6 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER, 
SEPTEMBER 1, 1905 
Benary, Erfurt; Michael Buchner, Mun- 
chen; C. Kommer, Bremen; Rudolf Sei- 
del, Grungrabchen; August Siebert, 
Frankfurt; W. Swoboda of J. C. Schmidt, 
Berlin; Philipp Siesmayer, Frankfurt ; 
A. Chatenay, secretary of the National 
Horticultural Society of France; K. J. 
Kuyk, Mont St. Amand; H. Martinet, 
Paris; Charles Pynaert, Ghent; A. Truf- 
faut, Versailles; Albert Viger and Philip 
Leveque de Vilmorin, Paris. 
Flower Fashions. 
All kinds of floral arrangements for 
funerals, &c., are now made up with a 
much better groundwork, and the frame- 
work, being covered with moss, keeps the 
flowers wp much better. Maidenhair fern 
is very little used. Ivy leaves, bronze- 
tinted berberis foliage, croton leaves, and 
other substantial foliage make a better 
base and last well. We cannot quite get 
away from the old conventional wreaths, 
yet generally other designs are more in 
favor, and colored flowers are used ex- 
tensively. TI find that for wedding bou- 
quets the Parma violets are much in favor. 
At the fashionable wedding of Marconi the 
bridesmaids’ bouquets consisted chiefly of 
these violets, and I have lately seen several 
other wedding orders, where they have 
been the leading feature. In fact, they 
seem to be taking the place of the carnation 
Miss Joliffe, which was so indispensable a 
few years ago. But this old favorite I 
find has not quite died out. The other 
morning I saw some good blooms in the 
market. ; 
Sweet Pea Notes. 
A OH 
sCKFORD is well to the fore with new 
| . varieties this season and has reason to 
congratulate himself on the success which has 
attended his efforts, seeing that he has in- 
duced the Royal Horticultural Society to brea 
one of its most important rules by granting an 
award of merit to the new crange tinted salmon. 
Henry Eckford, before it has been tested at the 
gardens of the society. The color of this charm- 
ing variety is so distinct and desirable that few 
will be found to cavil at the decision of the 
committee. The individual flowers are large and 
of perfect form, and are often produced three on 
astem. The collection also included Romolo 
Piazani, which will doubtless become the leading 
blue ; Miss Philbrick bears a strong resemblance 
to Flora Norton; Admiral Togo, a washedout’ 
Duke of Clarence; with nothing to recommend 
it; Scarlet G2m, nearly double the usual size, 
snd in several cases carrying three flowers on a 
stem; King Edward VII., with wings so dis- 
tinctly purple as to be unrecognisable and 
serving as a foil to Queen Alexandra, a new 
scarlet of giant form, which is said to have the 
additional merit of not suffering from sunburn. 
We shall see. If the degeneration in King 
Edward VII. is permanent, its use and: popu- 
larity are ended. The noble Earl of Fordhook 
(Howard M. of that ilk) was an interested and 
interesting visitor at the exhibition. 
In connection with a trial of more than 250 
Varieties the following dates are interesting: 
Burpee’s re-selected extra early in full bloom, 
June 12; Mont Blanc, June 20; Sunbeams, 
June 22, The rest nowhere.— Florists’ Ex- 
change. 
Rose Growing. 
By M. H. Walsh, before the Gardeners and 
Florists’ Club of Boston. 
YVCHE subject, rose growing, is one with which 
you are all familiar, being either profes- 
sional gardeners or florists or both. The sub- 
ject will, of course, be old’/and somewhat dry: 
so much has been said and written on it I feel 
there is nothing new I can speak of, and at most 
my remarks this evening can only recall to your 
memory what many of you learned in your ap- 
prenticeship days in other lands. There is no 
secret in the growing of garden roses. The 
fundamental principles of growing roses, as 
taught and practised 45 years ago in England, 
and that is as far as my memory serves me, hold 
good now. While we have to modify them to 
some extent, owing to climatic conditions, the 
salient and most important essentials apply to 
rose growing in the open ground here. 
The question of soils, pruning, and all re- 
lating to roses at that time was discussed in the 
Gardeners’ Chronicle and Shirley Hibberd’s 
Floral World and other horticultural papers. 
This book I peruse with a great deal of pleasure. 
It was then comparatively a new subject. Some 
fresh varieties had been originated since 1845, 
when the old rose La Reine was first discovered, 
and this rose was the first break of the new class 
called hybrid perpetuals or hybrid remontants. 
This class multiplied very rapidly after 1860; 
at that date the varieties numbered only about 
25 or 30; at the present time they run into the 
hundreds. Many of those grown at that time 
are displaced by superior kinds. 
lt is a most encouraging sign to see an in- 
creased interest throughout the country. While 
I cannot expect to tell yon anything but what 
you already know, it may interest you by re- 
calling pleasant recollections relating to roses. 
Hybrid Tea, Hybrid Perpetual and 
Climbing Roses. 
There are several phases and aspects in the 
successful growing of roses. In order to rear 
fine roses each plant must be carefully observed. 
Neglect or failure to carefully attend to the re- 
quirements of this flower manifests itself in the 
appearance of the plants. They speak for them- 
selves, and make evident to the familiar and 
keen observer whether they recaived proper 
treatment for their best growth and develop- 
ment. 
The Important Essentials. 
The important essentials are soil, location, 
quality of stock, pruning, watering, guarding 
against insects, and fungus; hoeing, ete. All 
these contribute to the health and vigor of the 
rose plants; neglect or failure to attend to them 
show to a greater or less degree, as they all com- 
bine to make the perfect rose. 
Soil. ae 
That hardy roses grow in ordinary garden 
soil cannot be questioned, providing drainage, 
location and so forth are right. The quality of 
the flowers wil be just in proportion to the 
culture they receive. Hybrid perpetual roses 
thrive best in a stiff loam. A little clay mixed 
in the soil is beneficial; this retains moisture 
and keeps the soil cool. Good drainage is an 
important factor, as roses do not thrive satisfac- 
torily in cold, stagnant soil; therefore, drainage 
should be provided if the subsoil is not porous 
to leach away surplus water. It is not during 
the growing season, with our {usually hot, dry 
summers, that improper drainage affects the 
health of the plants, but in the early spring 
when growth should take place; plants show 
the effects, having Winter killed badly and 
being loth to start. This is cinsel by cold, damp 
ground. Probably the roots have been encised 
in ice during the list coupls of months. There- 
fore, although this seens a smul matter, it is 
one of the essentials that should not be over- 
looked, as it contributes largely to ths health of 
the plants. Roses do not likecold toes, 
Location. 
Locition is another important essential to 
the proper gr+wth of roses, an exoosure from 
southeast to southwest being the idvil spot. The 
early morning sun is the most beneficial, as the 
plants make more growth from sunrise to 8 a.m. 
in the open than during the renainder of the 
day. A spot sheltered from the stronz winds 
and fully exposed to the sun should be chosen ty 
get the most svtisfactory results, 
Feeding. 
It is needless for me to remark that roses are 
gross feeders, and that means good, rich soil. If 
in good, cultivated soil—by that is meant 
watered when necessary, keeping free from in- 
sects, fnngus and mildew—the foliage is luxuri- 
ant and strong, and a pleasure to look at; if,on 
the other hanl, ths growth is feeble and the 
foliage more yellow than green, it denotes poor 
soil, poor drainage, or buth, or lack of sufficient 
plant food. The kesn o server quickly detects 
this condition, and then takes steps to apply the 
remedy. 
A good rose bloom carries with it good 
foliage ; you cannot easily get one without the 
other; they are inseparable, as the flower is 
only the foliage developed, and this means goo] 
food, frequent syringings and applicitions of 
water. The leaves of the plant are termed 
the lungs, and they absorb a quantity of 
nitrogen from the soil; hence the necessity of 
rich soil, as you cannot get nitrogen if there ig 
none in the soil. You cannot take from the soil 
what it does not contain. It is from the soil the 
plants sustain life and exist. The soil should 
receive careful condideration. 
Cultivate Frequently. 
Stir or hoe the ground frequently when there 
are no weeds: this is beneficial to roses. Take 
and hoe a piece of the rose garden for proof of 
this, and leave a piece alongside not hoed ; next 
morning compare and observe the plants that 
has the heavier dewdrops on the leaves, and con- 
sider the reason for it coming on one lot of 
plants and not on the other. 
Pruning. 
The pruning of hybrid perpetuals should ba 
carefully done, having in mind the character of 
the varieties. The feeble growing roses, such ag 
Gustave Pigneau, Marie Bauman, Marie Finger 
and others of like character should be pruned to 
3 or 4 eyes from the ground; that is to say, for 
the feeble kinds, prune close, and for the more 
vigorous, not so close. This may be termed 
pruning for quality. The method pursued gener- 
ally in this country appears to be based on 
quantity rather than quality, sparing the knife 
and exhausting the plants by over-cropping and 
producing quantity instead of quality. Far 
better 16 or 20 good first-cless blooms than 40 
or more inferior ones. By pursuing this system 
of pruning it promotes and encourages strong 
shoots for next year’s flowers. The number of 
shoots for the plants may be determined by the 
size and vigor of the plants; this applies to the 
hybrid perpetuals or remontants. Close or severe 
pruning, as it may be termed, practically pro- 
duces strong, young vigorous wood, even on 
yery old plants, and they may be cultivated for 
many years, providing the plants are taken up 
and the roots pruned once in six or seven years. 
The following list contains the names of 24 
of the best varieties— 
Alfred Volomb, Baroness Rothschild 
Abel Carriere, Chas. Lefebvre 
