510 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
June  10,  1897. 
are  afforded  for  accomplishing  the  object.  I  have  lately  been  through 
two  very  large  gardening  establishments  in  which  the  work  is  of  tne 
best,  and  not  an  inseet  of  any  kind  was  seen  on  plants,  Vines,  or  trees 
in  the  scores  of  houses  in  which  they  are  grown,  and  I  could  go  into  a 
dozen  gardens  and  find  the  same  gratifying  immunity.  The  most  suc¬ 
cessful  cultivators  do  not  kill  insects  ;  they  prevent  them.  It  is 
pleasurable  to  hear  that  “  Y.  B.  A.  Z.”  is  practising  successfully  on  the 
same  lines,  and  I  hope  he  will  remain  in  his  situation  for  yet  many  years 
to  come. — W. 
Rose  Show  Fixtures  for  1897. 
June  15th  (Tuesday). — Ryde. 
„  16th  (Wednesday) — York.f 
„  18th  (Friday). — Portsmouth  (N.R.S.). 
„  23rd  (Wednesday). — Richmond,  Surrey. 
„  24th  (Thursday). — Colchester. 
„  25th  (Friday). — Maidstone. 
„  26th  (Saturday). — Windsor  and  Dorking. 
„  29th  (Tuesday). — Canterbury,  Hereford,  Sutton,  and  Westminster 
(R.H.S.). 
„  30th  (Wednesday) — Croydon,  Ealing,  Farnham,  and  Reading. 
July  2nd  (Friday). — Crystal  Palace  (N.R  S.). 
„  6th  (Tuesday). — Dis=. 
„  7th  (Wednesday).— Glasgow,  Hanley,*  Hitchin,  Reigate,  Leeds, f 
and  Tunbridge  Wells. 
„  8th  (Thursday). — Bath.  Bedford,  Farningham,  Gloucester,  Harrow, 
Newcastle-on-Tyne,!  and  Woodbridge. 
,,  10th  (Saturday). — Manchester. 
„  13th  (Tuesday). — Wolverhampton.f 
„  15th  (Thursday). — Norwich  (N.R  S.)  and  Helensburgh. 
„  17th  (Saturday). — New  Brighton. 
„  22nd  (Thursday). — Halifax  and  Trentham. 
„  27th  (Tuesday). — Tibshelf. 
„  28th  (Wednesday). — Chester.* 
„  31st  (Saturday). — Liverpool,* 
*  Shows  lasting  two  days.  +  Shows  lasting  three  days. 
The  above  are  the  only  dates  that  have  as  yet  reached  me.  I  shall 
be  glad  to  insert  in  the  next  list  any  further  fixtures  that  may  be  sent 
me,  whether  of  Rose  shows  or  of  horticultural  exhibitions  where  Roses 
form  a  leading  feature. — Edward  Mawley,  Rosebank,  Berkhamsted, 
Hertk. 
The  Waltham  Cross  Roses. 
Messrs.  Wm.  Paul  &  Son  invite  inspection  of  their  great  show  of 
Roses,  which  will  commence  flowering  in  the  middle  of  Jane,  and  which 
promise  to  be  in  fullest  bloom  about  the  middle  of  July,  followed  up  by 
a  succession  of  flowers  to  the  middle  of  October. 
Comments  and  Impressions. — Manures. 
( Continued  from  page  479.) 
The  first  season  after  planting  the  young  Roses  in  the  three  beds 
made  good  growth,  but  the  vigour  was  more  marked  in  the  guano  bed 
than  the  others,  the  stable  manure  coming  next,  and  the  bonemeal 
third  ;  but  some  differences  were  observable ;  for  instance,  La  France 
and  John  Hopper  in  the  guano  bed  were  much  in  advance  of  the  same 
varieties  in  the  stable  manure,  while  the  growth  of  all  the  varieties  was 
very  uniform  where  bonemeal  was  used.  A  few  flowers  were  obtained, 
but  nearly  all  these  were  from  beds  1  and  3,  the  guano  having 
apparently  had  too  stimulating  effect,  for  only  the  two  varieties  above 
named  flowered,  and  they  had  imperfect  blooms.  In  several  cases  it 
was  fancied  that  the  effects  of  the  bonemeal  were  shown  in  more 
substantial  flowers,  but  the  results  were  not  sufficiently  clear  to  enable 
an  exact  judgment  to  be  formed. 
In  the  autumn  the  plants  were  all  cut-in  rather  hard,  and  the  appli¬ 
cations  were  repeated  in  the  same  quantities  and  at  corresponding  dates. 
The  results  in  the  following  season  were  much  more  apparent  than 
before,  both  in  growth  and  flowers.  As  regards  the  former  the  greatest 
vigour  was  shown  by  all  six  varieties  in  the  guano  plot,  those  in  the 
stable  manure  plot  were  next,  and  the  plants  in  the  bonemeal  bed  were 
the  least  vigorous,  but  they  were  strong  enough,  and  again  were  more 
uniform  than  the  others.  The  order  was  reversed  in  the  floriferousness 
of  the  plants  from  the  respective  beds,  for  those  in  No.  3  plot 
(bonemeal)  produced  quite  10  per  cent,  more  flowers  than  either  of  the 
others  ;  the  blooms  were  larger  and  of  more  substance,  and  the  colours 
purer.  La  France  showed  the  greatest  difference  in  these  respects,  and 
Niphetos  the  least.  _ 
There  was  enough  in  these  observations  to  justify  further  research, 
and  I  had  determined  to  try  the  effects  of  both  nitrogen  and  phosphoric 
acid  in  a  simpler  form,  when  a  friend  called  my  attention  to  the  fact 
that  I  was  partly  repeating  experiments  previously  undertaken  by  the 
veteran  rosarian,  Mr.  William  Paul.  Though  possessing  a  tolerable 
library  of  Rose  literature,  I  unfortunately  had  not  a  copy  of  the  “  Rose 
Garden  ;  ”  but  1  subsequently  found  that  Mr.  Paul's  experiments  had 
taken  this  form.  Six  beds  of  Tea-scented  Roses  received  dressings 
respectively  of  bone  dust,  burnt  earth,  nitrate  of  soda,  guano,  pigeon 
dung,  and  thoroughly  decomposed  stable  manure.  To  give  Mr.  W.  Paul's 
own  words,  “  The  guano  produced  the  earliest  effects,  causing  a  vigorous 
growth,  which  continued  till  late  in  the  season;  the  foliage  was  large 
and  of  the  darkest  green,  but  the  flowers  on  the  bad  were  not  abundant. 
The  shoots  did  not  ripen  well,  and  were  consequently  much  injured  by 
frost  during  the  succeeding  winter.  The  bed  manured  with  burnt  earth 
next  forced  itself  into  notice  ;  the  plants  kept  up  a  steadier  rate  of 
growth,  producing  an  abundance  of  clean  well-formed  blossoms,  the 
wood  ripened  well,  and  sustained  little  or  no  injury  from  frost.  The 
results  attendant  on  the  use  of  the  other  manures  were  not  remarkable  ; 
they  had  acted  as  gentle  stimulants,  the  nitrate  of  soda  and  bones  least 
visibly  so,  although  they  were  applied  in  the  quantities  usually  recom¬ 
mended  by  vendors.”  It  is  rather  unfortunate  that  the  exact  quantises 
used  are  not  given,  nor  are  the  dates  of  application.  Perhaps  Mr.  Paul 
could  say  what  they  really  were,  and  also  whether  these  very  interesting 
experiments  were  continued  in  subsequent  years. 
Circumstances  compelled  me  to  relinquish  my  experiments  after  a 
third  season’s  trial,  but  iu  that  year  superphosphate  of  lime  was  sub¬ 
stituted  for  the  bonemeal  and  sulphate  of  ammonia  for  the  guano,  both 
being  given  in  the  same  quantities  as  the  manures  whose  places  they 
supplied.  Perhaps  it  would  have  been  more  satisfactory  if  fresh  beds 
had  been  planted  for  these  experiments,  but  as  that  was  not  convenient 
we  had  to  be  content  with  what  could  be  learned  from  those  already 
planted.  The  growth  followed  practically  the  same  order  as  before,  but 
the  flowers  from  plants  in  No.  3  bed  (superphosphate),  both  in  numbers 
and  substance,  were  much  superior  to  the  others.  Since  then  similar 
experiments  have  been  tried  at  times,  but  not  in  quite  such  a  systematic 
way  as  I  should  wish.  The  general  results  have,  however,  convinced  me 
that  a  small  quantity  of  stable  manure  on  the  heaviest  soils,  with  super¬ 
phosphate  and  a  little  burnt  refuse  or  potash,  gives  far  better  returns, 
well-developed  growth,  and  substantial  blooms  than  an  excessive  use  of 
stable  or  farmyard  manure,  either  in  the  soil  or  as  a  top-dressing  for 
assisting  the  plants  in  the  spring.  Still  I  should  like  to  see  what  others 
have  to  say  on  this  matter.  _ 
The  keen  north-easterly  winds  have  increased  the  mischief  wrought 
by  recent  frosts  amongst  our  Roses,  and  we  are  rather  dismayed  by  the 
appearance  of  the  foliage,  while  we  are  waging  war  with  numerous  leaf 
enemies.  But  every  rosarian  must  be  of  a  hopeful  nature  if  he  desires 
Buccess,  and  so  we  are  looking  forward  to  the  later  realisation  that  June 
or  July  should  bring. — A  Midland  Rosarian. 
New  Roses. 
During  a  recent  visit  to  Waltham  Cross,  which  is  known  as  a  great 
centre  of  English  Rose  cultivation,  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  that 
uniquely  coloured  Tea  Rose  Empress  Alexandra  of  Russia,  which  I  think 
is  likely  to  make  a  good  impression  when  it  is  introduced  by  its  raiser 
into  the  wider  regions  of  general  cultivation.  It  is  in  all  respects  a 
worthy  successor  of  Medea,  one  of  the  finest  of  existing  yellow  Tea 
Roses,  not  inferior  in  any  respect,  save  that  of  climbing  capability,  to 
the  Marechal  Niel,  which  it  (Medea)  equals  in  size  and  form,  and 
transcends  in  perpetuality. 
His  latest  Tea  Rose,  which  Mr.  Paul  told  me  was  associated  with  the 
name  of  the  Empress  by  her  own  permission,  has  been  described  by  the 
Waltham  rosarian  as  a  “  rich  lake-red  shaded  with  oraDge  and  fiery 
crimson,”  but  indeed  its  brilliant  colour  is  arduous  to  depict.  The  plant 
is  manifestly  of  upright  habit  and  vigorous  character,  two  important 
characteristics.  It  has  deservedly  received  an  award  of  merit  from  the 
Royal  Horticultural  Society.  Waltham  Standard  and  Queen  Mab  are 
also  very  beautiful,  the  former  being  a  Hybrid  Perpetual  of  brilliant 
carmine  hue,  somewhat  resembling  A.  K,  Williams,  of  even  stronger 
growth  and  finer  foliage  than  that  far-famed  Rose  ;  while  the  latter  is  a 
China  variety  of  bright  apricot  colour  slightly  suffused  with  orange, 
producing  larger  flowers  than  any  other  Rose  of  its  own  special  class 
with  which  I  am  acquainted.  Admirable  as  it  is  at  Waltham  Cross 
under  glass,  it  is  even  finer  and  deeper  in  colour  when  grown  in  the 
open  air.  Mr.  Paul’s  Enchantress  I  have  already  spoken  of  in  previous 
contributions. 
These,  with  Lawrence  Allen  (Cooling  &  Sons,  Bath,  1896),  Muriel 
Grahame,  Helen  Keller,  Marjorie  and  Mrs.  W.  J.  Grant,  are  probably 
the  finest  of  recent  British  introductions,  for  several  of  which  we  are 
indebted  to  the  great  Newtownards  rosarians. — David  R.  Williamson. 
Influence  of  Ether  on  Plants. — It  is  reported  in  the  daily 
press  that  the  United  States  Consul  at  Copenhagen,  has  made  a  report 
to  the  department  of  state  giving  a  description  of  an  interesting 
discovery  in  the  physiology  of  plants  made  by  Johannsen  of  the  agri¬ 
cultural  high  school  of  Copenhagen.  The  discovery  is  that  plants  are 
susceptible  to  the  influence  of  ether  or  chloroform,  but  in  their  case 
the  effect  is  to  awaken  them  instead  of  putting  them  to  sleep,  as 
would  be  the  result  with  human  beings.  Also  the  plants  are  made  to 
grow  with  great  rapidity  in  or  out  of  season,  a  fact  of  importance  to 
gardeners  and  florists,  providing  the  statement  is  correct. 
