HOSES WINTERKILLING. 



241 



Their time, at best, is short. Nature or- 

 dains that the highest transports of pleasure 

 shall be brief, and the law holds good of her 

 varied and fleeting forms of beauty. 



Other roses of many kinds are now open- 

 ing into full bloom — several sorts being, 

 each of them, almost as beautiful as the 

 Jacqueminots. The so-called " hardy per- 

 petuals " have nearly displaced the so-called 

 " garden " roses — those old style varieties 

 which bloom only once in the year. The so- 

 called " perpetuals " are in most cases mis- 

 called by that name ; for the greater number, 

 in our gardens generally, are the kind called 

 (more properly) by the French gardeners 

 renwniants, flowers which bloom again and 

 again, but have distinct and separate periods 

 of bloom, through the season — none of these 

 periods producing such splendid effects as 

 this first' fullest, best period of June; 

 while the true " perpetuals " bloom on, in a 

 modified way, regardless of times and 



periods. Of the remonants there are several 

 superb varieties — one of the finest being the 

 rich, clear, deep pink " Jules Margottin," 

 which hold their beauty longer than the 

 " Jacks," and their plump buds, opening "o 

 very slowly, are also very attractive. Al- 

 most any one of the dozen favorite kinds 

 will be a valuable addition to any garden 

 that lacks roses, provided it is a hardy kind. 

 Nearly or quite every variety does better for 

 some protection, in this climate. As to 

 the endless army of insect enemies, which 

 ruin roses and their leaves, it will be found 

 almost impossible to exterminate them by 

 any of the usual remedies, hellebore, arsenic, 

 or tobacco ; the best thing is to give the rose 

 bush an abundant supply of fertilizer, over 

 winter as well as in spring, and the resulting 

 vigorous growth will do more to prevent 

 these pests than all the vaunted remedies 

 will do to cure them when once established. 

 — Exchange. 



ROSES WINTERKILLING. 



I HAVE come to the conclusion that ex- 

 culture in a country like this, where 

 perience counts for very little in rose 

 no two seasons come alike. I have not been 

 in the habit of covering my roses until about 

 the beginning of December, believing that it 

 was better not to cover them too early. Last 

 year was a wet and sloppy season through- 

 out, and the new growth did not appear to 

 ripen. During the first part of December 

 came that very cold snap, a thing quite un- 

 looked-for, and being from home my roses 

 were left exposed to it. I covered them 

 heavily with pea straw immediately after my 

 return, but the damage had been done. It 

 might have been better not to have covered 

 them at all, for the close packing seemed to 

 complete their destruction. When I took 

 the covering off this spring, about the loth 



of April, all the new growth of last year was 

 blackened to the ground, and something 

 over two hundred bushes were totally de- 

 stroyed. Many of them are shooting p 

 again from the roots, but I will have little 

 bloom this year. 



I am not so sure that I did not cover too 

 heavily, for soon as the straw was on there 

 came a heavy snow fall which must, added 

 to the straw, have had a smothering effect. 

 First the unripened condition of the wood; 

 secondly, the hard freezing, and thirdly, the 

 close covering of straw and snow — to this 

 combination of circumstances I owe my loss 

 of 200 bushes and nearly all my bloom in 

 roses for this season. Will there be a les- 

 son in it for the future ? 



Mitchell, May 18. 



T. H. Race. 



