120 
the gardening world. 
October 20, 1894, 
FltORICUliTURE. 
The Gold-Laced Polyanthus. 
I am sorry to learn from our friend “ R. D's ” 
article which appears in the issue of to-day's Gar¬ 
dening World, that he still seeks information in 
regard to the successful wintering of the Gold-laced 
Polyanthus. I have on several previous occasions 
explained through the medium of this paper, that my 
method of wintering is to plunge the pots up to the 
top of the rims in fine ashes or cinders, the wintering 
quarters being a cold frame. I place first of all 
about 12 in. deep in the frame of riddled cinders, and 
afterwards place the pots closely together, I then get 
a piece of sheet-iron bent in the shape of a tun dishwith 
a tube large enough to fit between the spaces of tops 
of thepots. Ithenpass the cinders into the top of the 
tun dish byjthe aid of a small scoop, and shaking the 
cinders so placed with a small trowel or piece of 
iron until the pots appear to be well packed. I give 
them plenty of air, especially in mild weather, and 
during frosty weather the frame lights are closed at 
night and covered over with mats. On no occasion 
should the pots ever be placed in a green-house 
during the winter months, which, if my memory 
serves me, has been the practice of " R. D.” during 
the past. 
I have no seedling Polyanthuses now, but I hope 
to procure the varieties “ R. D.” suggests, and save 
some seeds, and as I have now a very convenient 
and suitable spot for growing the plants, I shall lose 
no opportunity in endeavouring to produce some new 
varieties. —James Thurston, The Green, Cannock. 
October 13 th, 1894. 
ON PLANTING ROSES. 
The planting time for Roses is close at hand, for 
although they can be planted from now till March, 
and even later, the latter part of the present month 
aid the earlier portion of November is pre-eminently 
the time to plant the great majority, but the Teas 
and Noisettes being more tender than the other 
sections are planted with greater certainty of success 
in the spring. As to soil, a question of some impor¬ 
tance, it may be said that other things being 
congenial they will do fairly well in almost any soil 
which is neither too wet and heavy or too sandy and 
dry; at the same time if the best attainable results 
are aimed at a good stiff loam is the best, and if the 
soil is not of this character the existing soils should 
be improved by the addition to them of some good 
turfy loam of this description. 
Possibly the best method of applying turfy loam 
is, after trenching and well manuring the soil, to dig 
holes from 15 to 20 in. wide, and about the same 
depth, filling them up with the fresh loam, having a 
third of well decayed manure incorporated with it. 
If pig manure is procurable use it in preference to 
either cow or horse manure. Some years ago, 
without any previous knowledge of the particular 
liking the Rose has for this form of stimulant, I 
applied it to some on a light sandy soil, and was 
both surprised and pleased with the result, particu¬ 
larly as I was confidently assured by some who 
thought they knew that it would poison them right 
out. 
Where the land is too wet it must be drained, and 
if too light a good coating of well pulverised clay or 
marl will do much to remedy its excessive porosity. 
It must, however, be borne in mind that these 
measures will in many instances involve a consider¬ 
able outlay, and in most instances will necessitate 
the curtailment of Rose growing to somewhat 
moderate proportions. It may not invariably happen 
that when the soil is quite suitable the culture of the 
Rose can be carried on with success. I allude to 
towns and situations in close proximity to factories 
where the smoke and injurious gases in the air, 
always more or less injurious to vegetable life seems 
to affect the Roses more than most other plants. In 
a smoky atmosphere they die right out. I remember 
one instance of this in the heart of a thickly popu¬ 
lated district not far removed from factories; the 
outdoor cultivation was given up in despair, and 
houses were erected especially for them, when it was 
found quite possible to succeed fairly well with them 
by close attention to ventilation, and whenever a fog 
of more than usual density came over to close all 
apertures till it had passed over. Every one, provid¬ 
ing there is a healthy atmosphere, can manage with 
a few Roses in a somewhat cramped space, but foul 
air they cannot survive long in. 
To those who intend making fresh plantations I 
would say, make a point of having the soil in readi¬ 
ness before the plants required are lifted out of the 
ground, and if purchased from a distance insist upon 
their being packed with damp moss around the 
roots. Never, if possible, allow these to become 
dry, and if not convenient to plant them on arrival, 
lay them in by the heels. Choose a fine day for 
planting when the soil is in a good workable con¬ 
dition ; not only is this operation carried on under 
more pleasant conditions to the worker, but it is far 
better for the plants to be placed in their permanent 
quarters, with the soil in a friable condition and 
neither sticks to the roots or spade. Where holes 
have been made for the reception of the loamy com¬ 
post fill them with it a few inches above the surface 
of the ground, and having made a hole in it for the 
reception of the plants, spread the roots out evenly, 
taking care not to bury them too deep, and tread the 
soil firm. 
Where the soil is naturally suitable and has been 
well trenched and manured the planting will be got 
over with far less labour, but the selection of a fine 
day and a time when the soil is in a suitable condi¬ 
tion, as respect dryness, ought not to be lost 
sight of. 
It often makes a far greater difference to the well¬ 
being of the plants than many are aware of. In the 
case of standards a stake should be placed against 
every one over 20 in. high, and the Rose fastened 
securely to it. In the selection of varieties regard 
should be had to the capabilities of the situation and 
soil. If not well suited to Rose growing, choose 
only vigorous kinds, and if space is limited, restrict 
the selection to free-flowering garden Roses. 
Nurserymen may generally be relied upon as to the 
selection of varieties to suit their customers’ 
requirements. I am of opinion that most Roses 
will generally do best and be longer lived on their 
own roots, but in these go-ahead days the production 
of them is too slow a process. 
With dwarf Roses on either the Manetti or other 
stocks we frequently find that the suckers from 
them escape attention till they outgrow and kill the 
variety worked upon them, and I have met with 
instances where fully one-half of a Rose bed was 
simply Manetti, and the owner wondering why, after 
being properly manured and so pruned many of the 
plants never flowered. An experienced and attentive 
cultivator will always be on the look-out for these 
robbers, and so reduce the evil to a minimum ; at 
the same time, all the time Roses are worked on 
stocks which produce suckers, much of the energies 
of the plants will be consumed in the productions of 
these, which, in the case of standard Roses especially, 
often extend for a considerable distance under ground 
and are weeks before they come above the surface. 
These, if traced to their origin and removed, still 
represenc the loss the foster plants have sustained in 
their development, whilst with plants on their own 
roots, when they throw out undergroundgrowths.it 
generally ends in the establishment of a stronger and 
more vigorous plant being formed than the parent 
plant from which it came.— W. B. G. 
COLOURED VINE LEAVES. 
Most Vine leaves assume certain tints before they 
fall, but certain varieties seem to colour better than 
others, We suspect, however, that the brilliancy of 
the autumn tints in some cases is due to the treat¬ 
ment which the vines receive. A boxful of leaves of 
Alnwick Seedling has been sent us by Mr. D. P. 
Bell, The Gardens, Clive House, Alnwick, and 
their beauty would be difficult to describe. The 
leathery texture of the leaves would seem to indicate 
high-class culture with ample exposure to sunlight 
and good ventilation during the growing season. In 
any case they are now very gorgeous and largely 
used at Alnwick for table decoration, and we cannot 
be surprised that they are much admired and appre¬ 
ciated. The leaves at first seem to assume a dark, 
bronzy-metallic hue, giving place to crimson after a 
time, with soft yellow edges and ribs as a rule. Some 
of the leaves are almost wholly crimson with narrow 
yellow edges and ribs. As they get still older the 
crimson hue becomes paler and more or less broken 
up, forming a beautiful netting upon a yellow ground. 
The tints fade from the margins of the leaves in¬ 
wards so that the centre of the latter is the last to 
part with the bronzy and crimson shades. It would 
be interesting to know the special conditions, if any, 
under which the leaves in question have developed 
such beautiful and marvellous tints of colour. 
TEACHING THE YOUNG IDEA.- 
In a previous issue (p. 4), we reviewed a book entitled 
" Talks about our Useful Plants," which indeed con¬ 
stitutes one of three originally prepared on exactly 
the same lines for the use of the students of the 
Chautauqua Town and Country Club at Houghton 
Farm, Mountainville, New York, but now re¬ 
published with the hope of being beneficial to others. 
The information given is general rather than special, 
the aim being to induce the students to see for 
themselves, to make observations and experiments 
and record them with the view of turning them to 
account on future occasions, and to enable them to 
generalise from the information gleaned from various 
sources, or turn them to practical account in after 
life. Information gleaned in this way is more likely 
to be remembered than if the most learned professor 
were simply to tell his students all about the matter 
in the class-room. 
In “ Talks about the Soil ” the rocky crust of the 
earth’s surface is spoken of as the bones of the world, 
but later on it is explained that except in hardness or 
solidity there is no other comparison between the 
earth's crust and the framework of an animal. The 
author sends his students into various parts of the 
country for the purpose of prospecting, to ascertain 
by surface indications what is the nature of the soil 
beneath. The clothing of the earth’s surface, that is, 
the woods or forests, wild or cultivated plants are all 
indications of the fertility of the soil in each 
respective locality. The clear or muddy character of 
rivers, lakes and streams and their colour also afford 
tangible indications of the nature of the soil there or 
through which they pass, and the student has much 
to learn observations of all those things. To speak 
of our earth as a star may sound very well in popular 
phrase, but the author might be a little more exact, 
so that his students in after life may have nothing to 
unlearn when attacking the higher branches of the 
study. A very graphic description is given of the 
breaking down of the cliffs and “everlasting hills" 
and the crumbling into dust of the same by the 
natural process termed weathering. The influence 
of plants and animals as soil makers is also given. It 
is a comparatively recent idea that a crust of lichen 
or moss upon a rock is gradually destroying the sur¬ 
face of the latter ; and if the action is slow it is none 
the less true. The sun, the air, and rain with the 
carbon dioxide in the latter are more powerful and 
rapid in their disintegrating action. 
In directing students to observe, it is customary 
for teachers to direct them to some railway cutting, 
chalk pit, quarry or well, but the author of this book 
advises his readers to get a spade or other tool and 
dig into the ground for the purpose of noting the 
differences between soil and subsoil, &c. To do much 
of this kind of work, however, requires a greater 
amount of physical exertion and enthusiasm than the 
average student possesses. From generalisation the 
student is then led on to examine the constituents of 
the soil and the elements of which it consists. Some 
illustrations show what the author considers might 
have been the primaeval form of the plough used by 
pre-historic man at the time when he still dwelt in 
caves, but was commencing to till the soil for a live¬ 
lihood. The figure of an American plough shows an 
implement which is more primitive in its construction 
and less graceful in outline than the bulk of the 
ploughs to be seen in this country. 
The little volume about the weather deals with its 
subject much on the same lines as the other two, and 
while imparting knowledge is calculated to encourage 
the student or reader to verify all things for himself 
or, at least, to observe them and reflect upon the 
same. The sun is described as a great star, the 
source of all our wealth, in causing plants to grow’, 
that its motions and that of the earth give rise to the 
seasons. Light, heat, winds, rainfall and climate 
generally, are all due to the influence of the sun. 
Some of the means by which the action of the latter 
is controlled to a limited extent by the plant culti¬ 
vator are elucidated, and artificial climates by the 
construction of hot-houses and the heating of them 
are duly detailed and discussed. The effect of 
climate and season upon crops is passed under re¬ 
view, and if much of the information is of a simple 
character, it is such as the young student can grasp 
to enable him to penetrate more deeply into the 
subject. 
♦Talks about the Soil.— By Charles Barnard, New York: 
Funk & Wagnalls Company, London and Toronto, 1894. 
Talks about the Weather by the same author and 
publishers, 
