66 



THE BOOK OF THE ROSE chap. 



solid manure, in the right condition and properly 

 applied, is of great benefit to Tea Roses. 



Taking first the ordinary manure made with straw 

 from stable, cowshed, or pigstye, it is generally allowed 

 that as the Rose likes " a cool bottom," and stable manure 

 is " hot," and cow manure " cool," as a rule the former 

 is the worse and the latter the better for the purpose. 

 In clay soils stable manure would be allowable and 

 perhaps even advisable ; but, otherwise, that from cow- 

 sheds or, better still, from a yard where highly fed 

 bullocks are kept, would be the best of all natural solid 

 manure, the pigstye contribution ranking next in value, 

 and the general heap from a farmyard where horses are 

 not predominant being good enough for ordinary 



purposes. 



The next question is, Is it to be dug into the soil, 

 or used as a top-dressing? I never could see how 

 manure can be dug into the ground among estab- 

 lished Roses without bruising and disturbing the 

 roots and bringing the manure into contact with 

 them, unless the roots run nearly straight down, 

 and that, as has been seen in the last chapter, is 

 not desirable. Attempts are sometimes made to get 

 over the difficulty by saying it is to be " forked in,'' 

 or " pricked in," or " pointed in " or even " hoed in." 

 I have never seen these operations, and should not 

 know how to attempt them ; if the manure is merely 

 just hidden by a thin layer of earth, weeds will be 

 encouraged and the hoe, the tool of cultivation, dis- 

 couraged. If buried deeper, a fork would be a less 

 efficient tool for the purpose than a spade, and, to do 

 the work, would disturb the roots as much. The manure, 

 to my mind, should be got in first where used at all, 

 and should be sufficiently deep to be well under the 



