776 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
December 19, 19 . 
Plaptipg ^oses. 
A good beginning is sometimes every¬ 
thing, as many of us know, and in no¬ 
thing more so than in Rose culture; so 
having secured some good trees and paid 
a good price for them, make sure that 
the planting is done properly so that 
good Roses may be the reward next 
season. 
In planting there are several things to 
be considered. Firstly, if you have a 
fair sized garden and grow flowers and 
fruit generally, it is advisable to plant 
Roses on the sunny side of the garden, 
and it is the side that gets the morning 
sun which is essential. Secondly, if you 
have the space to spare, it is best to plant 
Roses in a bed by themselves; there is 
no doubt that Roses do better ■when 
treated so than if grown with other flowers 
which rob the ground of its goodness-, 
keep the sun and light away from the 
roots of the Roses and prevent them giv¬ 
ing of their best. 
When exhibiting, a separate bed for 
Roses is essential, as one wants to ger 
amongst them with the hoe, and also to 
give them the necessary stimulant for 
exhibition blooms. If you are only 
planting Roses for garden purposes, en¬ 
deavour to plant the same with an eye 
to equality and artistic effect, that is to 
say, have some standard trees amongst the 
dwarfs, and in planting dwarfs see that 
the different varieties you plant together 
are of a similar habit of growth, planting 
those of a very dwarf habit in the front 
of the bed and those of a stronger growth 
at the back or centre. This makes all 
the difference in the summer when the 
Roses are in full growth and bloom. For 
instance, Margaret Dickson and Baroness 
Rothschild are well together, but the 
first named with Mrs. W. J. Grant is out 
of harmony. Dwarf growers such as 
Mrs. W. J. Grant, Papa Lambert or 
Comtesse de Nadaillac are best placed 
in the front, whilst those such as Frau 
Karl Druschki, Margaret Dickson or 
Baroness Rothschild show to better effect 
in the rear of the bed. 
But above all see that the Roses are 
planted properly, give them plenty of 
room for root development, dig a good 
square hole for their reception, prune 
slightly all strong roots, cut off all dam¬ 
aged ones, saving the small fibrous roots, 
and having done this proceed to plant, 
laying out each root to its full length, 
making room for each. Place the soil 
well between the roots—some good turfy 
loam if possible—then cover with a small 
layer of ordinary soil, treading gently 
dowm, after which put more soil and tread 
firmly, and so on till the operation is 
finished. 
Dwarf Roses should be planted deep 
enough to cover the junction of budding, 
and standards about the depth they were 
planted before. Climbing Roses plant so 
that the roots point away from the wall 
or arch in a kind of fan shape. Pay 
attention to the planting for it is half 
the battle in growing Roses successfully, 
for many a man owes his poor crop of 
Roses to the improper planting that his 
trees received. 
B. B. 
An old English garden is to be formed 
in Battersea Park. 
Nitrate of Lime. 
The atmosphere in which we live con¬ 
sists of a mixture of four-fifths nitrogen 
and about one-fifth oxygen. Knowing 
the value of nitrogen for manurial pur¬ 
poses scientific men have been for many 
years discussing the possibility of com¬ 
bining the free nitrogen of the atmos¬ 
phere so as to make it available as a 
plant food. This is now being done at 
Notodden in Norway where there is a 
factory at work combining the nitrogen of 
the atmosphere by passing the air 
through an electric furnace to form nitro¬ 
genous fumes. The latter are absorbed 
by water and then combined with lime. 
A waterfall giving energy equal to 
250,000 horse power has been harnessed 
for supplying the electricity for heating 
the furnace and doing other necessary 
work. The nitrate of lime is now being 
put on the market as a manure. The 
agent for the company in this country is- 
Mr. J. J. Beer, 15, Cullum Street, Lon¬ 
don, E.C. 
- Q. W. -- 
Prize Competitions. 
GENERAL CONDITIONS: —Competitors must 
write on one Bitte of the paper only. Regular 
paid contributors to THE GARDENING 
WORLD or other gardening journals are de¬ 
barred from entering, but occasional con¬ 
tributors may compete. The name and ad- 
dresB of the competitor must appear on each 
article sent for competition. The Editor’s 
decision is final, and he reserves the right 
to reproduce, in any wayjl any article or photo¬ 
graph sent for competition. The conditions 
applying to each competition should be oare- 
fully read. 
WEEKLY 
PRIZES. 
A PRIZE OF TEN SHILLINGS wiU be given 
for the best paragraph or short article on any 
gardening subject, such as hints of practical 
interest to gardeners, notes on the propaga¬ 
tion or cultivation of flowers, fruits or vege¬ 
tables, eradication of pests, etc. The para¬ 
graph or article must not exceed a column, but 
value rather than length wiU be considered in 
making the award. Mark envelopes “ Com¬ 
petition,” and post not later than the Monday 
following date of iss'ie. Entries received later 
than Tuesday (first post) will be left over until 
the foUowing week. 
Two prizes of 2s. 6d. will be awarded each 
week for the two best letters, not exceeding 
160 words, on any interesting gardening sub¬ 
ject. 
RESULTS OP 
LAST WEEK’S 
COMPETITIONS. 
Some of the best papers in this competition 
are too long, and we desire readers to keep 
within a column. 
A prize in the Readers’ Oompetition was 
awarded to “ Sentinel,” for the article on 
“ Hardy Cyclamen,” page 762. 
In the Prize Letter Oompetition a prize 
was awarded to “ A. Gamble,” for the article 
on “ Treatment for Failing Roses ”; and 
another to “ FT. Stevens” for the article on 
“The Culture of Heaths,” page 774. 
Scab on Potato 
One sees much in newspapers and ,g 
zines about scab on Potatos, and in x. 
districts it is said to amount to a p u. 
It has not as yet appeared in our ig 
bourhood, but how long may we rj, 
immunity when only last week aoc 
storekeeper received by rail a co ig 
ment of five tons of Potatos, every ib 
of which -was touched with scab ? 
The not very skilful salesmen d 
few stones to some equally ig:ra 
housewives, but these latter" kne t] 
moment they put a knife into tl P- 
tatos that they were diseased, ai r 
turned them to the shop, with the su 
that the whole consignment was sen >ac 
to the grower as unfit for food. Bi wt 
should such a thing happen ? Why Ju ! 
such risk of spreading contaminat ri 
permitted, when much money ha: iee 
spent, and the Agricultural Depa iei 
of the University of Leeds has ma e: 
penments and proved to their ownati 
faction that the cure for scab is ip] 
and easy—merely a combination ct at 
dust and salt scattered over the ircte 
land P 
Why should scientific men ke r 
themselves knowledge they have ac ire 
at public expense? The recipe )ui 
have been printed and scattered aac 
cast, and so saved from serious lo th 
cultivators who really, by taxation iavi 
already paid for the scientific inv :iga 
tion. 
It has been noticed that scab is o nes 
found on dry sandy soil, rarely on ire 
or peaty soil, so an experiment wastadi 
on a farm where the disease was era 
lent, to increase the moisture-retninj 
properties of the land. Dressings (saw 
dust, 1 shoddy, peat moss, and rapt neai 
were applied in different plots, ;i ii 
one case the sawdust was mixecwitl 
salt. The sole material that ha an] 
effect in checking the scab was sa lust 
but only in the plot where both sa am 
sawdust had been applied were tl Po 
tatos anything like free from the d 'ase 
Investigations prove that though tl sea 
Potato is so to be dreaded that ever; era 
of it should be burnt, it is not tl pro 
ducer of the plague, though it caiian 
it, and should scab-touched tube j 
used for seed the next year’s ere 
certainly be infected. Scab is a ngu 
in the ground, and so rapid o 
ravages that it doubles its pollute ai^ 
every year, and no matter what hdp 
Potato you put into the disease h* 
scab-covered tubers will be produd til 
the ground is purified. 
If salt and sawdust will do th? ii 
worth while trying. They are ccnrc 
cheap things, within the reach ohc( 
body. 
G. i P- 
Slitrig, Blouse, 
Hawick, Scotland. 
■—- 
Royal Horticultural Society. 
The next exhibition of flowerspHj 
and vegetables of the above soci(J w 
be held at Vincent Square, WestrJistjj 
on Tuesday, December 22nd. Th e W 
be no lecture on this occasion. 
