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MANNERS AND CUSTOMS 



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poor show if not treated regally and favoured with 

 queen's weather. Prune high or low you will get but 

 few shoots to a plant, and if the single growth of a 

 maiden shoot be stopped, instead of breaking in several 

 places like the vulgar herd, Her Majesty generally 

 shoots only from the top bud left, and continues 

 one stem upwards as before. We may place the plants 

 close together, for the stems of each are few in number 

 and upright and stiff. It has fine foliage and large stems 

 with tremendous thorns, the whole being extremely and 

 notoriously subject to mildew, so that it is best planted 

 by itself or among the Teas, where the infection will be 

 less dangerous in the summer season. If grown well, 

 a large proportion of the blooms come good, and they 

 can stand a little rain. They have fine stout petals, 

 and are wonderfully full in the centre, so much so that 

 the Rose has quite two shapes, and the best one was 

 not known for the first year or two : for it has in 

 the first stage a grand regular semi-globular shape, 

 and when expanded and overblown it is yet so perfectly 

 full, even when as flat as a pancake, as to show no eye, 

 and to be still presentable and wonderful though not so 

 beautiful as a Rose. The colour is best and purest in 

 the first of these stages : in the second it is more mixed, 

 something like a gigantic Marie Cointet. When pre- 

 sented for the Gold Medal, which was granted by 

 acclamation, it was shown by Mr. Bennett in great 

 quantity, several large boxes of it being staged. Every 

 bloom was fully expanded, and its true beauty remained 

 unknown. It was then sold to America and we had 

 to wait a year for it. When it was at last obtainable, 

 there was a large demand for the half-guinea plants, 

 with the result I believe that there was hardly a bloom 

 seen in the country that year, the plants having no 



