ROSES AXD THEIR CARE. 



191 



The banking of the foUage against th.e 

 foundation, as shown in the illustration of 

 the front of house, forms a connecting link 

 between house and ground and gives the 

 appearance as if the house grew there. The 

 vines used are Boston, ivy and pink rambler, 

 which shows in bloom. It is not quite as 

 grand as the crimson rambler, but is very 

 pretty when in full bloom. The shrub in 

 bloom is dentzia, Pride of Rochester, a dou- 

 ble white and very beautiful. The other 

 shrub is spiraea \'an Houttei. one of the best 

 shrubs, and grand when in bloom. The 

 under planting is filled in with hardy ferns 

 and pansy, which grow very well, as they 

 are planted on the north side of the house. 



The clump of iris is the florentina, a very 

 sweet scented white, tinged with pale blue 

 and yellow. The dark flower is a rich pur- 

 ple self-color. They make a lovely combi- 



nation, as they bloom at the same time. I 

 consider these two the best of German iris. 

 Every garden should have at least a varietv 



A View in Mr. Hull's Garden 



of these flowers, as they are very hardy and 

 beautiful. 



THE SPRING CARE OF ROSES 



W. G. BLACK, OTTAWA, OXT. 



SPRING is the proper season to prune 

 roses, though with some plants I cut 

 back after the first bloom in July to obtain 

 a crop of bloom in September. In speak- 

 ing on this subject, the first question is, why 

 is pruning necessary ? Why should not 



our rose trees grow as fine and large as they 

 will ? 



The answer is to be found in the manner 

 of the natural growth of the rose. By 

 watching an unpruned rose tree it will be 

 found that first strong shoots flower well 

 the following season, but next year another 

 strong shoot starts considerably lower down, 

 and this soon absorbs the majority of the 

 sap, and eventually starv^es the original 

 shoot, and is itself star^-ed in succession by 

 another. A rose in the natural state has 

 this happen every year, and this is one of the 

 first reasons why pn.ining is necessary. 



The objects of pruning are to maintain 

 the life and strength of the plants, and to 



gi\e more vigor, color and substance to the 

 flowers, because there must be a consider- 

 able amount of strength and sap reserved 

 for each bloom or some rose will not fully 

 show the true colors. Each rose, in itself, 

 must be a study for the pruner's art. 



METHOD OF PRUXIXG. 



The first care should be to cut out dead 

 w^od, and wood, no matter how thick or old, 

 which is becoming Aveakly, in comparison 

 with other stronger shoots. W'e should 

 always cut back to the bud that looks out- 

 wards, and take care to see that the centre 

 of the bush will not be too crowded, so that 

 it can have air. Misplaced shoots, in the 

 middle of the plant, should be cut off at the 

 bottom. It may also break your heart to 

 cut away some handsome branches, but it 

 tias to be done. 



THE GUIDIXG RULE. 



The answer to the question, how many 

 buds are to be kept on each shoot, is to be 



Extract from an address delivered before the Ottawa Horticultural Society. 



