116 
THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE OF AMERICA 
to run off instead of down to the roots. When the bed is 
finished the surface should be about level with the ground 
around it, which would bring' it after it has sunk, two or 
three inches below the undisturbed ground, which would 
enable water to be confined to the actual bed and afford 
room for the addition of enrichment from time to time. 
To enable this to be brought about six inches of the sub- 
soil should be entirely removed, leaving eighteen inches. 
To this eighteen inches of subsoil six inches of good half 
rotted manure should be added, thoroughly breaking up 
the soil and mixing the manure with it as the work pro- 
ceeds. The work is facilitated if a trench is first dug 
across the bed and the soil from it taken to the spot where 
the bed is to finish, then the soil can be worked forward 
in strips ; the sod taken from the surface should at the 
same time be broken up and mixed with the subsoil, 
which if very clayey is benefited by the addition of some 
good light compost. Having completed the working up 
of the subsoil, a coating of air-slaked lime should be 
spread over it, just sufficient to whiten the surface, and 
then the top-soil may be replaced and have manure 
worked in with it with the addition of two pounds of pure 
bone meal to the square yard. The bed is now ready for 
the reception of the plants. 
In this section ( \*ew York) April is a good month to 
plant ; the distance apart for hybrid perpetuals should be 
two feet and for hybrid teas eighteen inches. Some dif- 
ference of opinion exists as to whether it is better to use 
budded plants or those on their own roots. While much 
can be said in favor of the latter, the former will invaria- 
bly give the best results, all other things being equal, pro- 
vided they are planted at a sufficient depth. Innumerable 
failures with roses have been brought about by want of 
attention to the latter point. A budded rose should be 
placed in the ground at a depth sufficient to cause the 
point on the stock at which the rose was budded to be 
six inches below the surface. At this depth the rose itself 
will generally throw out roots above the stock and the 
tendency of the stock to produce suckers will be to a great 
extent prevented ; also, what is of the greatest import- 
ance, should an exceptionally severe winter kill the rose 
to the ground, it will, when planted at this depth throw 
up shoots from below. The best plants to buy are two 
years old dormant plants that have been potted up in the 
autumn ; these are generally sent out sufficiently pruned. 
Care should be taken that the soil is well firmed around 
the roots. 
After planting, the ground should have a coating of air- 
slaked lime ; this dressing of lime should be repeated 
every year. During the growing season the ground 
should be kept cultivated so that there is always three 
inches of loose soil all over. If watering is necessary it 
must be done thoroughly. It is astonishing how many 
there are who water their plants without giving them any 
water. To be of any value the water must be sufficient 
to reach below the roots. It is very rarely, however, that 
properly prepared ground kept continually loose on the 
surface requires watering. 
In addition to the before mentioned continual cultiva- 
tion, summer care consists in removing the flowers, either 
for decorative purposes or those that have dropped their 
petals, with as long stalks as possible, the object being to 
encourage the growth of strong young wood throughout 
the season. The first year of a newly prepared border 
feeding will not be required, but each subsequent year a 
rose border should be fed with liquid manure when the 
soil is moist during July, or sheep manure and bone meal 
can be worked in. 
After the flowering season is over roses may be cut 
back to about eighteen inches from the erround, which 
will facilitate the application of the winter mulch; this 
may be applied as soon as the surface is just crusted with 
frost. The thickness of the mulch may vary with the 
climate, although it is best to err on the right side. Sur- 
rounding the border with wire netting and filling up with 
eighteen inches or two feet of hardwood leaves is a good 
plan, or salt hay or coarse strawy manure may be used. 
The date when this mulch may be removed in the spring 
will depend upon local conditions, but from the middle to 
the end of March is sufficiently early. After this, prun- 
ing may be done, which consists of removing very weak 
shoots and cutting others back to about two buds above 
the ground, although in the case of the very strong grow- 
ing varieties, three or four buds may be left. 
Apart from the preparation of the soil, cultivation and 
continual feeding, which apply to all classes of roses, my 
remarks have been principally in connection with hybrid 
perpetuals and hybrid teas. Although, as before men- 
tioned, the latter give a more continuous display of bloom, 
I should lie sorry to see the former banished from our 
rose gardens, as in their season they are unsurpassed. 
As regards other classes, the climbing varieties onlv re- 
quire the dead and old wood removed each year ; this is 
best done soon after their blooming season is over. 
The best place for the Rugosa roses is as part of the 
shrubbery. The only pruning required is the removal of 
wood over two years old ; they throw up young wood 
from the roots each year. The fruit of this species is very 
ornamental for a long time after the blooming period has 
passed. 
The Wichuraiana roses are very valuable for covering 
sunny banks where grass does not thrive. The bank 
should be thoroughly cleaned from weeds and enriched ; 
as the roses trail over it they should be pegged down and 
roots will form ; in a very short time the bank will be cov- 
ered and will be a thing of beauty instead of an eyesore, 
more especially as this species of rose is almost — and in 
mild sheltered spots quite — evergreen. This kind of rose 
is also useful for planting at the back of a retaining wall, 
for which purpose the climbing varieties are also valuable. 
I must not forget to call attention to the value of the 
Baby Ramblers or Polyantha class, which are not made 
as much use of as they deserve to lie. If one has onlv 
room for a few roses, I think that these will be found to 
give more in the way of flowers than any other kind, as 
the bushes are from the earliest to the latest times cov- 
ered with bloom in the form of sprays. The only prun- 
ing they require is the cutting out of the branches that 
have produced flowers. 
We do not see rose hedges so frequently as I think we 
should. I have never been able to understand why any- 
one should ever have a privet hedge planted upon their 
place; if there is one redeeming feature in a privet hedge 
1 have not yet discovered it. We are not to-day discuss- 
ing the question of hedges, otherwise numerous things 
could be mentioned which are all far above privet for that 
purpose. I merely wish to suggest that roses can very 
often be used, and the climbing class lends itself effec- 
tively for hedges. The Sweetbriar should be freely mixed 
with the others along a hedge, as the leaves of it exhale 
a delightful perfume on summer evenings. The hybrid 
Sweetbriars are not .so strongly scented as the old Eng- 
lish Sweetbriar. 
The wild roses, too, should be used more frequently. 
We do not make enough use of our native wild flowers, 
and there are many places amongst shrubs and in semi- 
wild spots that can be beautified by our wild roses, all of 
which will show improvement in quantity and quality of 
bloom when subjected to the better soil which should be 
provided for them. 
