Ill 



SITUATION AND SOIL 



35 



Pure air is essential, and good Roses cannot be grown 

 within the smoke circle of a large town ; but on the 

 border land, so to speak, of town and country, in those 

 suburban gardens where clean or foul air may depend 

 upon the direction of the wind, constant loving care 

 may do a great deal to minimise the evil with a few 

 plants. It should be remembered, in such cases, that 

 the leaves are the lungs which are unable to respire 

 when choked with grimy particles, and plenty of 

 syringing, and even sponging of the leaves on the under 

 as well as the upper surfaces, should be resorted to. 



Soil. 



The best soil for Roses is a strong rich deep tenacious 

 loam, of a heavy greasy nature without being actual 

 clay, and naturally well drained by resting, not less 

 than two feet down, upon gravel or chalk or some other 

 porous stratum. This will give a general description 

 of what should be the ideal, but I do not suppose 

 that any one can accurately appraise the value of a 

 soil for Rose-growing by simple examination, and even 

 chemical analysis is sometimes fallacious. The test of 

 results is the best and most reliable, and the value of 

 land for wheat or pasture (either of which is a good 

 guide) is well understood by local men in any part of 

 the country. One field will often differ very much in 

 value from another that looks just the same ; but this 

 is all well known, as to practical results, by the farmers 

 and labourers on the spot, and much reliance should be 

 placed upon their opinion, in conjunction with examina- 

 tion of the soil, in test holes to the depth of two or three 

 feet at least. The best wheat land, high-rented pasture, 



D 2 



