September 25,1884. ] 
JOURI^AL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
281 
in the Hybrid Perpetuals have been with Marie Baumann ; the weak¬ 
ness of stem is her only blemish. Charles Lefebvre, Alfred Colomb 
(this Rose I have never grown so well), Beauty of Waltham, Duke 
of Wellington, Madame Victor Verdier, and Pauline Talabot among 
the darker ; Comtesse d’Oxford, Marquise de Castellane, and Victor 
Verdier among the pinker varieties ; La France and Baronne de 
Rothschild among the lights. • No light H.P. in my humble opinion 
behaves so kindly as her ladyship in bad weather ; of all light Roses 
of the H.P. type she is Al, soiling less than any othei’, and retaining her 
beauties under difficulties. With a few more petals she would be 
very high in any election. Her children in some respects follow her 
as to behaviour in bad weather, but with me Mabel Morrison is whiter 
than Merveille de Lyon. Thus far 1 am of the same opinion as 
“A. F. M."” “ Disappointing ” I should apply to Merveille de Lyon, 
but it is too early to form any opinion ; Violette Bowyer has not 
impressed me, and Madame Lacharme never gives me an exhibition 
bloom. Does Madame behave the same with “ A. F. M.,” throwing 
up numbers of buds at every joint, which as they grow up appear to 
me to arrest all growth in the primary bud? I am speaking of shoots 
that have already been fairly disbudded, these shoots not appearing 
till the selected bud is just expanding. With me she is a perfect 
failure. IMons. Noman we have long given up about here ; Capitaine 
Christy I do not give up, but he is terribly disappointing—foliage so 
handsome, buds so large and promising, and then a blotched distorted 
bloom as the reward of expectant waiting ! Still I cannot discard 
it; there are some Roses one keeps from association, and Captain 
Christy and I were schoolfellows ; yes, “ a long time ago !’' 
Talking of association in Rose-keeping, there is another Rose I 
do not discard partly from association yet not a little for itself, but I 
never hear of anyone else who grows it, I mean, of course, amongst 
amateurs. I have just referred to Cheshunt Paul’s catalogue, and 
the Rose has slipped out of that. Some years ago our Journal 
frequently contained notes on Roses and other matters from the Rev. 
W. F. Radclyffe. All he wrote, whatever he may have preached, was 
not gospel, and some of his notions were quaint and were adhered to 
pertinaciously ; some might put a stronger word. Still I was sorry, 
very sorry to miss his thoughts in the Journal, though I frequently 
disagreed with them. Well, there is a Rose named Rushton Radclyffe, 
after him and his former abode ; it is a shade small, but beautiful in 
shape with me, whilst in perfume it is one of the most delicious of 
the Perpetuals. 
As showing the difference of locality, I should have said that 
Pierre Netting had not been so successful this season as “A. F M." 
has found it. This Rose has alwaj's been a verj'' great favourite of 
mine, indeed it is only the last year or two that in the election lists I 
have relegated it to the second twelve, pushed down by younger 
aspirants. I have before now shown it, so that had there been a prize 
for the best H.P. the bloom must have been in the running, but this 
season has not been so good. Then, as to A. K. Williams, I, too, 
have noticed the same thing as “ A. F. M. a bloom picked, appa¬ 
rently not arrived at its best, placed in water, has markedly diminished 
in size as if shrivelling, but I have seen the same with other Roses, 
and doubt whether it does not depend on certain conditions of 
atmosphere at the time of cutting. Since I wrote, some few weeks 
since, on the constitution of this grand Rose, not a few have endorsed 
my opinion. 
Of Teas, my greatest success and pleasure have been with Marie 
Van Houtte. Years ago I wrote of this as only being able to grow 
it as a buttonhole Rose, but this year some of my blooms might not 
have disgraced the “ back seats ” of a stand ; it is very decidedly one 
of the best. In the early part of the season I Avas delighted Avith 
Francisca Kriiger (1 hope no relation to the Boer); she is a beautiful 
combination of colours, and a free bloomer ; the later blooms liaA'e 
not opened so well. Madame Lambard, of whateA'er shade of colour— 
and she is seen in manj^—always beautiful, but a little too quick in 
opening, a point to be thought of when exhibiting ; but Avhat an 
addition to this most charming class of Rose ! Perle des Jardins 
exquisite, and Avith me far superior to the Rose that has been said to 
surpass it-—Etoile de Lyon ; this Rose, Avith many plants, has utterly 
failed to giA'c me a single respectable bloom. The buds on standards 
and on dwarfs promise well ; cease to open, the outer petals shrivel 
and get ragged, and altogether with me this Etoile is a star of the 
smallest magnitude. Catherine Mermet merits ahvays a title that the 
French are fond of giving—“ ravissante." 
Like “ A. F. M.,” I took Madame Cusin without a character. I 
recollect his asking for one. Like him, I cannot at present giA'e her 
one ; I fancy she Avill not remain in the catalogues. Rubens I took 
on the character obtained in the election lists ; fcAV electors gaAm this 
Rose an Al testimonial, but also very few omitted naming it. I 
have not been disappointed here, and think Rubens one of the loveliest, 
especially in the bud 
My pen is running away with me, but I cannot hold it in, and you 
must prune, Mr. Editor, if you Avill. Before leaA'ihg the Teas, let me 
urge all Avho say they cannot grow this lovely—Avell, yes—this love¬ 
liest class of the queen or empress of floAvers, to try them as sug¬ 
gested by Mr. Geoi’ge Paul on beds raised a foot higher than the rest 
of the surface. I tried the experiment last year ; they AAmre nearly 
all Aveak plants, the remnants, in fact, and those that li\'ed have done 
capitally, and the summer for such a bed has been veiy trying. I 
propose adding to the bed, for supposing all the blooms fail of exhi¬ 
bition rank, yet, if any young rosarian bachelor wishes to make a 
faA'ourable impression on one he might desire to make his queen, 
among his flowers I commend him to a bed of Tea Roses, Avhere he 
can cut freely, and may his prospects be as rosy as his offering. 
I agree Avith “ A. F. M.” that “ yearling ” Avould be better than 
“ maiden.” I also agree with him that those Avho can select their 
buds should take them from a flowering shoot, but I go a little farther 
If you want the best plants you need to select your buds from the 
shoot that has given the grandest bloom, and this is just one of the 
reasons that makes it difficult to estimate the \mlue of a Rose during 
the early years of its coming out. Every bud of a “ marvel ” is a 
bud, that if it take, Avill make a plant, and hence is used. Nor can 
we blame the nurseryman for this ; he has already “ paid dearly for 
his whistle,” and perhaps the Avhistle may ncAmr give a sound Avorth 
listening to. 
Lastly, if I can, I would repay “ A. F. M.” some of the pleasure 
his article has given me by saying. Does he touch his Cloth of Gold 
with a knife? If he will leave it alone, nailing it up—I presume it 
is against a Avail—let it run up 20 feet high or more, and patience 
will have its reAvard some season in the future ; a wealth of buds will 
burst into glorious blossoms, and “A. F. M.” will alloAV that its name 
is deserved. One other hint. If “A. F. M.” has a fruit tree that 
grows luxuriantly but does not bloom, I suspect he root-prunes. 
Well, why not serve Cloth of Gold the same?—Y. B. A. Z. 
THOUGHTS ON CURRENT TOPICS. 
There has been so much that is good to think about of late in the 
Journal that I cannot keep abreast of the subjects; but before it is too late 
I must ask all who are interested in hardy fruits, such as Apples and Pears, 
and who desire to preserve them in the best condition, to peruse thought¬ 
fully the valuable article on the Fruit Room ” on page 223. A more 
suggestive, useful, and opportune contribution has not appeared for some 
time, and it should not he passed over lightly. 
Except butter and fatty matter, there is nothing more absorbent 
and at the same time retentive of effluvia than Apples and Pears. If 
these are to be placed on the table as they should be, with the peculiar 
flavour of each in all its purity, the fruit room must be kept as clean as the 
dairy ; yet herbs, Onions, fusty straw, and now and then a Mushroom bed 
may be found in the structures in which the produce of orchards is stored. 
That is a great mistake, and when it is committed it is impossible to have 
Apples and Pears in anything like perfection. 
There is a German adage to the effect that he who thinks much 
accomplishes little, which means that thought without action is profitless. 
And it is ; but I have been acting as well as thinking, and the result is I 
have paint-flavoured, petroleum-flavoured, tar-flavoured, carbolic acid- 
flavoured, Onion-flavoured, Mint-flavoured, Sage-flavoured, and fusty hay- 
flavoured Apples by simply enclosing fruit with the different articles in 
boxes for several days. This has proved conclusively the immense import¬ 
ance of scrupulously clean, sweet, and properly ventilated fruit rooms. 
That experiment has led to further action, and the fruit room is now as 
clean as hot water and limewash can make it, for the shelves have been 
scrubbed, the walls washed, and every nook and cranny thoroughly cleansed. 
In this room neither hay, straw, nor any other “ bedding” will be used. 
The fruit will be placed carefully on the shelves, which are as clean as a 
kitchen dresser ought to be. If the boards were quite new I should cover 
them with white paper, not newspapers saturated with bad ink, and by 
changing the air cf the structure as needed the fruit will he uncontami¬ 
nated. That is, I think, what we should strive for ; and the first and most 
important step to be taken at once, not merely “ thought about,” is that 
of thoroughly cleansing and sweetening the structures in Avhich Apples 
and Pears will have to te kept, when they are sufficiently plentiful, for the 
next six months. 
“ Surely learning is to he had without wrangling,” writes Mr. Burton 
on page 263. I thought when I read that observation I A^muld give it all 
the prominence in my power, as a timely hint to controversialists. Those 
persons who cannot discuss a subject without indulging in personalities, 
which if not intended to give pain are calculated to do so, ought not to 
venture into the field of public criticism. Nothing is more pleasant nor 
instructive than a well-conducted discussion when the object of the writers 
is to elicit facts; but when the subject is lost sight of in a mere wordy 
wrangle the wranglers are regarded with mixed feelings, in which admira¬ 
tion is not a chief element. Let us have discussion and even differences ; 
but also let us remember that a person who studies to express his differ¬ 
ences in the most agreeable manner possible towards opponents shows a 
generosity of mind that commands respect. 
