THE CARNATION MANUAL. 71 



It is when " summer," in the words of Charles 

 Lamb's old jest, " sets in with its usual severity " — 

 of which we have had but too much experience 

 during the last four years — that trouble begins 

 for us. It is the check then received, after 

 growth has been well advanced, through sudden 

 change from comparatively high temperature 

 to frost and cold harsh winds, that lays the 

 foundation of the mischief, and when this is fol- 

 lowed — especially as in 1888 and 1890 — by long- 

 continued cold rains, disease and loss among the 

 plants are inevitable. 



In this susceptibility to injury from check 

 arising from constant and often extreme changes, 

 the YelloAV Carnation is not altogether alone, and 

 before we bewail it in the w^ords of Hogg, uttered 

 over seventy years ago, and re-echoed oftentimes 

 since, as '' a tender exotic," we may remember that 

 many a plant, even among those hailing from very 

 cold latitudes, succumbs in a similar way to the 

 treacherous nature of our climate. 



The Yellow-Ground Carnation stands in much 

 the same relation to the others as do the Tea Roses 

 to the rest of their tribe. That they are for the 

 most part more tender than their congeners may 

 not be gainsaid, but their beauty is such that no 

 one who loves either Roses or Carnations would 

 willingly be Avithout the Teas or the Yellow- 

 Grounds merely on that account. 



