56 EVERY WOMAN HER OWN FLOWER GARDENER. 



little at the back of the bud is essential to life ; if you make a hole 

 through its bark throw it away, it will not grow. 



Now, with the thin edge of the toothbrush handle, turn back the 

 stem on each side of the straight cut, and insert the bud close to the 

 wood, and fit it accurately and firmly to the cross-cut in the turned- 

 back bark; on this close contact of the two barks will depend the suc- 

 cess of your operation. 



Lay the turned-back bark closely over the bud, or shield, and with 

 woolen yarn, or a bit of bass-wood, bind it down, leaving the point of 

 the bud clear. 



Common adhesive plaster is said to be better for this purpose than 

 either yarn or bass. A handful of damp moss should be tied around 

 the whole, leaving the tiny point of the bud exposed to the air. 



In six weeks at the farthest these ties can be removed. 



All other shoots on that stem should be cut off, so as to throw the 

 strength of the plant into the support of the new comer. 



By budding you may produce several kinds of roses upon the same 

 plant. Take a common wild rose, cut down all its suckers, and trim 

 in its branches, and bud with white, pink, crimson and yellow roses. 



As soon as the buds commence to grow, cut off all the wild shoots, 

 and you will have a beautiful show of flowers. 



Variegated shrubs can be budded in this manner upon the plain green 

 stocks. Grafting roses is not so popular as formerly ; but the opera- 

 tion is easily performed. Any one who can graft a tree, can graft a rose. 

 The stock to be grafted should be more forward than the scion, and the 

 operation should be performed when the sap is rising. April or May 

 are the best months. 



The most important points in a good rose are, that its " constitution 

 should be hardy, and vigorous, with a robust habit of growth, good 

 foliage and profuse bloom. The flower should be fine in form, large in 

 size, decided in color. The form of the flower, whether it be globular, 

 cupped, or widely expanded, should be symmetrical ; the petals even and 

 regular in their arrangement, full but not too crowded ; the outer range 

 broad and firmly set, rendering the flower more lasting. In texture 

 they should be firm and thick, not thin and flimsy. Fragrance, and a 

 firm upright stem are desirable points. A green or yellow center to a 

 flower when fully open, is a great fault. There is no kind of shrub in 

 existence so well adapted to take various forms as the rose. It can be 



