774 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
August 7, 1886. 
of their roots, but even there they are surpassed by 
the briars, whose much more powerful roots are able 
to go after any moisture that may be available, while 
in excessively wet soil the hardness of briar roots 
resists the tendency to rot, to which the fibrous 
Manetti are only too prone. At several extensive 
Rose nurseries no other stock is now grown except 
seedling briar: and another great grower told me 
he would use only this stock if he could but teach 
his men to work them. For this is the one 
objection to seedling briars, that they are somewhat 
difficult to propagate and work. Like all seedling Roses, 
they are victims in the young state to mildew, and 
owing to their thin bark and twisting stems it requires 
a good deal of practice to bud them successfully. The 
objections to briar cuttings I have yet to leam ; for 
the stocks can be made with but little more trouble 
than Manetti, and are just as easy to bud. The briar 
is the only stock for Tea-scented Roses out of doors, and 
the maiden blooms on briar stocks of any form are on 
the average far more perfect than those on the Manetti. 
From the foregoing remarks it may have been 
gathered that I would not recommend anyone to plant 
Roses on Manetti, the fourth stock named, and the 
most universally grown. It is true that these stocks 
have fibrous roots, but from the very fact of being near 
the surface they are liable to be burnt up in summer 
drought or injured by winter frost. Not that growers 
will give up Manetti, for the stocks are practically no 
trouble to make or to bud Sticks cut into 9-in. lengths 
and inserted in sandy 'ground are sure to grow into 
stocks, and when budded rarely miss, while they make 
immense saleable plants the first year. They grow well 
the first two years, and then steadily deteriorate, and 
unless the scion succeeds in getting on to its own roots 
in the meantime the plant commonly dies. I have 
made a point of planting side by side Roses budded on 
each stock, in order to compare them in identical soil, 
situation, and age. Invariably, after the third year 
the Manetti rows are deplorably gappy, while the health 
of the briars is maintained. There w 7 ere generally a few 
strong plants left among the collapsing Manettis, which 
for some time puzzled me, but on digging them up I 
found that all these had succeeded in getting on to 
their own roots before the death of the stock ; and I 
am inclined to think that the chief use of Manetti is as 
a means of raising own-root Roses. Another reason I 
have for disliking Manetti is that plants on it seem far 
more subject to Orange fungus than plants on briar. 
From plants on the former stock I picked this year in¬ 
fested leaves enough to fill a plant-basket, while from 
the plants on briar I did not gather a dozen leaves. 
Again, a great many varieties do well on briar that 
will not grow on Manetti at all well; and, generally, 
the dark-coloured and the smooth-wooded Roses thrive 
best on briar. Among darks, A. K. Williams is no ex¬ 
ception to this rule. Four years ago I budded eight 
Manettis and eight standard briars with this Rose ; 
they all made good plants, and were duly transplanted, 
whereupon seven of those on Manetti died, while all 
the standards lived. "When grown on briar, however, 
I have found the apprehensions at one time entertained 
as to the vigour and vitality of this Rose to be entirely 
ungrounded, and I should not have the lest hesitation 
in selecting.it as the very best all-round H. P. I have 
six-year-old plants on seedling briar still giving first- 
rate flowers, and have plants of all less ages, on every 
sort of soil, all doing well; its flowers are the first to 
come in and the last to give up, brilliant in colour and 
perfect in form ; while it is the freest to give flowers a 
good traveller, hardy, and not very liable to mildew. 
Talking of mildew, a remedy seems at last to have 
been discovered for this fungoid pest, in a solution of 
sulphide of potassium. This chemical dissolved in 
water at the rate of half an ounce of sulphide to the 
gallon of water, and applied on the first appearance of 
mildew by means of a syringe or spray difl'user, effec¬ 
tually checks the spread of the unsightly disease. 
The raising of Roses which are capable of resisting 
mildew may well occupy the attention of raisers ; and 
just as new varieties of Potatos are raised less and less 
liable to Potato disease, so we may hope for a race of 
Roses that shall be mildew-proof. A beginning has 
already been made with George Baker and Mrs. George 
Dickson, the latter of which is a very pretty Rose of a dis¬ 
tinct and pure snade of clear pink, while both varieties 
are exempt from mildew. I do know that this excellent 
quality is characteristic of any of the other novelties, but 
some few have considerable other attractions. Amon» 
the H. P. ’s, Comtesse de Paris (the second of the name) 
is a very charming and free-flowering Rose, some¬ 
what in the style of Countess of Roseberry ; Alphonse 
Soupert is a large and useful addition to the bright 
pinks, and is vigorous and very free ; Prosper Langier 
is one of the best of recent darks, large, vigorous, and 
brilliant deep crimson in colour ; Eclair is dazzlingly 
bright, but seems to be too characteristically transient, 
expanding very rapidly. There are two other Roses, 
Marshall P. Wilder and Benoit Comte, which are 
very good, if distinct, but both come dangerously near 
Alfred Colomb. There are several good new Teas, 
notably Madame de Watteville, a pointed white flower, 
tipped and washed with bright rose, very beautiful ; 
Souvenir de Gabrielle Drevet, somewhat similar, but 
more creamy in colour ; Grace Darling, a lovely pink- 
tipped Tea with yellowish base, always in flower, and 
attractive in all stages ; Sunset is not of much use as an 
exhibition Rose, but to force for cutting in winter is in¬ 
valuable. The much discussed Gloire Lyonnaise is very 
pretty, though not perpetual flowering, but it will 
probably be useful in a wet season, and from being 
rather thin it should be a good seed-bearer. 
The raising of seedlings is a branch of Rose-growing 
that amateurs might very well take up more systemati¬ 
cally, considering how many qualities are essential to 
a first-rate Rose, and how few varieties possess all, or 
even several, such good points. In estimating the 
merits of a new Rose, the beauty of its flowers should 
not be the only consideration, but regard should be paid 
to other characteristics, such as vigour, hardiness, free¬ 
dom, perpetuity of blooming, and power of resisting 
mildew and analogous diseases : for it must not be for¬ 
gotten that exhibitions are only a means to the end of 
decorating our gardens more perfectly, so that Roses that 
will not grow or flower freely should not be encouraged. 
Two of the most beautiful of recent Roses, Lady 
Mary Fitzwilliam and Mary Bennett are, unfortunately, 
both very stumpy growers, so that the cutting of the 
flowers generally involves the demolition of the plant: 
and in raising seedlings every effort should be made to 
avoid this lack of constitution. Perhaps the introduc¬ 
tion of some of the semi-double, or even single, Roses 
may be of service in this direction of importing vigour ; 
and, at any rate, some of them are highly ornamental. 
Take, for instance, the beautiful Japanese species, 
which has already given us the charming “Mignonette,” 
“ Ma Paquerette,” “ Perle d’Or,” &c., Rosa polyantha, 
a climber that will cover a greater area in a given time 
than any Rose I know. Its individual single flowers 
are not-more than 1 in. across, but being borne in 
trusses of sometimes nearly a hundred blossoms, a good 
plant of it, 20 ft. high and wide, sheeted with snowy 
bloom, is a sight of the greatest beauty. Or, again, 
show anyone a group of big bushes of the miscalled 
copper Austrian Briar in full bloom, and then see 
whether they will say that single Roses are too rubbishy 
for garden plants. If it is objected that single Roses 
so soon shatter when cut, let them be left to keep the 
garden gay at home while the other . Roses go to the 
shows. But, as a matter of fact, a considerable collec¬ 
tion of single and semi-double Roses has been success¬ 
fully exhibited twice this year, and endured the ordeal 
of great heat under canvas remarkably well, in one 
case at Ryde, Isle of Wight, after a long journey of 
about four hours. The singles certainly have some 
colours and qualities which other Roses lack, and if 
some amateurs are able to pursue the intelligent hy¬ 
bridisation and raising of fresh varieties, we may all 
the sooner hope for a race of Roses which shall combine 
with every desirable colour the essential qualities of 
vigour, hardiness, freedom, and perpetuity of flowering, 
and that most desirable power of resisting the attacks 
of mildew. 
-- 
FLOWERY RAILWAY EMBANK¬ 
MENTS. 
It is comforting to feast one’s eyes on beautiful 
flowers, even from a railway carriage, and such a feast 
is always a very refreshing treat, especially when one is 
wearied with a long journey. Observe, too, what select 
and animated conversations—alike with the initiated 
and the unitiated—these sights promote. Yet with 
these innocent attractions for the travelling public, it 
is rather the exception than the rule to see railway 
embankments flowery. Perhaps the most gorgeous 
exception I have ever witnessed, adjoins Lord Ports¬ 
mouth’s seat at Eggesford, on the way to that rising 
and highly romantic watering place, Ilfracombe, in 
Devonshire ; but I suspect that the credit of this is 
due to that excellent nobleman’s generosity rather than 
to the railway people. 
For fully a mile ere the train rushes into Eggesford 
Station, and beyond it, the railway bank is covered 
with huge bushes of Rhododendrons and Azaleas ; and 
for some weeks past, these have been clustered with 
myriads of their effective flowers. Last week I was in 
Cornwall, and on my way thither, observed another 
pleasing flowery railway bank in the neighbourhood of 
the Devonport station,—a mile or so of the Valerian, 
not a patch here and there, but continuous beds or 
masses of lively pink and red flowers. These are the 
only flowery railway banks I have yet met with suffi¬ 
ciently powerful to arrest my attention. 
V hen will railway companies cast off their apathy 
in this matter ? Please do not suppose that I mean 
that the hundreds of miles of railway embankments 
should be transformed into flower gardens—this would 
be almost impossible ; but there are places where even 
indigenous plants could be adapted with splendid 
effect ; to wit, Primroses, Foxgloves, Bluebells, Daffo¬ 
dils, Furze, &c., whilst hundreds of other subjects 
could easily be climatised at comparatively little 
outlay.— TV. Mapper, Alpliington Cross. 
-- 
NOTES ON THE FRUIT CROPS. 
In this neighbourhood, which is surrounded with 
large market gardens, I have lived for fifteen years, and 
do not recollect ever seeing such a heavy crop of Pears 
of all kinds, as there is this season. The Hazel or 
Hessel is the chief Pear grown by the market gardeners. 
That grand Pear, Souvenir du Congres, grown here as 
standards, bore a very heavy crop of fruit last year, and 
at the present time the branches of the same kind are 
almost bending to the ground with the weight of fruit 
upon them. Doyenne du Comice, Durandeau, and 
Pitmaston Duchess, which had only half a crop last year 
are bearing a good one this season. Also that excel¬ 
lent Pear, Louis Bonne, is bearing a very heavy crop on 
standards and pyramids. Apples are very partial ; in 
some gardens the trees have scarcely an Apple on them, 
and in others have a good crop. Keswick Codlin, Manx 
Codlin, King of the Pippins, and Cox Orange Pippin, 
are the chief kinds bearing this year. Wellington, and 
that good early cooking Apple, Lord Suffield, are only 
very moderate. Plums are a very good crop of all 
varieties, except Victoria. Cherries, an abundant crop 
of all varieties, especially the Morelia, which" is grown 
very largely for market. Peaches are a good crop on the 
walls. Of Strawberries there was only half crop, which 
made a very short season for market gardeners ; the 
chief kind grown is Sir Joseph Paxton. Raspberries, 
Gooseberries, and Currants, a good crop. Like most of 
your correspondents, we suffered very much through 
the want of rain during Jung, as the soil here is very 
light, but we had a good rain during July, which has 
done a deal of good to the crops in this neighbourhood. 
—Geo. Thompson, The Gardens, Croxby House, 
Hounsloxo, Middlesex. 
Although the "West Riding of Yorkshire is not 
famous as a fruit-producing country, nevertheless in 
all the gardens that I saw in spring, there was an 
abundance of bloom of all kinds, which gave promise 
of a good yield of produce ; but, alas for the fickleness 
of our climate ! such is not the case, so far as standard 
fruit trees are concerned. The cold months of March 
and April, and the unseasonable weather experienced 
in May and June, caused many to drop, and what was 
left on the trees could not grow properly on account 
of the dryness of the wind which passed over them, 
cutting and bruising the leaves. Never have I seen 
our plantations of forest trees look so bad as they have 
done this summer. However, there has been a few 
favoured places in the valleys, which have escaped 
these blasts, but only to suffer from late spring. 
However, we have had a thorough soaking of rain 
lately, and vegetation of all kinds has been greatly 
benefitted. On Sunday, July 25 th, we had one of the 
heaviest storms of the season, and from eight o’clock 
p.m. rain fell, more or less, until six o’clock the next 
morning, the rainfall registered in ten hours being 
2’31 ins. Apples are under the average, aud are very 
small ; the principal bearing sorts that I have noticed 
are : Nelson’s Glory, Lord Suffield, Greenup’s Pippin, 
and a few Hawthornden and Ringer’s. The last-named 
is a very good Apple in these parts, and is somewhat 
after the style of Lord Suffield. Pears are poor, and 
