ROSES AND ROSE GARDENS. 



191 



" coddling " treatment, as this is as great an evil almost as full exposure to every wind that 

 blows. The soil must he strong, a good heavy loam, thoroughly well drained, and when this is 

 not natural to the garden the staple must be made as suitable as possible by incorporating loam 

 and manuro judiciously. Where, however, the soil is naturally very lijjjit, preference should be 

 given to the Tea-scented Roses, as these enjoy a lighter ground than the Hybrid Perpetuals, 

 which, more than any other class, need a strong staple. 



Amateur gardeners, and indeed gardeners of all kinds, are too often inclined to 

 believe that an abundance of rank' manure is essential to success. This is a mistake. A soil, 

 especially if heavy, saturated with rank manure does not promote healthy growth, and 

 frequently malformed flowers result from this unnatural treatment ; indeed, fresh manure is not 

 required at planting time at all, unless put down below the roots, so that as they spread and 

 develop they reach it in time. It is far better to use a little bone meal when planting, and to 

 apply manure, in the form of a mulch, early in summer, when hot weather is anticipated. 



Before the mulch is applied, hoe the soil frequently to admit air and moisture to the 

 roots, and this operation is more important than man}- suppose. It is impossible to expect 

 healthy growth when the roots 

 are deprived of air. Mulching, 

 or rather manure, may be 

 given in the autumn, remov- 

 ing a small portion of soil 

 around the plant and placing 

 in cow manure, returning the 

 soil again to cover it. 



STOCKS. — This is a 

 very important point. It is 

 impossible to expect even 

 reasonable success unless this 

 question is closely studied. 

 As far as possible stocks 

 should be dispensed with, and 

 only own root plants grown, 

 that is, plants raised from 

 cuttings ; but when one is 

 desirous to win prizes at 

 the exhibition, stocks are 

 needful. Four stock's are 

 used for the Hybrid Per- 

 petuals, namely, Briar cutting, 

 Seedling Briar, Hedgerow 

 (Standard) Briar, and the 

 Manetti. The worst stock 

 of these for ordinary garden 

 Roses is the Manetti ; but 

 the exhibitor must have it, 

 because it promotes earliness 

 hence the Northern growers 

 can compete at the first shows. 



ROSES OVER PERGOLA. 



The exhibitor w ho has to deal with a loamy soil should choose the 

 Briar cutting, and for the light ground the Manetti. The Seedling Briar is very useful on a deep 

 clay, and especially to induce abundant blooming in the autumn, but the Briar cutting yields the 

 most perfectly formed and coloured flowers. They appear almost as early as those upon the 

 Manetti, and the roots running so close to the surface quickly utilise the fertilisers given. It 



