34 



THE BOOK OF ROSES 



his tree, and that each shoot may have room for its 

 fullest and best development. The shape of the tree or 

 bush has also to be considered, and much is done in this 

 way by the selection of the bud to which the shoot is 

 cut back, its position on the shoot being noted, whether 

 on the outer or inner side, so that when the bud makes 

 growth in the Spring the resulting shoot may take its 

 proper place in the plant. Technically the operation of 

 pruning is divided into two sections, thinning out, which 

 means the removal of dead wood, overcrowded shoots, 

 and weakly ones ; and pruning proper, which means 

 the shortening of the shoots which are selected to bear 

 the next year's blooms. One of the chief dangers for 

 the beginner is that he is apt either to cut too much or 

 too little from his selected shoots, as this operation is 

 entirely governed by the result desired. For example, 

 it is difficult for the beginner to realise that in order to 

 grow exhibition roses it is often necessary to cut back 

 the plants nearly to the ground. This seems to him to 

 risk the life of his most valuable plants, whereas the 

 fact is that the harder such plants are cut back in the 

 Spring the stronger and healthier will be the new 

 Summer growths. The most frequent mistakes made 

 in pruning Roses are first, insufficient thinning out, 

 secondly, cutting back too severely those varieties of 

 Rose which require little shortening, thirdly, cutting 

 too little from those sorts which need severe pruning, 

 and lastly, cutting out too few shoots and shortening 

 those left to a uniform length, so that the tree looks as 

 if it had been clipped with shears. For ordinary garden 

 use as decorative plants Roses do not need very severe 

 pruning, it is often enough to merely remove dead wood 

 and crowded shoots, leaving all new wood to make its 

 full growth. This is especially true of climbing Roses, 

 and those used on pillars, arches, and pergolas. In de- 

 ciding this point the variety of the Rose must be taken 



