ROSES 



37 



gravelly, there is nothing to be done but to remove the 

 gravel to the depth of two feet, and replace it by good 

 heavy loam, although Tea Roses often do excellently in 

 gravel soil with which stable manure has been liberally 

 incorporated, provided a little heavier soil be placed 

 about their roots in planting. Sandy soils require treat- 

 ing in the same way as gravel soils — that is, the top two 

 or three feet should be completely removed and re- 

 placed by strong rich loam. Mr Harkness, one of our 

 most successful rose-growers, makes his rose bed on 

 the following lines : — The beds are made five feet wide. 

 This will admit three rows of plants in each, and will 

 be found a convenient width, as it allows each plant to 

 be attended to without stepping on the soil. Commence 

 by removing the whole of the soil out of the first bed to 

 the depth of from twelve to fifteen inches, the full width 

 of the bed, and about four feet of its length, placing this 

 at the other end of last bed ready to fill in the last 

 trench. Having done so, fill in with a layer, grass 

 downwards, of good meadow or roadside turf, then a 

 layer four inches thick of partly decomposed manure, 

 then about six inches of the soil of the next trench. 

 Over this place about two or three inches of well-rotted 

 manure, which, with the remaining six inches of soil, 

 will bring the bed to its required height. Raise the 

 beds rather than lower them ; they will be w^armer and 

 drier than if sunk below the natural level, or if too high 

 some of the poorest soil may be carted away. Each 

 bed, if parallel with each other, can be made by com- 

 mencing at alternate ends, the soil taken from the first 

 trench will complete the last bed, and labour will thus 

 be saved. 



A cheap and effective method of applying clay 

 is, in early autumn, to spread it over the surface 

 of the soil to the depth of two or three inches, and 

 allow it to lie until it crumbles down through frost and 



