194 THE ROSE BOOK 



m a loamy compost in which a fair quantity of silver sand 



is mixed. Great care is necessary in watering. A slight 



spraying with the syringe on bright days is essential, 



and the temperature must not fall below 55°. From 



58° to 65° is a good temperature to maintain by day and 



55° by night. The hard growths of the previous year 



make the best scions, but green wood, i.e. growths that 



have just flowered, may be used. When a variety is 



very scarce the tops are taken from the young, grafted 



plants, and they in turn are used as grafts. This system 



is not commended, for it has a tendency to debilitate 



the rose and is responsible for lack of vigour in many 



new roses. 



There is nothing gained by grafting roses out of 



doors ; indeed, it is rarely successful. But the French 



nurserymen graft many thousands of seedling Briers 



in the winter time and plant them in sand under cloches 



afterwards, transplanting to the open ground in May 



and June. Briers potted up into five-inch pots may be 



budded in June, and by so doing the trouble of grafting 



is obviated, for if these budded Briers are placed in a 



warm greenhouse in December, and the tops cut off 



close to the inserted buds, the latter will soon grow and 



make better plants than the grafte„d ones. This is a 



simple method of obtaining pot roses. Briers budded in 



June would make plants fit for forcing in eighteen 



months. 



ROSE GROWING FROM SEED 



This is most fascinating work, but comparatively few 

 amateurs seem to engage in it. It is true that roses are 



