34 
Otto  of  Rose  Industry. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Jan.,  1887. 
There  are  two  principal  rose-growing  districts  in  Bulgaria,  the 
one  extending  from  Yeni-Sagra  to  Carlowa  on  the  southerly  slopes 
of  the  Balkans,  and  the  other  situated  near  Chirpan,  south  of  the 
Karadsha-Dagh.  The  most  widely-different  estimates  prevail  re- 
garding the  total  area  under  cultivation,  and  no  reliable  figures  are 
obtainable.  There  is  much  variation  in  the  soil  of  the  rose-districts, 
the  prevailing  formation  being  a  light  loam,  rich  in  lime  (1*26  per 
cent.)  but  almost  devoid  of  phosphoric  acid,  of  which  only  traces 
were  found  in  a  sample  sent  to  Germany  for  analysis. 
The  proportion  of  nitrogen  is  moderate,  being  0*14  per  cent.,  but 
the  soil  is  remarkable  for  its  richness  in  potassium,  of  which  0*64 
per  cent,  was  present  in  the  specimen  analyzed.  It  is  not  known 
whether  the  presence  of  potassium  exercises  a  special  influence  on 
the  growth  of  the  flowers;  if  so,  the  application  of  potash-manure 
would  be  advisable.  In  Bulgaria  the  rose-fields  are  sheltered  from 
the  north  wind  by  the  mountain  ranges  against  which  they  are 
situated,  but  it  is  thought  that  it  would  be  rather  an  advantage 
than  otherwise  if  they  were  from  time  to  time  exposed  to  a  cool 
wind,  the  plants  being  singularly  hardy  and  able  to  withstand 
without  injury  a  temperature  of  -4C  Fahr.  On  the  other 
hand,  scarcely  a  season  passes  in  which  the  plants  do  not  suffer  from 
excessive  heat,  the  high  temperature  prevailing  during  certain 
months  being,  in  fact,  the  greatest  enemy  of  the  shrubs  during  the 
flowering  and  gathering  time. 
The  variety  which  is  used  for  distilling  purposes  in  Bulgaria  is 
the  so-called  Thracian  rose,  a  plant  of  exceedingly  rapid  growth, 
flowering  sparingly  in  the  first  year,  and  yielding  a  full  crop  on  the 
third,  when  it  attains  maturity.  It  is  said  that,  under  certain  con- 
ditions, the  plants  attain  an  age  of  fifty  years.  The  plant  bears 
red  or  white  flowers,  the  former  being  about  five  times  as  numer- 
ous as  the  latter.  Both  varieties  of  flowers  are  of  a  very  powerful 
and  agreeable  odor,  but  the  oil  distilled  from  the  white  flowers  is 
the  finest,  although  the  red  roses  are  richer  in  essential  oil.  The 
Thracian  rose  exceeds  all  other  varieties  in  flowering  property, 
weak  specimens  bearing  as  many  as  500  flowers,  while  fine  plants, 
if  properly  cultivated,  are  able  to  produce  nearly  double  that  num- 
ber. The  roses  are  small  and  light,  about  220  fresh  flowers  going 
to  the  lb.,  or  about  twice  the  number  of  ordinary  centifolia  flowers 
which  are  required  to  make  up  that  weight. 
