586 Cultivation of Plants. 
this is just contrary to the teachings of practice. In a general 
way we may say that the strong, vigorous-growing varieties 
should be sparingly pruned, whilst the weaker-growing kinds 
should be cut back almost’ close every season. The time for 
pruning is late autumn or winter; but tender varieties, when 
grown in the open garden, should not be cut back till the 
severity of winter is past. The best time for planting is 
November or December, though with a little care Roses may 
be transplanted up to the end of March, or later. There are 
various ways of propagating them, but the great majority of 
cultivated varieties are budded on stems of the Dog-Rose for 
standard trees, or on the Manetti for dwarf bushes. Climbing 
varieties may be raised from cuttings in the open ground, and 
even many of the Hybrid Perpetual class will succeed in the 
same way. To raise new varieties crossing is resorted to, and 
the seeds resulting therefrom are sown. The seedling plants 
would be several years as a rule before they produced flowers, 
and consequently as soon as the wood is large enough they 
are budded on the Dog-Rose or Manetti, by which treatment 
blooms are usually secured the following, if not the same, 
season. 
4. Culture of Herbaceous Plants. 
GENERAL REMARKS. 
Under this head we include all plants that are herbaceous, 
technically speaking, whatever their duration, and whether 
bulbous or fibrous-rooted. At another place we give some 
short lists and hints to enable possessors of small gardens to 
select a few species worthy of a place in every garden. The 
gencral routine to be observed in the cultivation of herbaceous 
plants, excluding the strictly alpine species, is simple enough. 
A rich, deep, well-drained soil, tilled to a good depth, is the 
first condition. Where the soil is poor and shallow, means 
must be taken to improve it, for, with a few exceptions, her- 
baceous perennials require generous treatment. Turfy loam, 
mixed with leaf-mould and thoroughly rotten stable-dung, will 
be found the most effective for nearly all poor land. A stiff 
clay is perhaps the most unmanageable description of soil for 
a flower garden, as greater difficulty is experienced in working 
in material to make it freer. In such cases if practicable a 
spit of the clayey soil should be taken out and replaced by a 
suitable compost, the surface mould, if any, being kept back 
