HER MAJESTY THE ROSE 



17 



for then we can tell what branches have 

 suffered, if any. during Winter, and pro- 

 ceed with our work intelligently. Thin 

 out all superfluous branches, and leave the 

 wood of last season's growth in preference 

 to that which is older. In this way we 

 keep the plant at its best. Hybrid per- 

 petuals will require a second pruning in 

 July, or as soon as the first flowering 

 period is over. This will encourage the im- 

 mediate production of new branches, upon 

 which the flowers of the next crop will Ije 

 borne, in due season, if all conditions are 

 favorable. In order to facilitate this 

 growth, feed the plant well. 



Tea Eoses will bloom well the first sea- 

 son, and as they are constant bloomers 

 they are very desirable for Summer beds. 

 Two-year-old pla^its are preferable to the 

 small ones dealers advertise so cheaply. 

 Cut the plants back sharply when yoiu set 

 them out, and mulch the bed well during 

 the hot weather of Summer. Grass clip- 

 pings from the lawn are good for this pur- 

 pose. Spread them about the roots of the 

 plants — which should be set about a foot 

 apart — to the depth of an inch or two. 

 When they begin to decay, remove them, 

 or dig them into the soil about your Eose;?, 

 and put on fresh clippings. You may not 

 get many Eoses during the Summer, but 

 as soon as cool, Fall weather sets in you 

 will have flowers that will delight vou, 

 and every one who sees them, and they 

 will follow each other in rapid succession 

 until cold weather come;?. Provided, of 

 course, you feed the plants well. Much 

 depends upon that, as I have already said. 

 Tea Eoses have the same unromantic ap- 

 petite which characterizes the larger mem- 

 bers of the family. 



The Eose has its enemies. The aphis 

 and the leaf-roller, the Eose-ehafer and 

 the slug, will all do their best — or their 

 worst — to injure it, and, if let alone, they 

 will soon spoil your plants. I have found 

 the most effective insecticide I have ever 

 used in the ordinarv "Ivory" soap in use 

 in most houselfoids, or readily obtainable 

 .anywhere, ^lelt half a pound of it and 



add to it about twelve quarts of water, 

 and apply this to your plants early in the 

 season, with a sprayer such as gardeners 

 use in their operations among small fruit 

 plants. It will prevent the aphis, and 

 Eo'se-chafer, and slug from taking jx)sses- 

 sian of your plants. Care must be taken, 

 liowever, to have it reach all parts of the 

 pla»nt. Let some one bend the bush over 

 while you operate the hose of the sprayer, 

 and you will find it an easy matter to get 

 the application whi're it is most needed, 

 which is the under side of the leaves. I 

 would advise the use of this insecticide 

 as a preventive, for an "ounce of pre- 

 vention is worth a pound of cure," they 

 tell us. It is much easier to keep insects 

 away than it is to get rid of them after 

 they have established themselves on our 

 plants. Bear this in mind and act on the 

 offensive. The leaf-roller is most effect- 

 ively fought by crushing it between flat 

 sticks — that is, if you are too fastidious 

 to use thumb a.nd finger, properly encased 

 in leather gloves. 



Of late years, Eoses have been troubled 

 considerably by a disease of fung^ous char- 

 acter, geaierally known as "black spot," 

 because of the effect it has upon the leaves 

 of affected plants. Bordeaux mixture, 

 such as gardeners make use of in spray- 

 ing small fruits, plums and other garden 

 products, will, if used promptly and per- 

 sistently, soon overcome it. If nothing is 

 done to: check it, it will soon kill the plant 

 it attacks, and spread to others. Wage 

 war against it as soon as you discover 

 black, rusty looking spots upon the foliage 

 of your plants. 



THE HOME OF A LOVER OF FLOWERS 



