498 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
December  29,  1898. 
signs  of  over-luxuriance,  and  the  rings  thus  made  subsequently  healed 
over,  so  that  only  faint  marks  of  the  operation  were  visible. 
After  coining  the  word  at  the  head  of  these  notes,  and  recording  the 
facts  narrated,  we  leave  the  subject  for  timid  readers  to  shudder  at,  and 
the  bolder  to  experimentalise  if  they  so  desire,  and  risk  the  consequences.] 
IN  THE  ROSE  GARDEN— PROTECTION. 
As  I  write,  though  the  weather  is  abnormally  mild,  a  change  may 
come,  and  the  thought  occurred  to  me  to  pen  a  few  notes  on  the  pro¬ 
tection  of  Roses.  First  of  all  we  must  decide  which  varieties  are  the 
more  tender.  Almost  all  of  the  various  classes  contain  some  that  are 
as  hardy  as  the  majority  of  our  flowering  shrubs,  and  some  that  are 
decidedly  tender.  There  are  very  few  growers  who  do  not  take  care 
to  plant  the  latter  in  warm  and  sheltered  positions,  in  which  case  very 
little  protection  is  needed.  This,  again,  is  lessened  by  care  m  having 
well  drained  soil,  and  varies  according  to  the  part  of  country  in 
which  they  are  grown.  Far  too  often  a  writer  forgets  to  give  the 
least  hint  as  to  his  locality,  so  that  his  experiences  with  certain 
Roses  are  of  little  real  value.  This  accounts  for  the  many  con¬ 
tradictory  opinions  in  Rose  culture,  more  especially  as  regards 
protection,  and  the  hardiness  of  Roses. 
Here,  in  mid-Sussex,  we  have  several  Roses  in  bloom  in  the  open, 
and  being  upon  high  ground  scarcely  ever  protect.  Still  there  area  few 
varieties  that  need  some  little  break  against  weather  of  exceptional 
severity.  As  a  matter  of  fact  I  am  closely  acquainted  with  a  large 
amateur  grower  near  here  who  wraps  his  plants  up  in  straw  and 
bracken,  quite  as  completely  as  we  see  when  a  few  occupiers  of  the 
subtropical  garden  are  left  outside.  But  his  soil  is  heavy,  very 
retentive  of  moisture,  and  near  a  large  body  of  fresh  water.  Although 
so  close  together  the  Roses  need  quite  different  treatment  as  regards 
protection.  My  friend  often  expresses  wonder  at  our  Roses  being  left 
so  exposed,  while  I  am  of  opinion  that  his  are  decidedly  over-protected. 
Still,  year  after  year  our  plants  and  flowers  come  into  bloom  as  nearly 
as  possible  at  the  same  time,  and  I  can  safely  say  that  the  average 
losses  are  equal,  no  matter  what  the  season  may  be. 
We  are  told  that  our  champion  Tea  Rose  grower  from  Oxford 
protects  heavily,  and  I  helieve  that  the  Rev.  A.  Foster-Melliar,  whose 
grand  Teas  are  so  well  known,  also  protects  to  a  far  greater  degree 
than  most,  and  makes  a  special  point  of  protection  in  his  “  Book 
of  the  Rose.”  In  contrast  to  this  we  have  our  own  beds  of  Teas  and 
Noisettes  in  the  south,  and  those  of  Messrs.  J.  Cocker  &  Son,  Aber¬ 
deen,  quite  unprotected.  I  have  mentioned  these  few  instances  as 
illustrating  my  contention  that  it  is  locality  and  position  quite  as 
much  as  the  variety  of  Roses  that  needs  consideration  before  deciding 
whether,  or  how  much,  the  plants  should  be  protected. 
There  can  be  no  harm  in  having  some  suitable  protective  material 
ready  to  hand,  so  that  in  case  ot  extra  frost  no  time  is  lost  before 
protecting.  So  long  as  the  atmosphere  is  fairly  quiet,  from'  5°  to  10° 
of  frost  do  no  harm  to  the  majority  of  varieties,  but  when  such  a 
temperature  is  accompanied  by  keen,  frost-laden  winds,  I  would  protect 
in  most  cases.  What  is  the  best  material  is  a  question  frequently  asked. 
To  my  mind,  all  dwarf  plants  can  be  sufficiently  protected  by  branches 
of  Fir,  Gorse,  Beech,  or  Laurel,  sticking  these  firmly  into  the  ground 
upon  the  windy  side.  They  are  easily  and  expeditiously  placed,  and 
can  be  removed  in  a  short  time.  Upon  some  occasions  the  ground  may 
be  too  hard  at  the  surface,  but  an  iron  spike — and  I  would  have  one  in 
every  garden,  seeing  how  often  they  come  into  use— will  make  a  small 
hole  without  any  difficulty,  and  when  the  ground  is  hard  we  do  not 
need  more  than  this  to  secure  the  branches  or  protecting  twigs. — 
A.  Piper,  Uckfield. 
(To  be  continued.! 
A  BUDGET  OF  ROSES. 
We  have  received  from  the  world-famed  rosarian,  Mr.  William 
Paul,  F.L.S.,  V.M.H.,  an  appropriate  Christmas  present  in  the  form 
of  a  volume,  which  is  composed  of  the  catalogues  which  have  been 
issued  by  the  W  altham  Cross  firm  during  the  twelve  years — 1884— 
1896  inclusive.  It  is  a  veritable  budget  of  Roses.  The  senior  member 
of  the  celebrated  Paul  family  is  somewhat  of  a  bibliophile,  as  his  fine 
library  demonstrates,  and,  like  others  of  similar  tastes,  he  does  not 
esteem  books  altogether  because  of  their  costliness.  He  has  therefore 
bound  his  series  of  catalogues,  with  all  the  information  Aiey  contain, 
which  is  great  and  varied;  the  plates  and  illustrations,  which  are 
attractive  and  useful ;  with  voluminous  lists  of  Roses  of  all  kinds  and 
for  all  purposes,  and  which  may  be  taken  as  fairly  representative  of  the 
Roses  of  the  period.  Naturally  the  varieties  raised  or  introduced  by 
the  firm  are  included  and  described  under  their  respective  years, 
during  which  they  were  placed  before  the  public— a  very  fine  and  varied 
list  of  some  fifty  varieties.  The  value  of  the  older  forms,  both  for 
exhibition  and  garden  decoration,  has  been  tested  by  time.  Good 
when  new,  they  are  good  still,  and  their  course  is  not  yet  run  ;  while 
it  may  be  safe  to  say  of  most,  if  not  all  of  the  newer  varieties,  that 
they  nave,  of  their  types  and  for  their  purpose,  a  long  career  before 
them.  It  was  a  happy  idea  to  produce  this  budget — even  if  only 
composed  of  catalogues.  “  Only  !”  Let  it  be  said  of  the  catalogues 
of  this  and  other  great  firms  in  the  important  and  commanding 
industiy  of  horticulture,  that  they  embody  a  great  amount  of  informa¬ 
tion,  and  possess  historic  value.  The  late  Dr.  Hogg  used  to  bind 
many,  but  they  grew  too  large  for  him  in  later  years ;  and  many  a 
question  has  been  answered  and  date  ascertained  relative  to  the 
introduction  of  plants,  flowers,  and  vegetables  of  the  past  from  the 
bulky  tomes.  Nothing  could  so  fully  represent  the  advance  in  com¬ 
mercial  horticulture  during  the  past  fifty  years  as  an  aggregation  of 
tiade  literature.  The  pile  would  be  monumental. 
NOTES  ON  ALPINE  FLOWERS. 
( Continued  from  page  357.) 
Gentiana  septemfida  cordifolia. 
This  variety  of  Gentiana  septemfida  is  one  of  the  best  of  the  Gentians, 
which  are  worthily  classed  among  the  elite  of  our  alpine  flowers.  Dwarf 
in  habit,  free  flowering,  and  beautiful  in  its  colouring,  this  Gentian 
deserves  the  highest  meed  of  praise.  Combined  with  these  qualities  is 
that  of  easy  culture,  as  it  can  be  grown  in  the  flower  border  as  well  as 
on  the  specially  constructed  rock  garden.  It  forms  a  low-growing  plant 
about  6  inches  high,  bearing  a  number  of  large  flowers  resembling 
somewhat  those  of  G.  acaulis,  but  with  the  blooms  in  clustered  heads, 
smaller  in  size,  of  a  different  shade  of  blue.  It  comes  from  Asia  Minor, 
and  has  been  figured  in  the  “  Botanical  Magaz’ne,”  6497. 
G.  s.  cordifolia  prefers  a  peaty  soil  not  too  dry  in  summer,  and  will 
flower  as  well  in  partial  shade  as  in  full  sun.  It  may  be  increased  by 
division  in  autumn  or  spring,  but  is  easily  raised  from  seeds,  which  ripen 
well.  The  seeds  are  sometimes  long  in  germinating,  so  that  the  pots  or 
pans  in  which  they  are  sown  ought  not  to  be  emptied  if  the  young  plants 
fail  to  make  their  appearance  the  first  season.  This  Gentian  is  sometimes 
met  with  under  the  name  of  G.  gelida, 
Mentha  Requieni. 
Of  the  dwarfest  habit,  this  alpine  plant  is  one  of  the  best  carpeters 
we  have  for  delicate  bulbs,  or  those  of  such  dwarf  growth  that  they  are 
unable  to  raise  their  flowers  above  many  plants  ordinarily  used  for 
covering  the  soil.  This  Mint  just  covers  the  ground,  and  can  hardly  be 
said  to  rise  above  it,  so  close  is  its  growth.  It  carpets  the  soil  with  small 
deep  green  leaves,  and,  when  in  flower,  with  a  shimmer  of  rosy  purple 
produced  by  its  tiny  blooms.  One  finds,  however,  that  Mentha  Requieni 
— or  Thymus  corsicus,  as  it  is  occasionally  called — is  most  prized  by  the 
many  because  of  its  distinct  odour  of  peppermint.  Touched  with  the 
hand  the  latter  is  scented  strongly  of  mint,  and  if  ladies’  garments  brush 
against  it  the  same  odour  is  diffused.  It  is  a  matter  of  wonder 
that  this  property  should  be  present  in  so  marked  a  degree  in  a  plant  so 
insignificant  in  appearance. 
Hequien’s  Pennyroyal  has  a  fault  which  is,  however,  so  modified  by 
its  free-seeding  and  self-sowing  qualities  as  to  be  scarcely  a  defect ;  this 
is  that  it  is  rather  too  tender  in  some  localities  to  stand  all  winters.  In 
the  writer’s  garden  old  plants  die  in  wet  cold  winters,  but  there  is 
never  any  scarcity  the  following  summer.  The  best  way  to  begin  with 
this  Pennyroyal  is  to  obtain  a  small  patch  in  April  or  May  and  plant  it 
on  a  rather  dry  rockery  with  a  sunny  position  and  leave  it  to  sow  itself. 
Seeds  are,  I  believe,  obtainable  from  a  few  seedsmen  who  make  a  speciality 
of  perennial  plants.  M.  Requieni  is  a  native  of  Corsica. 
Euphorbia  myrsinites. 
The  Spurges  are  not  popular  plants  among  Alpine  growers.  It  is 
rather  unfortunate  that  this  is  the  case,  as  the  genus  comprises  several 
plants  of  more  than  mediocre  value  for  rock  gardens.  The  Glaucous 
Spurge,  as  Euphorbia  myrsinites  is  termed,  is  by  reason  of  its  distinct 
appearance  entitled  to  be  more  frequently  introduced  into  collections.  In 
the  writer’s  collection  it  is  frequently  remarked  upon  as  a  “  curious  look¬ 
ing  plant.”  It  is  singular  looking  to  the  uninitiated,  but  those  who 
have  studied  the  genus  or  the  genus  Sedum  show  little  surprise.  It 
is  a  capital  plant  for  growing  over  the  ledge  of  a  rockery,  where  its 
trailing  stems  about  2  feet  in  length  show  to  advantage.  The  leaves  are 
handsome,  almost  sea  green  in  colour,  and  quite  fleshy.  The  flowers  are 
of  little  consequence,  and  the  plant’s  chief  value  consists  in  its  distinct 
look  and  the  handsome  and  pleasing  leaves  on  the  long  stems. 
The  Glaucous  Spurge  may  be  propagated  by  seed  or  by  cuttings,  and 
is  quite  easily  grown  in  the  rock  garden  or  border  in  almost  any  soil. 
With  the  writer  it  is  rather  a  favourite,  not  only  because  of  itself,  but  also 
because  this  plant,  grown  from  a  cutting,  is  a  souvenir  ot  a  visit  to  one  of 
the  best  collections  of  hardy  flowers  in  the  United  Kingdom,  presided  over 
by  an  owner  whose  knowledge  of  his  flowers  is  unique. — Alpinus. 
(To  be  continued.) 
