146 CUT FLOWERS. 



Melton, Mrs. John Glutton, Sir Robei-t Peel, Sir Wm. Arm- 

 strong, and Vestal. The points of merit are : (1.) Size of 

 truss ; (2.) .size and texture of the flowers ; and (-3.) brightness 

 of the colours and distinctness of the markings. 



EOSE. 



Although the advance in quality has been less conspicuous 

 of late in the Rose than in almost any other class of florist's 

 flowers, still it nobly holds its own, and maintains as worthily 

 as ever its proud title of " The Queen of Flowers " — combining 

 beauty of form, lichness and diversity of colour, and exquisite 

 fragrance with great adaptability for decorative purposes, and 

 especially for making the most lovely of all displays at an 

 exhibition. The principal classes cultivated for exhibition are 

 the Hybrid Perpetual and the Tea Roses. The following selec- 

 tions of a dozen of each includes the best of the different shades 

 of colour, so that the stand may be as effective as possible : — 



Hyhrid Perpetual Roses. — Baroness Rothschild, Comtesse de Chabril- 

 lant, Duchess of Bedford, Duke of Edinburgh, Etienne Levet, 

 Horace Vernet, La France, Lord Beaoonsfield, Mabel Morrison, 

 ^Madame Victor Verdier, Marie Baumanu, and Xavier Olibo. 



Tea-Roses. — Anna Olivier, Catherine Mermet, Cleopatra, Madame 

 Bravy, Madame de Sirtot, Madame de Watteville, Madame 

 Pierre Guillot, Mrs. James Wilson, Niphetos, Princess Beatrice, 

 Souvenir d'Elise, Vardon, and The Bride. 



These are mostly old and well-known varieties, but their 

 excellent qualities are not easily rivalled by any others of their 

 class and colour. 



To grow the rose to perfection, a sheltered situation, fully 

 exposed to the sun, is best, and a rich, strong, loamy soil is 

 required. If the soil is naturally light, it should be made 

 more suitable by adding strong loam to it, the top spit of an 

 old pasture being the best when it can be procured. The 

 ground should be trenched and made up of good sound mate- 

 rials to a depth of about two feet, incorporating plenty of 

 well-rotted manure, wood-ashes, or other enriching material as 

 the work goes on. To obtain the largest and finest blooms, 

 dwarf low- budded plants of Hybrid Perpetuals on the Manetti 

 stock should be planted in the month of November. The 



