182 



CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 



1814, only 182 varieties of roses, and the advantage of multipli- 

 cation by seed is sufficiently evinced by the fact that there are 

 now more than 4,500 varieties, the poorest of which are much 

 better than any which existed at that day. Among the earliest 

 cultivators of roses from the seed, were three Frenchmen : Du- 

 pont, Vilmorin and Descemet. The former was the gardener of 

 the Empress Josephine. When the allies' armies entered Paris, 

 in 1815, the garden of Descemet contained 10,000 seedling 

 roses, which Vibert, in his anxiety to secure from destruction, 

 succeeded in carrying to his garden in the interior. 



In England, very little attention seems, at that time, to have 

 been paid to the production of new varieties from seed, and they 

 relied very much upon the continent for their choice roses. Now, 

 however, they are abundantly redeeming their reputation, and 

 many fine varieties have been produced by English rose-growers, 

 at the head of whom stands Rivers, whose efforts are seconded by 

 Wood, Glenny, Paul, Lane, and others. They are still, however, 

 compelled to yield to the French cultivators, with LafTay and 

 Vibert at their head ; for to these we are indebted for our very 

 finest roses for Lamarque, Solfaterre, La Reine, Chromatella, 

 the new white Perpetuals, and above all for that unsurpassed 

 rose of roses, Souvenir de Malmaison. 



The varieties of roses became increasingly great after the in- 

 troduction of the Bengals, Noisettes, Teas, and Bourbons all 

 these classes producing readily from seed, and in endless variety. 

 There still remains a willingness to cast aside the old for the new, 

 and however much we may regret this disposition, for the sake 

 of some old and truly deserving favorites, we cannot feel willing 

 to denounce it, for it exhibits a gratifying evidence of a desire for 

 improvement, and the existence of a spirit of progress, which, dis- 

 satisfied with things as they are, is continually striving after 

 nearer approaches to perfection. If, in this strife, some of our old 

 favorites have been cast aside, we are more than abundantly 

 compensated for their loss by the new claimants to our regard. 



Those who intend to raise new roses from seed, should select 

 varieties differing as much as possible in color and habit, and 



