 new race of Pompon Wichuraianas, in which the spread- 

 ing, creeping habit of the latter is most marked ; they 

 are most suitable for covering the ground beneath 

 standard roses. 



The dwarf Polyantha roses themselves are advanc- 

 ing by leaps and bounds. It seems only the other day 

 that Guillot introduced the first variety, namely Ma 

 Paquerette ; now there are nearly one hundred sorts. 

 The large-flowered Polyantha roses are even more note- 

 worthy. Each bloom is almost as large as a Tea rose, 

 and they are constantly produced. A variety named 

 Gruss an Aachen is very fine, and should be in every 

 garden. Some novelties that are not yet in commerce 

 possess extra large blossoms in clusters on rigid growths, 

 and they will be much sought after when known. A race 

 of many coloured monthly roses, as hardy and as free- 

 growing as the Common Pink, will doubtless be evolved 

 in course of time, and they will prove of the greatest 

 value as bedding roses. We shall possibly also have 



