September Waning and Waking Flowers 



happened the shoots must be supported, and the holes 

 filled up with fresh soil made firm. 



It is important before autumn to make sure that 

 the long shoots of climbing Roses are secured to their 

 supports ; if they are left loose the stems become torn 

 in windy weather, and many buds are ruined. 



Autumn Pruning of Bush Roses. Few amateurs 

 pay much attention to the autumn pruning of bush 

 Roses, though it is really essential to full success. 

 Now is the time to cut out dead and weakly shoots, 

 and to shorten long flowerless ones. It is best, in 

 dealing with Hybrid Perpetuals, to cut out all except 

 four or five of the best stems, and to shorten these 

 partially if they are more than 2 feet long. This 

 practice enables the lower part of the shoots to become 

 properly matured, and the results the following season 

 will fully justify the practice. It is, in fact, wise to 

 cut out now, from all except tender Roses, such shoots 

 as would be removed at the spring pruning. The re- 

 maining shoots will then be fully exposed to air and 

 light. A bush crowded with small weak growths 

 cannot be expected to yield a good harvest of bloom. 



Violets in Winter. It is quite easy to have Violets 

 during winter if ^one lives in the country, but it is 

 so difficult in urban and suburban gardens that the 

 attempt is scarcely worth while. Owing to the absence 

 of sunshine, and the impure atmosphere, the flower buds, 

 even if they appear, often fail to open satisfactorily. In 

 mild weather during winter Violets may be gathered out 

 of doors in sheltered gardens, but the finest are obtained 

 by means of the protection of a frame. A hotbed com- 

 posed of half leaves and half manure, or of leaves alone, is 

 made in the frame ; it should be about 2 feet deep when 

 well trodden down. Upon the hotbed is placed 9 or 10 

 inches depth of soil, consisting of loam and leaf mould, and 

 in this the Violets raised last April, from layers or by 

 division of the old plants, are firmly placed. As the bed 



261 



