184 
THE GARDENING WORLD . 
March 4, 1905. 
make an interesting rock garden plant provided it were of 
easy cultivation, but there is some difficulty in this respect. 
The Macartney Bose is not by any means common in 
gardens, being somewhat delicate, but it can be grown upon 
walls in various parts of the country, and, apart from the 
beauty of the large flowers, is singularly distinct and hand¬ 
some on account of its leaves, which have a neatness similar 
to that of R. wichuraiana. It also likes a dry season, other¬ 
wise the peculiar nature of the bracts surrounding the flowers 
holds moisture and induces the flowers to damp. 
R. microphylla, representing another group, is also a sin¬ 
gular type in its way on account of the great thickness and 
green colour of the fruit. Like the Macartney Rose it is a 
native of China. The tenth group is represented by plants 
that are very common in certain parts of the country in a 
wild state, but seldom find their way into gardens. R. mollis, 
however, might well be introduced for the sake of its large 
and handsome fruits, and would give variety in the same way 
as R. pomifera, R. rugosa and others which are notable 
for the ornamental character of their fruit. 
Several rosarians have given the classification of Roses con¬ 
siderable attention in this country and on continental Europe. 
The most important monograph of Roses in bygone times in 
this country was that of Dr. Lindley. Mr. Baker, representing 
the modem rosarians, had a contemporary rival on the Con¬ 
tinent in the late M. Crepin, director of the Botanic Gardens, 
Brussels. The latter did an immense amount of collecting and 
getting together information about the subject of Roses which 
lie intended to publish in a monograph, but this stupendous 
work had been procrastinated until the gifted rosarian was too 
far advanced in life for the work to be accomplished. He did 
indeed publish a, good deal of matter on Roses, and is the 
authority for many species and varieties which he described 
and published, but his work as a whole, as far as lie himself 
is concerned, will now he lost to the scientific world except the 
stray portions which lie did publish. 
M. Crepin did indeed issue a. classification of Roses which he 
divided into sixteen groups. Some of these were identical with 
those of Mr. Baker, but some of the groups now systematised 
by the latter were either divided by M. Crepin or classified in 
a slightly different way. For instance, the Systvlae of Mr. 
Baker was divided into two groups by M. Crepin, namely, 
Synstylae, represented by our Field Rose, the Ayrshire Rose, 
the Musk Rose, the Polyantha Rose, R. wichuraiana, and 
various others ; and Stylosae, represented by the European 
R. stylosa. The reason for this was that the first group of 
M. Crepin included all those Roses which had their flowers 
in large clusters of numerous individuals, whereas the group 
represented by R. stylosa had only a few flowers in a cluster. 
Another rosarian, in making comments upon M. Crepin’s 
classification, said that the group typified by R. stylosa was 
almost destitute of ornamental interest from a, horticultural 
point of view. We think, however, that- this Rose, although 
not represented outside of botanic gardens, is really more 
handsome than it gets credit for being, and, seeing that wild 
species could readily be improved, we think that a new race of 
Roses could be developed from R. stylosa, which is already 
found in numerous forms in the south of England. In saying 
that the flowers are produced in small clusters, we think it 
a matter of opinion as to the number which would be con¬ 
sidered numerous. The species often produces a consider¬ 
able number of flowers in a cluster when the wild bushes are 
making vigorous growth in suitable soil and surroundings. 
There are several shades of colour in the wild state, but 
we think the pure white ones might be utilised for the produc¬ 
tion of ornamental garden varieties, either by seed-raising 
from the tvpe and crossing with varieties or hybridising with 
other species. 
The other groups proposed by M. Crepin were: Indicae, 
Banksiae, Gallicae, Caninae, Carolinae, Cinnamomeae, Pim- 
pinellifoliae, Luteae, Sericeae, Minutifoliae, Bracteatae, Laevi- 
gatae, Mi'crophyllae, and Simplicifoliae. Readers will be 
able to supplv samples for a number of these groups from what 
has already been said about Mr. Baker’s classification. 
In connection with Mr. Baker’s paper we may state that 
Miss E. Willmott, F.L.S., exhibited thirty splendid water¬ 
colour drawings of Roses by Alfred Parsons, A.R.A., drawn at 
Great Warley for her forthcoming volume on the genus Rosa. 
A Notable Collection of Shrubs. 
The Fruticetum Vilmorimianum ” * really refers to the 
splendid collection of shrubs, sub-slirubs and other dwarf 
shrubby plants which M. Maurice L. de Vilmorin has collected 
together at his private residence, Les Barres, Par-Nogent-sur- 
Vernisson (Loiret), France. He has now prepared a book on 
the subject of 284 pp., including a good index. This latter 
will be chiefly valuable to those who are unacq> ainted with the 
natural system of classification under which the immense 
number of subjects is here classified. That such a number 
of ornamental shrubs could have been got together in a 
private establishment speaks volumes for the enthusiasm of 
tlie collector, and still further for the trouble he has taken 
to represent this vast collection in book form. 
It is now well known amongst plant collectors that M. 
Vilmorin is extremely liberal with plants in making exchanges 
with other enthusiasts and amateurs. He says that his col¬ 
lections, needless to say, having no commercial character, show 
that many things have to be taken into consideration when 
making exchanges or presenting his friends with duplicates or 
samples of the plants which lie may possess. In a postscript 
to the preface he says that to people who wish to accept 
exchanges he can easily enough send the greater number of 
the species which he possesses either in the form of grafts 
or cuttings, often also seeds of such species as Rosa, Ribes, 
Crataegus, etc. He cannot on any extensive scale undertake 
the multiplication of his plants by grafting- or layering, yet 
he can make exceptions in .certain cases, but it is evident, 
he says, that one or two years would be necessary in some 
cases to prepare rooted plants. Frequently he is able, how¬ 
ever, to send young plants of interesting species raised from 
seeds. 
Only those things which can generally be regarded as shrubs 
are recorded in this work, so that we miss many species of 
trees belonging to the genera recorded. The various species 
are arranged on the natural system in their respective orders. 
The book is chiefly occupied, however, with Dicotyledons. 
The shrubby Monocotyledons capable of being grown in the 
open air in European; countries are relatively few, and are 
confined chiefly to Bamboos, Yuccas, and species of Smilax. 
The list will be of value to those engaged in making collections, 
to gardeners employed in keeping those collections under 
their proper names ; and the new species will be of peculiar 
interest, seeing that they are described in Latin and French, 
occasionally in English, where books are quoted in this 
country. 
Most of the new or recent introductions are also illustrated 
with woodcuts, and in some cases with hand-drawings repre¬ 
senting some or other peculiarity of structure. Amongst the 
Barberries, we think that Berberis sanguinea will prove not 
merely interesting but valuable for garden purposes on 
account of its distinct appearance. The leaves are produced 
in fascicles of two to five, and are linear and sharply serrated 
with spiny teeth along tire margins. The woodcut recalls in 
a measure B. willichiana, but the leaves are narrower. The 
outer sepals are blood-red, w r hile the inner ones are more or 
less of a dusky yellow. It is evidently a taller shrub than 
B. wallichiana, attaining a height of 6 "ft. or 9 ft. It comes 
from high elevations in Mongolia, and should prove hardy. 
Another new Barberrv is B. dictyophylla from Se Tchuen In 
China. '• 
The French botanists evidently think that the genus Vitis, 
which includes the whole order in this country, is rather 
unwieldy, and have broken it up into six genera. The Vir¬ 
ginian Creeper and Veitch’s Ampelopsis are classed under 
* “ Frnticotnm Vilmorinianum." Catalogue of Shrnbs existing in 1904 in the 
col eci ion of M. Maurice Leveoiie de Vilmorin. with the description of new snecief 
and of recent introduction hy Mrurice L. de Vilmorin and T>. Bois. Paris : Libraine 
Agricole de la Mai?on Bustioue, 26, Bue' Jacob ; 0. Doin, Sciences Katurelh 
Medecine, 8, Place de 1 Odeon, Edi f eurs, 1 P 04 , 
