688 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
June 22, 1901. 
June being the month of Roses, a few remarks and 
hints in a concise form may not be out of place. 
Much has bsen written on this emblematic flower of 
England, but much remains to be learnt and dis¬ 
covered. Although the Rose is known to us as the 
Queen of Flowers and chosen as a national flower, 
it by no means grows to the highest perfection in 
Great Britain where it so often has to struggle for 
existence under lead-coloured skies and against all 
sorts of sudden climatic changes. To grow Roses 
to the highest perfection in Britain, they have to be 
provided with shelter from the changeable weather, 
and a uniform temperature maintained. I hope my 
readers will not judge me as being unpatriotic when 
I say that the ideal place for Roses is in the South of 
France. It is there that they can be produced in 
Unrestricted luxuriance owing to the genial climate. 
It is not that they are better cultivators of 
Roses in France than we are in Britain, but 
simply because they are favoured with better 
conditions. If they could only have a few seasons 
such as are often experienced in this country, with 
late spring frosts, heavy hailstorms and wet seasons 
we doubt if they would be able to produce blooms to 
compare with those seen on our show boards during 
this month. Space will not allow of many details 
of culture to be gone into, and a botanical treatise 
is not required, so I will give a few brief hints 
and reminders on the principal features bearing on 
the subject. 
Position.— In the amateur’s garden, which is 
usually net a very pretentious one, there is not 
much room for choice of position, but still, if the 
planter knows what a Rose requires, he can select 
the best position the piece of ground at his disposal 
offers. The Rose, to do well, requires an open 
position, but not an exposed one, and plenty of light. 
It is useless to exp;ct Roses to thrive in a shady 
position, or under the drip of tree?, or in a place 
where they do not receive a free circulation of air. 
Smoke of course is one of the greatest evils to 
militate against success, and one that cannot be 
mitigated. The only remedy is to choose varieties 
with a vigorous habit and best adapted to grow¬ 
ing in smeky towns. If the position is a very cold 
one they should be encouraged to keep dwarf or 
given the shelter of a wall. Many of the most 
handsome of the varieties are so tender as to require 
protection under glass to withstand the rigours of 
our winter and the treachery of ourlamblike(P) spring. 
If the position is a low one they are very liable to 
suffer freely, after growth has commenced, from 
frost. 
Soil. —The roots of Roses are not usually of a very 
rambling nature and if the soil proves too unsuitable 
it would not be much trouble to put in some fresh, 
or mix some matter with the old soil to improve it. 
The great fault w th many soils in which it is desired 
to plant Rose trees is that it is too light and open. 
What they want to root in is a good mellow loam 
enriched, with a few broken bones. Light humic 
soils may often be improved by thoroughly mixing 
powdered clay with them. Gravelly soils also are 
of little use for their successful culture, but may be 
greatly improved by the addition of some heavy 
soil. A thing that must be insisted on is perfect 
drainage, for if stagnant moisture is allowed to 
remain iu the vicinity of their roots the result will 
be disastrous. On the other hand great care and 
watchfulness must be exercised to make sure that 
they do not suffer in the least from drought or the 
buds will be deformed, or cast off altogether. The 
tree will soon assume a wretched appearance, and 
having lost its vigour will soon fall a prey to the 
numerous enemies with which it is surrounded, 
some of which I will speak of later if space will allow. 
Manures.—Theseshouldbeapplied very cautiously, 
or the trees will rush off into a rank, sappy growth. 
If the trees are growing strongly, no manure need be 
applied, but as soon as they show signs of failing 
vigour, an application of liquid manure should be 
given. One of the best substances for this purpose 
is pig manure, but this is not always procurable. 
Sheep or cow manure or nightsoil and powdered 
charcoal make excellent substitutes. If the soil is 
in good condition and a few crushed bones have been 
added as recommended, it ought not to require any 
stimulant for some considerable time. A very good 
way to feed Roses is to mulch their roots with old 
stable dung ; this serves two purposes, it protects 
the roots from cold in the winter and from heat in 
the summer, in addition to the mechanical action 
which it has of retaining moisture and preventing 
excessive evaporation, which would be.the result if 
the surface of the soil was exposed to the influence 
of the hot drying winds. 
Pruning.—The object of pruning is to ensure a 
uniformity of growth and an open bush through 
which air can pass freely. Too often the amateur is 
afraid to sacrifice the shoots, which results in his 
trees becoming a dense bush, all growth and no 
flowers, besides being infested with all sorts of 
diseases and insects. All gross, sappy wood should 
be removed, also weak and diseased shoots. Pruning 
cannot be taught verbally, but requires a practical 
demonstration, such as may be seen in parks and 
gardens in the autumn and spring. The same applies 
to budding and grafting. 
Cuttings of many of the hardier sorts strike freely 
in the open ground if taken in the autumn about 
September. Well ripened shoots should be selected, 
preferably those that have not borne blooms. They 
should be taken off with a heel of old wood and 
trimmed to about 8 in. or i ft. in length, and firmly 
inserted in a sheltered place in the garden, giving 
them rich soil to^ strike in. They should not be 
transplanted until the following autumn, so when 
putting them in, room should be allowed for 
growth during the following season. 
Diseases.—The Rose family is very susceptible to 
the attacks of parasitic fungi, for the majority of 
which no effectual remedy has yet been found. 
About the only one that can be successfully coped 
with is Mildew. The remedy for this is flowers of 
sulphur or a weak solution of sulphide of potassium. 
The other diseases are only effectually checked by 
removing all affected parts and burning them ; do not 
by any means consign them to the rubbish heap, for 
that will not destroy the fungus spores, and often 
proves an easy method of distribution for them. As 
soon as any part of the tree or foliage shows signs of 
a fungoid disease, it should be severed immediately 
and destroy ed ; by this means it may often be com¬ 
pletely eradicated. If the tree has a good constitu¬ 
tion it is not so liable to fall a prey to insect and 
fungus attacks, especially if it is kept well open so 
that the branches are well ripened. Insect pests 
may be kept in check by frequent applications of 
some insecticide, such as extract of quassia or some 
of the petroleum compounds. When it can be done 
without injuring the bloom, a thorough syringing 
with rain or pond water every evening will prove a 
great help to the trees, and will keep the foliage 
fresh and green. 
Climbing Roses.—These generally find great 
favour with the amateur as they can be grown to 
great perfection on the sunny side of the house. The 
three best varieties for this work are the well known 
Marechal Niel, Gloire de Dijon, and William Allen 
Richardson. They are all three of them easy to 
grow, of a vigorous habit and very free bloomers. 
The Banksian Roses are great favourites with some 
people and are becoming very popular. They re¬ 
quire very little pruning, only the gross and the weak 
shoots need be cut out. Of course they require thin¬ 
ning, but this is quite different to pruning, they must 
on no account be allowed to get crowded or they will 
not ripen their shoots properly, and will bear very 
few flowers in consequence. Probably no Rose has 
such a penetrating scent as the Banksians. It is 
often known as the violet-scented Rose, and 
perfumes the air for a great distance when in bloom, 
which, when in a favourable position, lasts for the 
greater part of the summer. 
Pillar Roses.—This is another favourite way of 
growing them. They may be grown on straight 
pillars or over arches, but whichever way they are 
grown they are very effective. No varieties are more 
suitable and make a better display when climbing on 
a pillar than the single Roses. Too much cannot be 
said in their praise, especially the variety known as 
Carmine Pillar, the flowers are produced in pro¬ 
fusion and are of an extra large size, and as the name 
denotes a bright carmine colour. As the pillar and 
wall Roses have more to support than the others 
they should have a little more nourishment, but not 
sufficient to produce a rank growth. No description of 
Roses, as given by a pen, can be adequate enough to 
convey to the mind their various distinctive features, 
therefore instead of giving a list of names I will again 
recommend intending Rose planters to either choose 
the varieties for themselves as seen in the public 
gardens or visit a Rose nursery at this time of the 
year .—Hortus. 
- -- «>€«■- 
Correspondence. 
Questions asked by amateurs on any subject pertaining 
to gardens or gardening will be answered on this page. 
A nyone may give additional or more explanatory answers 
to questions that have already appeared. Those who desire 
Their communications to appear on this page should write 
“ 4mateurs' Page " on the top of their letters. 
Slugs.—S. S. : If you have tried soot and lime and 
that is not effectual, you must contrive to catch 
these unwelcome visitors. This may be done in 
various ways, but we think that none are more 
effectual and simple than the following : Place some 
slates or tiles at intervals where they are the most 
troublesome, ard on these put a spoonful of oatmeal 
and cover it by a large inverted flower pot slightly 
tilted to allow them to get under. The oatmeal 
proves a very tempting morsel for them, and they 
soon find it, and in a great many instances also take 
a fancy to the flower pot for a refuge during the day¬ 
time. The beds should also be gone over in the 
evening with a lantern, especially after they have 
been watered or there has been a shower of rain. 
Large quantities can be captured in this manner, and 
if followed up persistently for a few nights the pests 
ought to have their depredations effectually 
checked. 
Strawberries unfruitful —Beds : This may be 
from a variety of causes. You do not state whether 
your plants have ever borne fruit. Some Straw¬ 
berries have a tendency to grow into what is known 
in common garden jargon as " males,” that is, they 
produce leaves in abundance but no fruit. This 
peculiarity is hereditary, and runners taken from 
these plants will also be unfruitful. If this is the 
case with your plants, the best thing you can do with 
them under the circumstances is to throw them away 
and get in a new stock of young plants during the 
comiDg autumn. If your plants have become un¬ 
fruitful through age, we should recommend you to 
p g down as many runners as you require and cut off 
the remainder. These should be planted out during 
the autumn into ground that has been deeply dug 
and tborough'y enriched with rotten dung. After 
the third jear's bearing Strawberries are past th.ir 
best and require renewing. It is a capital plan to 
renew one third every year, thus preventing any 
break. 
Rhododendrons flagging.— Cooper : You do not 
say whether your bushes have been recently planted, 
but we should judge from their condition that they 
have. Always remember when watering them, that 
peat is very treacherous stuff, and often proves more 
thirsty than one would think, soaking up enormous 
quantities of water and yet only wetting the surface 
layer. On the other hand the top layer may appear 
dry while the boitcm is saturated. If you have not 
given them a thorough watering we should advise you 
to do so at once or they will not produce buds for 
next year’s flowers. At one time it was the belief of 
nearly everybody that they could not be grown 
without peat, but we have seen remarkably fine 
trusses cf bloom on the exhibition table which have 
been cut from plants growing in loam. 
Deodorising Manure. - G. D. : The manurial value 
of the substance is often greatly increased if it is 
properly deodorised. One of the most effective and 
cheapest substances we know of is powdered char¬ 
coal. It increase the value of the manure consider¬ 
ably, as instead of the ammonia being given off and 
wasted, as well as causing annoyance, it is collected 
and retained in the pores of the charcoal. Wherever 
ammonia is escaping from a manure heap it should 
be prevented in this way, no matter whether it is 
causing an offance or not, as when the ammonia has 
gane from the manure, in the majority of cases there 
is not much left of any great value to plants. 
Moss on Walks.— Garden : The reason that this 
grows on your walks so plentifully is because they 
are damp and shaded. It is labour in vain to try 
and prevent it until the cause is removed. One of 
the best plans under the circumstances would be to 
