DREER'S SPECIALLY PREPARED 



Roses for the Garden. 



While many of our customers are familiar with the grade of Roses which we send out, we wish to direct the attention of those 

 who have never planted our stock to the manner in which these plants are prepared. The bulk of our Roses are what are known 

 as field-grown plants; that is, the plants have been cultivated in fields during the growing season of 1910, In fall they were care- 

 fully dug, planted in pots and stored in cold greenhouses, where artificial heat is only used to exclude severe frost. Under this 

 treatment the plants develop in the most natural way, and are much superior to stock which has been forced in a high temperature 

 into an unnatural and weakened growth, and at the same time they must not be confounded with the comparatively worthless Hol- 

 land-grown Roses, which are sold so cheaply in a dormant condition each season. Our Roses are either home-grown or grown for 

 us in England or Ireland by specialists who have made a life-study of the Rose, a very large percentage of the Hybrid Teas and 

 Hybrid Perpetuals having been received from the famous nurseries of Messrs. Dickson & Sons, Belfast, Ireland. Most of these 

 plants are budded or grafted, and while some planters prefer stock grown on their own roots on account of the liability of budded 

 plants to throw up suckers, this will rarely occur if the deep planting as directed below is followed, and if a wild shoot should 

 appear it is readily distinguished by its seven small leaves instead of the usual five, and removed close to the root. Much can be 

 said in favor of budded plants, being more vigorous, producing finer blooms, come into bearing sooner, and are just as permanent 

 and hardy as those on their own roots. 



HOW TO GROW ROSES. 



SITUATION. — Good Roses may be grown in almost any soil 

 and position; but if the highest quality is desired, it is necessary 

 to select an open, sunny position, sheltered from north winds, 

 and clear of all roots of trees and shrubs. 



PREPARATION OF THE BEDS.— Roses will grow and 

 give good returns in any fertile, well-drained ground; but it is 

 worth while to use some care in the preparation of the beds, as the 

 general health of the plants, quantity and quality of bloom usually 

 more than repays the extra care expended on this detail. The best 

 soil for Roses is sod from an old pasture and well -rotted cow 

 manure. Dig out the bed to a depth of two to three feet, and, 

 if drainage is imperfect, it must be provided for. Fill in with a 

 mixture of soil and manure as above. It is best to make the 

 beds some time in advance of planting, to allow time for settling. 

 After the soil is settled, it should be about an inch below the 

 level of the adjacent surface; make the beds not over three and 

 a half feet wide, which enables you to pick the blooms without 

 stepping on the bed. 



PLANTING AND SUMMER CARE.— The ideal time 

 to plant is in the spring, just after danger from frost is past. 



Tea and Hybrid Tea varieties can be set 18 inches apart, 

 Hybrid Perpetual two feet apart, and both eight inches from the 

 edge of the beds. When the plants are supplied in pots, they 

 should be set so that the ball of earth is about two and one-half 

 inches below the level of the ground. Firm the soil well around 

 the plants, and give a thorough watering if the soil is dry- 

 Throughout the summer the surface of the bed should be culti- 

 vated weekly. If this is done, watering will be unnecessary. 

 There is no better mulch than dry, loose soil. 



PRUNING. — About the end of October, it is well to cut back 

 to about three feet all the canes of the strong-growing sorts. 

 This prevents them from being whipped by the winter winds, 

 which, unless staked, would loosen and break the tender feeding 

 roots. The principal pruning should be done in spring, begin- 

 ning with the Hybrid Perpetuals in March. 



If quantity of bloom for garden effect is the object sought, 

 then four or five canes may be left three feet in length, and all 

 very old or weak growth cut away entirely. After the plants 

 are through blooming, the canes should be shortened back at 

 least one-half to enable the plants to make a strong growth for 

 the next season of bloom. 



If quality is desired, all weak growth should be removed, and 

 the remaining canes cut back in proportion to their development, 

 the weaker ones to about four inches from the root, and stronger 

 ones eight to nine inches. All canes should be cut off about a 

 quarter of an inch above an outside bud. By doing this, the 

 plant will grow in an open head, as the buds usually grow in 

 whatever direction they first take. Roses, pruned in this way, 

 require no staking up, and will need no summer pruning, the 

 cutting of the flowers with good stems being sufficient. 



Everblooming Tea sorts are best not pruned until they show 

 evidence of growth, indicated by the buds beginning to swell. 

 By that time dead or unhealthy wood is readily detected, mak- 

 ing it easy to see what should be cut away and what should be 

 retained. They do not need such severe pruning as that de- 

 scribed for the Hybrid Perpetuals, and all wood that looks 

 promising may be left on. 



Climbing Roses require no pruning beyond cutting out the 

 very old or dead wood and the shortening of the laterals and 

 canes to make the growth conform to the space to be covered, 



WINTER PROTECTION.— In the latitude of Philadelphia 

 a covering of three or four inches of manure or leaves over the 

 entire bed is sufficient. In colder latitudes, draw the leaves up 

 around the stems six or eight inches higher, and in very cold 

 places earth them up and protect with corn stalks or evergreen 

 boughs. For Tea Roses a good plan is to put a temporary 

 fence of twelve-inch chicken wire netting around the bed, filling 

 in loosely with leaves, with a little earth or some branches over 

 all to prevent .them from blowing away, 



ENEMIES. — When grown under favorble conditions, Rases 

 are not so apt to be attacked by insect pests and other troubles as 

 they are if half starved and otherwise neglected. Our own ex- 

 perience shows that a weekly application of Bordeaux Arsenate 

 of Lead Mixture at the rate of eight ounces to five gallons of 

 water, applied with a whisk broom, or any sprayer that will 

 reach the under side of the foliage, beginning at the time that 

 the plants have developed into active growth, and continued 

 throughout the season, will keep them free of almost all insect 

 pests, as well as fungous diseases. It may be necessary to sup- 

 plement this treatment with several applications of any tobacco 

 solution, or tobacco dust, for green-fly or aphis, which may ap- 

 pear during the growing season. 



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