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The inexorable decree of nature,*' says the writer of this article, *'is 

 thai plants must have a period of rest. A complete rest is essential to life. 

 No halfway measures will suffice." And the writer proceeds to show how 

 nature's methods should he imitated in lulling the roses to sleep. 



OF US must sleep, 

 as rest in the 

 form of sleep is es- 

 sential to the con- 

 tinued physical and 

 mental welfare of the 

 human race. It is 

 nature's method of 

 repairing the tissues 

 worn by exertion dur- 

 ing the hours of 

 wakeful activity, and 

 of replenishing the 

 system's store of vitality. 



Without sleep, physical and mental 

 exhaustion would ensue and decay re- 

 sult. 



Vegetable bodies, being similar to 

 animal bodies as far as the vital force 

 called life is concerned, must likewise 

 be able to secure for themselves a pe- 

 riod of rest of sufficient duration to 

 permit a complete rejuvenation of their 

 vital parts. 



Mother Nature's Methods. 



Under natural conditions Mother 

 Nature, with her capable assistants, 

 Autumn and Win- 

 ter, sees that all her 

 children, large or 

 small, are lulled to 

 sleep at the proper 

 time, and takes 

 measures to prevent 

 their awakening be- 

 f o r e the proper 

 time. 



Plaiits that are 

 cultivated for their 

 commercial utility 

 under artificial con- 

 ditions, by g^oss 

 man, do not always 

 receive the amount 

 of rest that is nec- 

 essary for their fu- 

 ture well- being. 

 This dereliction is 

 caused either by a 

 lack of knowledge 

 concerning the rest 

 requirements of the 

 various plants, or 

 by a mercenary de- 

 sire to enjoy a 

 longer period of 

 productivity, or, 

 worst of all, by 

 downright careless- 

 ness and indiffer- 

 ence. But, whatever 

 the cause, that un- 

 pardonable crime, 

 once committed 



By CHARLES N. COTTER, 



of Lake View Rose Gardens, Jamestown, N. T. 



against nature, must be expiated and 

 the penalty will be decreased vigor and 

 consequent decreased productivity. 



The Period of Best. 



Of all the plants cultivated under 

 artificial conditions, and carried over 

 from year to year, the rose is the moat 

 exacting in regard to a period of rest 

 of sufficient duration following a period 

 of activity. If it is denied rest and 

 the benefits to be derived therefrom, 

 its future activity will be more or less 

 unsatisfactory. 



What is the best method to follow in 

 resting roses preparatory to another sea- 

 son of activity? That is a question 

 that perplexes the minds of some grow- 

 ers. The only satisfactory answer is, 

 rest them as thoroughly as Mother Na- 

 ture rests their less pampered relatives, 

 that dwell amid natural conditions. 

 That is, rest them until they are en- 

 tirely defoliated, or as nearly so as 

 possible; until, in the natural course of 



House of KUUmeys, Cut Back and Started Up After Resting. 



nature, their buds show signs of ex- 

 pansion. 



But how shall I proceed to bring my 

 plants to such a condition t That is 

 the question that will follow the answer 

 to the first. Again the answer is, emu- 

 late Mother Nature. In the temperate 

 zone, autumn, with its cooler weather 

 and frosts, is accompanied by a marvel- 

 ous change in vegetation. Vegetative 

 growths begin to die down gradually 

 to the crown of the plants. Trees and 

 shrubs show a wonderful change of 

 color in their leaves. 



This change of color is followed by a 

 gradual but steady loss of foliage, until 

 in a short time their branches are en- 

 tirely defoliated and stand bare before 

 the cold winds of late autumn and 

 early winter. 



A Gradual Awakening. 



They have gone to sleep and will 

 remain asleep until Spring, with her 

 warm breezes and gentle rain, gi-ad- 

 ually awakens them, and, eag§r to 

 please her, they rapidly don their new, 

 glistening green garments and so sig- 

 nify their readiness to resume the du- 

 ties which the 

 great Architect of 

 the universe intend- 

 ed them to perform. 

 From observation 

 of natural condi- 

 tions it can be seen 

 that a period of 

 rest must follow a 

 period of activity 

 if continuity of life 

 is to be had. 

 Leaves, as the or- 

 gans of respiration, 

 digestion and as- 

 similation, can per- 

 form their functions 

 for so long and no 

 longer. Provisions 

 must be made for 

 their replenishment, 

 or life must cease. 

 And Nature, in her 

 divine wisdom, does 

 not intend to per- 

 mit life to cease 

 while there is a 

 possible chance to 



firevent it. So she 

 uUs her children to 

 sleep, and, while 

 they are going to 

 sleep and also while 

 they are sleeping, 

 she provides the 

 means for a new 

 garment to cover 



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