III SITUATION AND SOIL 47 
The actual gravel must then be taken clean away 
to the depth of two feet at least from the surface 
(some enthusiasts say three feet, but I do not think 
it necessary or even desirable), and sufficient good 
strong loam procured to take its place. This is 
expensive, but is absolutely necessary for the growth 
of good H.P.s, and will lasta longtime. The greater 
part of this heavy loam should be placed at the 
bottom where the gravel was, but a little of the light 
soil may be mixed with the upper portion. How 
to do this will be further described in the next 
chapter ; but it is important to notice that when 
the beds are thus made up of good Rose material in 
what is naturally a gravel soil, the advantage is 
gained of having such perfect natural drainage at 
the sides as well as at the bottoms of the beds 
as could not well be attained in what is by nature 
a good Rose soil. 
Furthermore, Tea Roses may be grown to per- 
fection on gravel soil. A large quantity of good 
manure should in this case take the place of the 
poorest of the gravel both above and below the 
Rose roots, and a little of the heavy loam may be 
added, though I do not believe it to be necessary. 
For Teas there is no occasion to be afraid of the 
multitude of small stones which are natural to 
a gravel soil; for I believe Mr. George Paul 
was right when he stated in the Rosarian’s Year 
Book that ‘‘Tea Roses like grit.” The bloom of 
Madame Cusin which gained the medal at the Crystal 
Palace in 1893 as the best Tea exhibited by an 
amateur, and was characterised by the Secretary 
of the National Rose Society as ‘“ certainly never 
equalled in any exhibition on this side of the 
