104 
NAT. ORDER. — ROSACEA. 
sameness of form, and that form very compact and bushy, prevents 
them from grouping as Rose plants, and in their flowers : and there- 
fore to display these beauties to the best advantage, they require to 
be seen singly, or in succession. This is the case where they occur 
as single objects on a lawn, or in the centre, or here and there 
among groups of flowers, or in lines or avenues along flower- walks 
Suitable Soil. Most species of the Rose, in their wild state, grow 
in sandy or rather poor soil, excepting such as are natives of woods, 
where the soil is richer, and comparatively moist. But all the culti- 
vated Roses, and especially the double-flowering kinds, require a 
rich loamy soil, inclining to clay rather than sand, and they require 
also, like most double flowers, plenty of moisture when in. a growing 
state. 
General Culture. To produce strong flowering Roses, requires 
some attention in pruning : old wood should be yearly cut out, and 
the young shoots thinned and shortened, according to their strength, 
and whether number or magnitude of flowers be wanted. Those 
sorts which throw out numerous suckers, should be taken up every 
three or four years, reduced and replanted, and most sorts, excepting 
the standards, will be improved by this practice, provided attention 
is sufficiently paid in removing the old soil and replacing it by new. 
The points of the shoots of the more delicate sorts of Roses, are 
very apt to die when pruning is performed in winter or spring : to 
avoid the consequences of this evil, many give a second pruning in 
June, or do not prune the tender sorts at all, till the beginning of that 
month. A very good time for performing that operation is immedi- 
ately after the bloom is over, cutting out old exhausted wood, short- 
ening shoots which have flowered to a good bud, accompanied with 
a healthy leaf, but leaving such shoots as are still in a growing state 
till October. Where very large roses are wanted, all the buds, ex- 
cept that on the extreme point of each shoot, should be pinched off 
as soon as they make their appearance, and the plant liberally sup- 
plied with water. To lessen evaporation, and keep up a constant 
