KoVEilBER 16, 10 12. 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



875 



MESSRS. 



McGREDY & SON'S ROSES. 



Long engagi^d in the cultivation of roses 

 on a large scale for trade purposes Messrs/ 

 S. McGrecly and Son turned their attention 

 some years since to the raising of neAV varie- 

 ties from seed. With clear views as to what 

 they desired to accomplisli they entered 

 on this branch of their business with 

 some degree of enthusiasm, and, proceed- 

 ing in accordance with a well-devised plan, 

 they achieved so higli a degree of suci-ess 

 that the roses which have had their origin 

 at Portadown have brought the firm many 

 high awards, and taken a prominent posi- 

 tion in the rose garden. Fortadown is a 

 thriving town in Ulster, some twenty-five 

 miles or so to the south-west of Belfast, 

 and the nurseries occupy a fine position on 

 the high ground a short distance to the 



tures in wlucli the iniportaiu woik of cross- 

 fertilisation is svstt'uiat icallv ; ari'ied on, 

 the annual crop of st cd l»r-(iui:lu t » nia- 

 turity, the seedlings raisiul and inu>cd 

 through the earlier stages, and those which 

 pass the primary test aie ])rcpared for 

 being transfen-cd to the <)])en quarters. 

 Each of the several strurturcs ]V!jssess son-e 

 point that attr.tcts innncdiaM^ attt'ntioi> . 

 but to myself that in \vhi; h tlic ]>ollinaii(in 

 of many liuiidrtnls of flowers is annually 

 effected and tlie i* suiting vvo]) of seed h-ir- 

 vested is espe;ially intercstiiig. This was 

 not the first time I. have lia l tl:e ])K' isur(^ 

 of being in a house well equip])ed for such 

 work, but the tact did not lessen niy appre- 

 ciation of wliat was in progress in the Por- 

 tadown nurseries, and it Is with much 



or far end of ilie bouse, the whole of the 

 plants are in pots, those six and seven 

 in:hes being ilie most generally use<l. 

 Every one Invars one or nion^ lieps or setnl 

 pods* tho largest proportion having two. it 

 not being considered ad\ isaltle to ia\ the 

 plants beyond their power of hringuig to 

 maturity seed of the inghest ]>(issible qua- 

 lit v. It is interesting to observe the varni- 

 tinn in the shape of the heps, and also to 

 not** how greatly tbes<> even of the smallest 

 plants exceed in size those i)r(Kluce<l in the 

 open. Even with this iiuavase manv h<»ps 

 have not sufficient ])ower <d' i-xpansion to 

 <'omlortably a<'eonuuodati* the s^hmIs. an<l 

 some of tlie lalter may. in thr ca^r <'f not 

 a few (if the ]>oils. h*^ seen eniergin-i from 

 the oi)ening at tlu' top \\ben ilie iirjis have 



north of the town. 



In that ]>art of tne 



business <u a <>;tMi.'ial 



nurseries in whicli 



'haracter is carried on, and the offiics are 

 situate, there is much to interest, for tliere 

 *s a considerable area of glass, ami both in 

 fhe plant houses and in the open, good cul- 

 ture is strongly in evidence. To the 

 rosarian, whose devotion to his favourite 

 flower is such that he has but little room 

 111 his thoughts for other occupants of the 

 garden, the great fields of roses, within a 

 ^hort walk, will be the chief attraction. 

 Indeed, to visitors generally, the attractions 

 of these immense areas of roses must, dur- 

 ing the summer months, be very great, for 

 therein nmy be seen, not oidy all the best 

 varieties in cultivation, but tens of thou- 

 ^<^nds of plants of noA'elties, there being in 

 otie plot alone upwards of 60,000 plants of 

 the latter. 

 , Thed 



e])ai*tment in wdiicli tht^ gia^s-luMises 

 nave a place is not wanting in interest to 

 those who a re more <u- less immi'dia tely 

 ^"'uieenied with roses, for here are the st'-^u- 



HOUSK OF sKi:DdU:AUlX(i K')SE PLANTS. 



satisfaction that the accompanving illus- 

 tiation oi the seedling house is given. The 

 tdu)tographic reprodui tion woidd. perhaps. 

 Iiave presented a n.ore attractive apjtear- 

 ance had specimen roses in hi;, can hetMi 

 orouped on the fioor and th,. nu>f <lra])ed 

 with cliinhing roses in bloom, hut the pur- 

 pose is not to give an obj(^; t-'esson in the 

 arrangement of ro-es. but to ]>ri'se!it ui 

 graphic form the method by which tlie 

 seed is obtained and rii)ened. This, it uuiy 

 be added as a point ot" sotne int^^est. is 

 the first tinu^ an illustration of a hou>e 



of 



seed-bearing roses has been published 

 in this or any other t^)untry. 



The house "^is alM)Ut one liundnHl feet m 

 length bv twentv ieet in width, and tlie 

 angle of' the ro't issndi that the plants 

 have full advantage of every ray <if light. 

 The intensitv of the light is still turther 

 accentuated 'hv tho nse of the whitest ot 

 white ])aint. and evidently m. shadmg ma- 

 terial is used at auv period. U itli tlie 

 exeepti(Ui of the large specimen at the north 



attaiiHMl their full size. The large speci- 

 men ^\a^ carrving thiee hundred and ten 

 heps. an.l. as it vicars a heavy eroj) of s*hh1 

 each vear. it may in ilu^se <lays of popular 

 nanus, ht^ deserilied as the "mother of 

 thousands." It is an unnamed variety, and 

 is the seed-bearing ]>arent of more than one 

 L^old mtnlal ruse. The raising of the swd- 

 iiim- <()mmences early in the year, and the 

 yvfd is sown in six-'incb pots, and phu-ed 

 ill a siiaeious sp;>n-roof liouse without side- 

 liuhts. The illustration shows tlie manner 

 \n which the i)f>ts are arranged on the 

 >taixes. and it might sugg^s: that the photo- 

 irnCph from which it lias hi-en i <^]>r<iduceil 

 was tak<Mi soon after the st ivls \\ere H)\\n. 

 This, however, was not the case. The see<ls 

 varv coiisiilerablv in the length of time re- 



q line 



d for their germination, am 



1 the 



vmnig 



plants aie lifted out with the aid 

 of a "p<)inte(l sti( k and put singly into small 

 pots when two or three inches high. Hence 

 but few seedlings are seen at one time, 

 rroceediuij: to the fields of roses ui ^iUesb 



