. REPLACEMENTS 
Hennessey plants will outperform roses from any source if they are handled according 
to the clear and simple rules I lay down, and as far as I am concerned, they can be 
handled properly. If they are not I shall no longer be responsible. 
The performance of Hennessey plants is no accident. They perform because I put an 
enormous amount of time and skill into producing them. After I have done my part 
one hundred fifty per cent, it is then up to the buyer to do his. 
Hennessey rose plants will survive treatment that other rose plants are absolutely 
unable to come through, and because of their great vitality and fine roots, they will live 
in difficult climates and perform where rose growing has been given up with ordinary 
plants. But a rose plant is a living organism and even my plants can be greatly weakened 
or killed by determined people. 
People do awe-inspiring things to rose plants and then blandly expect them to flourish. 
Some of the commoner things are leaving them in the package for weeks, or even months 
before planting; enthusiastically whacking off all the roots and leaving the tops 
exposed to hot drying sun, failing ever to water them after planting, etc., etc. 
There are also people who plant them with moderate accuracy, whereat the plant starts 
to grow vigorously. Then every rose that appears is cut with every possible inch of stem, 
so the plant has left virtually no leaves to function on. HOWEVER, I will replace all 
plants of which complaint is made within five days of arrival, if the plant or plants are 
shipped back to me. 
Because I am only able to be in one place at a time, I shall have to ask local people to 
order from the catalog, for it is impossible for me to get out the large amount of orders, 
and give advice and help with selection of varieties. I wrote the book, ‘‘Hennessey on 
Roses,” and if it is too much trouble to go to one of the local libraries, or buy the book, 
it is just too bad, for from now on I shall consider rese plants one commodity and advice 
another. The plants are for sale, and so is the book. 
Reasonable people certainly will not object to me placing a value on my time, and as 
to the other kind, well, I repeat, “It’s just too bad.” 
ABOUT FERTILIZER 
There has recently been circulated by an Oregon Professor that fertilizer should be 
put under rose plants at planting time—this man evidently does not have sufficient 
power of assimilation or he would realize that in all but sandy. soil, when we in Oregon 
have continued rains, there is formed a water seal over the fertilizer excluding free cir- 
culation of air to the organic matter placed under the plant, this does not stop further 
decomposition of the organic matter but the compounds that are formed are plain poison 
to the roots of roses. The best way is to prove this to yourself by accentuating the 
process by burying some of this material under a readily accessible place and instead of 
waiting for heavy rain to slowly do the job of sealing the top, simply hasten the process 
by packing it by walking in when wet then in the early spring dig it up and you will 
find the soil has turned blue from the continued decomposition and stinks from marsh 
gas, and the material used may be so-called well rotted cow manure, too. 
Sure, the rose will live after this treatment as the rose by nature is indomitable but 
it would do much better under most conditions if it were not done this way. Though 
the man’s egotism who does it this way will not permit him to admit that possibly he 
could be wrong. But you are planting my plants and I insist that they at least get a 
break by using my methods. 
I repeat, my planting instructions must be followed without deviation or I will not 
be responsible as under some soil and weather conditions you may poison your plants. 
The reason I never say in any of my writings what fertilizer to use, is because I do not 
recommend fertilizing a rose till it starts to grow the first year and then almost any fer- 
tilizer will give results. Each grower has a pet brand yet the rose grows for all. 
