March 10, 1894. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
433 
THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL 
SOCIETY’S EXAMINATIONS. 
It is announced that this annual ordeal will take 
place on the ist of May next. There seems to be 
presented at the outset a serious obstacle in many 
directions in the shape of a somewhat high fee, 
which presumably is intended to cover the cost of 
the examination. I have no reason to suppose that 
the sum charged will deter those who can afford to 
pay it, or who may be specially bent on sitting, but 
that it must deter ordinary workers in the form of 
cottagers and allotment holders there can be no 
doubt. 
This, however, is not the only incidental expense. 
There is the far heavier charge needful in obtaining 
books, for without these, and some of them are 
costly, candidates will have little chance of passing 
in the more advanced subjects, that is, assuming that 
the questions set be generally based on the somewhat 
abstruse syllabus, as printed in the Royal Horticul¬ 
tural Society's schedule of the present year. There 
are text books recommended which can be purchased 
only at a cost of some two or three pounds, and if 
some others not mentioned and yet absolutely 
essential, but of a more practical kind, it would really 
seem as if several pounds of hard cash would have 
to be expended ere any candidate could hope to be 
fully equipped for the ordeal. 
There is yet again the probability that in numerous 
localities centres of examination may be remote 
from residences, and especially from gardens, so 
that some expense may be probable in that way also. 
All these difficulties are to be deplored, and I 
think to produce success in securing numbers of 
candidates should be removed. I am no great 
worshipper of examinations, believing that one 
sound, honest, conscientious teacher is worth a score 
of examiners. Still, a good deal of interest attaches 
to the coming examination, and I simply point out 
some matters that may prove to be a formidable 
pons asinorum to many.—.Y. 
-I.C*- 
THE ROSERY. 
As the month of March progresses much work be¬ 
comes necessary among Roses. There is the 
pruning, thorough clearing away of all pro¬ 
tective material, and the forking in of manure 
where this has been applied during winter. Many 
of us experience a very anxious time throughout the 
early part of March, as up to then it has scarcely 
been possible to form a correct idea of how the 
plants have come through the winter. We may 
consider them safe early in February, as some of my 
friends did this season. But i8° of frost towards 
the latter end of the month was a much greater trial 
than the 25° to 32'’ which ushered in the year 1894. 
The extra mild weather of February previous to this 
sudden change, had induced a freer and earlier rise 
of sap than usual. A large number of my own Roses 
had already made growths of 2 and 3 inches, and a 
frost of 15 to 18 degrees must always be injurious to 
sap sufficiently active to produce this. 
Pruning will be general in warm localities by the 
time these notes can appear, but I venture to warn 
against too early use of the knife in any but the most 
sheltered positions. We should never lose sight of 
the fact that the whole of the eyes left upon a plant 
after being pruned are expected to be of some ser¬ 
vice. Any check to Rose growth is harmful, and we 
can avoid much of this by delay in pruning. Un¬ 
pruned shoots commence growth from the terminal 
eyes, and this acts as an outlet for the earliest sap. 
If we leave these for a short time the roots com¬ 
mence a steady growth which will soon push on 
those lower and dormant eyes which will be left 
after the plants are pruned. I feel convinced that 
in the majority of cases one is tempted to prune too 
early, especially during a forward season like the 
present. A week or ten da) slater in pruning will 
often have sufficient effect upon the growth to escape 
the unpleasant consequences of a late April or early 
May frost, a trial our Roses are frequently subjected 
to. Without a clean and unchecked growth the 
first crop of bloom is not likely to be satisfactory, 
and it is surprising how very soon those plants 
which were too backward to experience harm from a 
late spring frost will come into as forward growth as 
those pruned earlier. The first crop of bloom is the 
best, if we are fortunate enough to secure a 
comparatively unchecked growth. The first break 
of growth from the lower and well matured eyes of 
last year’s wood always produce good flowers, pro¬ 
vided we can avoid any severe check, either in the 
way of cold or insect pests. Premature pruning is 
the first mistake likely to have this result. 
Earlier in this note I mentioned the forking in of 
winter mulchings. I do not believe in too deep 
digging among Roses. If the plants have received 
proper summer cultivation and mulchings they will 
be possessed of many valuable feeding roots near 
the surface, and it cannot be a wise practice to 
disturb these. On the other hand, a hoe does not 
work quite so deep as I would wish for the spring, 
besides being almost an impossible tool among the 
winter mulching, even after considerable decay. 
Our plan is to fork over the surface very slightly 
and yet leaving it as roughly as possible, somewhat 
in the same manner as Hops are cultivated in a 
radius of 2 ft. from the plant. After a few weeks, 
generally in May, a good mulching of rotten manure 
is beneficial upon light soils. It keeps the ground 
cool and moist, while nourishing the plants at the 
same time. A heavy soil does better with me when 
not summer mulched, but the surface kept loose 
with a Dutch hoe. The surface may often seem 
dust dry, but it is moist and cool 2 to 3 in. below 
this. 
I have looked over our beds closely and find the 
buds upon all stocks are looking well. As a 
rule, I believe, the dormant bud upon a stock passes 
through the winter rather better than a Rose plant. 
Much of this, however, depends upon whether the 
bud was in the best possible position for working 
and became firmly united to the stock. Oftentimes 
there is not sufficient attention given to this, nor is 
enough care taken not to work a small or “ thin ” 
bud upon a large stock. The bark of the latter is 
stout and growing, consequently it often closes over 
and smothers the bud. The bud may exist through 
the winter, but the bark of the stock does not swell 
uniformly with it, and the Rose growth produces a 
canker-like swelling at the point of union.— 
Experience. 
-- 
A FINE STRAIN OF 
PRIMULAS. 
A FEW days ago we received a box of blooms of a 
splendid strain of Chinese Primulas from Messrs. J. 
Veitch & Sons, Chelsea. With two exceptions they 
were all single varieties, and without exception, all 
were meritorious. We were very much taken with 
the handsome character of Veitch’s Red, with large, 
much imbricated flowers of a dark carmine red ; the 
eye consisted of green and yellow markings, more or 
less distinctly unmixed and alternating regularly, 
while they were surrounded by a six or seven-lobed 
band of crimson, giving the whole flower a very 
handsome effect. The flowers of Chelsea Blue were 
smaller, but of a good dark shade. Chelsea Scarlet 
pretty closely indicated that colour as seen in 
Chinese Primulas, and the shade was intense and 
glowing. Magnum Bonum was of great size, as the 
name would indicate, and of a rich, uniform, rcsy- 
purple. 
All the other single varieties were of lighter 
shades, delicate and charming. The flowers of 
Queen are of large size, great substance, and white. 
The plant on the contrary has red stems and 
petioles. Veitch's White we liked even better, be¬ 
cause the flowers were of a purer white, with a much 
clearer, well defined, golden-yellow eye, and 
altogether a neatly arranged, fimbriated and 
imbricate flower. The blooms of Gigantic White 
were larger, but of the faintest shade of blush. The 
deep orange, five-angled eye was a marked feature 
of a beautiful flower, characterised also by great 
substance. Altogether the flower was flat and massive, 
and the angled eye led us to suspect that it was 
a Fern-leaved variety, as is indeed the case. The 
largest flower in the box was that named Queen 
Rose, the segments of which were much overlapped, 
of great substance, and of a uniform, soft, rosy-pink. 
The seven-lobed, greenish-orange eye gave indica¬ 
tion that the bloom had seven primary lobes or 
divisions corresponding to petals. Chelsea Rose on 
the contrary was considerably smaller, but several 
shades darker, being of a uniform warm rose. 
Queen and Magnum Bonum would appear to be 
Fern-leaved varieties, judging from the angled form 
of the day. 
Of the semi-double forms obtainable from seed. 
Double Crimson would seem the counterpart of 
Chelsea Scarlet, for it had the same glowing colour, 
and might have been a shade more inclined to 
crimson. Double Rose was a smaller but very pretty 
flower, of a uniform soft rose, of a shade that is 
much liked by an appreciative public at the present 
day. All the varieties are deserving of cultivation, 
for there was not an inferior one amongst them. 
-- 
HEPATICA AND OMPHALODES. 
“ What lovely things ? ” is the remark as I take 
lovers of plants to see my pretty Hepaticas ; and the 
question generally put is, can I grow them ? Of 
course they can if they have a loam of fairly good 
body, and will take the trouble to top dress the 
plants with soil twice a year, in spring and autumn. 
In spring I crumble up some lumps of a clayey loam 
and place about the plants, adding a few small lumps, 
and this crumbles down and operates to keep the 
surface cool about them. I generally add a little fine 
potting soil to the surface as soon as the plants have 
gone out of bloom, so that in the event of their 
maturing a few seeds, they have something congenial 
to root into. 
I have six very large clumps of the Double Red 
Hepatica growing at the foot of a wall having an 
east aspect, and at the present time they are carrying 
hundreds of flowers. One is strongly tempted to lift 
and divide the clumps, but they so enjoy being left 
alone that I cannot bring myself to disturb them. 
They are evidently grateful, and evince thdr grati¬ 
tude by the abundance of their blossoms. On the 
other side of the garden, and likewise at the foot of 
a wall which faces west, I have fine clumps of the 
single blue and the single white, and they, being 
large and well established for a few years, also bloom 
with amazing freedom. I have tried the single red 
in the same position, but with indifferent success, 
but in the case of the three I have named one gets 
the three colours. There is no other spring flower 
which blooms so abundantly in the month of 
February in the open air ; if there is, I should like to 
hear its name. The beautiful double blue is very 
scarce, it is always scarce. I often get asked for a 
plant of the double blue Hepatica, with three crowns 
at least; but a single crown requires time to get to 
this size. 
I suppose Hepaticas are planted, but one seldom 
sees them. Many are no doubt lost through 
improper planting, many because they are neglected 
after planting. The Hepatica cannot endure 
neglect ; treat it in this way, and then, as if 
characterised by human sensibility, it straightway 
pines away and dies. To dig a hole in ordinary soil, 
stick the roots of an Hepatica into it, as one would 
a daisy, and then leave uncared for, is slow torture 
to the plant, and certain death. I wonder if plants 
rise up in judgment in the next world against those 
who maltreat them in this; if so, I fear there is a 
pretty long account to settle. 
If any one w'ere to dig up a strong and well established 
root of Hepatica, it will be found that it throws 
down into the soil a number of stout hair-like roots, 
and what the Hepatica likes for these roots is a deep 
run of soil. Therefore, in planting Hepaticas, a deep 
hole should be dug, a foot in depth, half filled with 
good potting soil, the plant then held in the hole, 
and good soil filled in all around the roots and the 
whole pressed down firmly. Then there is some 
chance of the plant doing well. When I divide a 
plant, each divided piece is potted into a small, long 
tom, and the pot plunged in a bed of cinder ashes. In 
a year it establishes itself, and can then be planted 
in the open with some chance of success. 
Surface soiling is indispensable to the Hepatica, and 
if the soil in which the plants are growing is subject 
to dryness, a mulch of clayey loam is highly advanta¬ 
geous during the warm, dry summer months. H. 
angulosa I do not care for; unlike the others, 
it will bear a good deal of rough treatment, 
but in my own cases it never blooms in a satisfactory 
manner. Its creeping roots, which are very 
persistent, differentiates it from the varieties of H. 
triloba. 
Another early spring flower of great beauty is the 
Creeping Forget-me-Not (Omphalodes verna). Its 
singular precocity is one of its great charms, but to 
see it in all its beauty and usefulness one needs to 
make a pilgrimage to Belvoir, and see there the 
delightful masses of it the late Mr. William Ingram 
