ROSES AT THE ROYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY. 167 



was composed. Now, this is not fair, and cannot have 

 been done from lack of information, as your leader, on 

 which this remark is founded, after specifying certain sorts, 

 equally good either as show or garden Roses, sums up with 

 these words, " and most of the leading Roses, new and old, 

 of every colour and shade." Paragraph 8 shows the weak 

 points of our Rose shows. The standard of size and shape 

 required there shuts out many of the best sorts for garden 

 decoration. The Rose shows as at present managed, 

 encourage breeding for shape and size, without any regard 

 to habit and constitution, and hence many new Roses are 

 woefully deficient in these fundamental qualities. Many 

 of the finest Roses in the stands at Rose shows are com- 

 paratively worthless for effect in the garden. Two out of 

 the three sorts recommended in paragraph 8, namely, 

 Mdlle. Bonnaire and Mrs B. Ker, are of this character ; the 

 flowers are pretty, but the plants are delicate and short 

 lived in the hands of ordinary growers, although they may 

 be " managed " by skilful rosarians. The third sort, 

 Madame Lacharme, grows freely enough, but I have often 

 looked over hundreds of plants of this sort when in full 

 bloom before I could find one clean and satisfactory flower. 

 The exhibitor for prizes may " manage " to show a bloom 

 or blooms, but for the garden I prefer infinitely the 

 glorious masses of Madame Plantier and Mrs Bosanquet to 

 any of the others. Paragraph 10 reads thus "Whether 

 the exhibition of masses would serve the high educational 

 purposes which the production of the perfect blooms we 

 have aimed at has done is another matter ; a comparison 

 of the amateurs' stands of past times and of the last two or 

 three years, not only at the metropolitan but at local Rose 

 clubs and shows, proves that those of us who have troubled 

 ourselves to carry here and there fine examples have not 

 taught in vain." 



I am not sure that I understand this, but if it means 

 that the exhibition of single flowers and small groups has 

 served the "high educational purposes" of the florist, 



