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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
July  12  1900. 
drained,  several  inches  of  rubble  should  be  placed  below  the  2  feet  of 
soil,  so  that  water  may  be  prevented  stagnating  below  the  roots. 
Light  soils  will  be  all  the  better  for  having  material  of  a  stronger 
character  mixed  in  so  as  to  give  a  more  holding  nature  to  the  rooting 
medium,  which  ought  also  to  be  made  firm.  Heavy  retentive  soil 
requires  breaking  up  well,  mixing  with  it  additions  which  will  prove 
ameliorating  to  the  texture  and  tend  to  increase  its  porosity,  also 
admitting  air. 
If  manure  is  added  to  the  soil  it  must  be  of  a  decomposed 
nature,  strong  and  cool  manure  like  cow  excreta  being  intermixed 
with  light  soil,  horse  manure  to  heavy  soil.  Road  scrapings  and  other 
gritty  materials  will  much  improve  adhesive  soils,  though  there  is 
nothing  like  frost  for  improving  all  classes  of  soil.  Light  and  sandy 
stil  is  frequently  deficient  in  mineral  matter.  This  may  be  increased 
by  the  addition  of  wood  ashes,  which  contain  potash.  Heavy  and 
clayey  ground  is  better  supplied  with  mineral  matter  and  does  not 
require  supplementing,  the  breaking  up  and  pulverising  accom¬ 
plished  by  up-to-date  methods  of  cultivation  liberating  sufficient 
supplies  of  this,  as  well  as  other  plant  food.  The  longer  the  soil  can 
be  under  preparation  the  better  when  dealing  with  ground  of  a  more 
or  less  stubborn  nature. 
Stout  upright  poles  about  12  feet  high  should  he  fixed  firmly 
in  the  ground  at  a  distance  of  10  to  12  feet  apart.  They  may 
be  connected  by  chains  hanging  in  a  festoon  fashion  for  training  the 
growth  upon  after  it  has  furnished  the  pillars.  Any  rampant  growing 
Rose  is  suitable  to  plant  and  grow  m  this  form,  including  Gloire  de 
Dijon ;  the  Macartney  Roses,  Marie  Leonidas,  small  foliage,  ever¬ 
green,  double  white  blooms  ;  Simplex  Single  White  with  shining 
foliage.  Another  excellent  Rose  is  Paul’s  Carmine  Pillar,  a  beautiful 
single  Rose  with  medium  foliage,  fiery  crimson  blooms.  It  is  of  recent 
introduction,  and  is  a  good  c  ntrast  to  Turner’s  Crimson  Rambler, 
which  is  also  a  grand  pillar  Rose.  Ruga,  belonging  to  the  Ayrshire 
class,  is  a  splendid  variety  for  pillar  culture.  The  blooms  are  pale  flesh 
in  colour,  and  very  fragrant.  Flora  is  an  evergreen  Rose  of  good  habit 
and  free  blooming,  blush  white.  Aglaia  belongs  to  the  climhing 
Polyantha  section.  It  is  most  suitable,  and  produces  large  bunches 
of  canary  yellow  flowers,  and  is  known  as  the  Yellow  Rambler. 
Euphrosyne,  the  Pink  Rambler,  is  also  suitable  and  the  large  bunches 
of  small  pink  flowers  with  a  white  centre  are  exceedingly  pretty. 
There  is  also  a  White  Rambler  named  Thalia,  bearing  pure  white 
blooms  in  bunches.  Among  the  Hybrid  China  Roses  may  be  found 
some  splendid  varieties  for  this  purpose.  Blairi  No.  2,  bright  blush 
pink;  Juno,  pale  rose,  and  Madame  Riviere  have  flowers  of  extra  size. 
Ful gens,  brilliant  crimson  scarlet,  is  a  superb  variety;  Vivid,  a  rich 
crimson,  makes  a  fine  showy  pillar  Rose,  and  Paul  Verdier  is  a 
vigorous  variety,  and  one  of  the  best.  The  pruning  consists  of  removing 
old  weak  wood. — Rosarian. 
Fxljibiting  Cut  Roses. 
Most  cultivators  of  Rores  are  led  by  degrees  to  a  desire  for  taking 
]>art  in  competitions  at  shows.  It  is  a  natural  wish  to  try  to  produce 
tl  e  blooms  better  than  other  folks,  but  the  chances  are  that  in  the 
erriic-r  attempts  at  exhibiting  one  gets  taken  from  him  a  great  amount 
of  conceit.  The  flower  show  is  a  rare  place  to  restrain  one’s  enthusiasm, 
and  it  is  also  a  capital  place  to  learn.  For  Roses  must  not  only  be 
well  grown  but  they  must  be  properly  staged  to  win  prizes;  and  this 
reciLiires  a  certain  amount  of  experience. 
To  us  the  most  striking  fact  is  that  exhibitors  must  have  young 
blooms  if  they  wish  to  catch  the  judge’s  eye.  A  lesson  was  taught  the 
wiiter  in  respect  of  this  a  few  years  back.  Lingering  somewhat 
me  uinfully  about  my  stand  of  blooms  because  they  had  been  passed 
an  ‘'old  stager”  remarked,  “Ah,  young.fellow,  yours  were  fine  flowers 
3esterday  !  ”  And  it  is  very  noticeable  at  recent  shows  that  the  Roses 
wdiich  win  first  prizes  are  young,  fresh  flowers.  Size  appears  of 
sec.  ndary  importance  to  colour  and  form.  This  is  right,  too,  tor  a  full 
blown  Rose  usually  has  a  dingy  a|  pearance.  To  obtain  such  perfect 
bl  'I  ins,  then,  our  advice  to  b.  giuners  is  to  rely  on  young  specimens. 
The  Rose  generally  is  a  flower  of  a  few  hours,  and  to  retard  its 
opening  is  as  difficult  as  hastening  it. 
In  years  gone  by  wm  took  some  pains  in  shading  the  blooms,  and 
by  all  kinds  of  means  tried  to  husband  our  resources  for  the  eventful 
day.  This  we  now  consider  is  time  wasted.  The  only  protection  we 
would  give  is  tying  the  shoots  apart,  so  that  the  flowers  shall  not  rub 
against  any  obstacle  through'  being  swayed  by  winds,  and  may  be 
cutting  them  the  night  or  afternoon  before  a  show  if  heavy  storms 
appear  imminent. 
Wiien  practicable,  howmver,  leave  the  flowers  on  the  plants  until 
the  la't  possible  moment.  No  Roses  retain  their  freshness  so  well 
as  thos-e  cut  on  the  morning  of  a  show.  Only  experience  can  teach 
as  to  the  right  stage  of  development  individual  blooms  may  be  cut 
so  as  to  be  in  their  prime  at  a  certain  hour.  The  conditions  of  the 
weather,  a  hot  or  cool  morning,  and  the  make  of  each  variety 
determine  this.  For  example,  Roses  with  but  few  petals,  |like 
Captain  Hayward,  open  much  quicker  than  a  variety  like  ^Her 
Majesty. 
Tying  each  bloom  for  the  purpose  of  delaying  development  conse- 
q' ent  upon  the  shaking  during  travelling  is  a  practice  generally 
adopted  during  recent  years.  The  plan  is  to  use  worsted  and  to  tie 
just  the  centre  of  the  bloom.  It  is  undoubtedly  helpful,  or  so  many 
keen  exhibitors  would  not  take  the  trouble.  At  a  show  the  other  day 
we  observed  a  box  of  blooms  of  that  charming  variety  Mrs.  John 
Laing.  When  the  lid  came  off  they  were  in  their  travelling  dress, 
and  looked  small ;  but  in  a  few  seconds,  just  previous  to  the 
cultivator  being  obliged  to  leave  to  make  way  for  the  judges,  off  came 
the  tying  material,  then  a  gentle  blow  into  the  centre  of  each  flower. 
The  petals  fell  back  in  their  order,  and  they  were  perfect,  gaining  the 
coveted  first  award  in  a  strong  class. 
In  selecting  flowers  for  show,  the  first  thing  to  look  for,  after 
freshness,  is  good  centres.  This  part  of  a  flower  is  the  first  to  attract 
the  eye.  A  quartered  Rose  is  not  perfect,  although  the  flat  type  usually 
have  this  trait.  The  petals  should  fold  in  nice  order,  and  when  the 
lower  ones  are  big  they  may  hang  loosely  without  giving  the  blooms 
a  ragged  appearance.  The  flowers  ought  to  be  staged  clear  of  the  board 
on  which  is  placed  fresh  green  moss,  than  which  nothing  is  better, ito 
exhibit  their  characters. — S. 
Current  Notes. 
The  present  is  a  suitable  period  to  layer  shoots  from  Rose  bushes,, 
rather  than  to  wait  until  later,  when  the  layers  must  remain  until 
the  following  spring  before  they  can  be  removed  for  permanent 
planting.  Of  course  it  is  only  shoots  from  low  bushes  that  cau  be 
thus  propagated.  The  ground  must  be  forked  over,  and  a  little  leaf 
soil  added,  or  some  other  equally  light  material.  Old  potting  soil 
containing  sand  is  suitable.  Should  the  weather  be  dry  when  the 
layering  is  about  to  be  carried  out,  the  ground  may  receive 
a  copious  watering  the  day  previous.  The  soil  will  then  he  neither 
too  wet  nor  too  dry.  When  the  wood  is  about  half  ripe  is 
the  best  time  to  carry  out  the  operation,  selecting  a  convenient  shoot 
or  branch. 
In  forming  the  cut  or  tongue  make  an  incision  half  way  through 
the  wood  just  below  a  bud,  and  then  make  a  slanting  cut  upwards 
ending  at  the  bud.  Depress  the  branch  to  the  soil,  securing  it  in 
position  with  a  peg.  Carefully  heap  soil  round  and  over  the  layers,, 
taking  care  to  keep  the  tongue  open  bv  pudiing  some  soil  in  it,  for 
should  it  become  closed  it  is  quite  possible  the  cut  would  heal  over 
again,  whereas  what  is  required  is  that  this  part  should, 
emit  roots.  Maintain  the  soil  moist  until  roots  have  formed.  They 
will  do  BO  more  quickly  at  this  time  than  at  any  other,  and  the 
rooted  portions  may  be  lifted  and  planted  in  autumn.  Any 
which  have  not  rooted  well  should  be  left  over  winter,  planting  in 
spring. 
Roses  may  also  be  established  on  their  own  roots  by  propagating 
from  cuttings;  Hybrid  Perpetuals,  Teas,  Chinas,  and  Bourbons 
succeed  well  on  this  principle.  Firm  and  short-jointed  shoots  are 
the  best.  Shoots  from  which  the  flowers  have  been  cut  are  extremely 
well  adapted  for  forming  cuttings.  If  inserted  now  in  sandy  soil  placed 
over  a  litde  gentle  bottom  heat  m  a  frame  or  under  a  hand-light  on  a 
shady  border,  the  rooting  process  will  soon  be  accomplished,  but  they- 
are  be^t  not  removed  until  autumn. 
The  autumn-flowering  varieties  of  H.P.’s,  and  others  that  produce 
second  growth  and  bloom,  ought  after  the  summer  blooming  is  over 
to  be  cut  back  to  promising  eyes,  which  may  make  free  and  good 
growth  for  an  autumn  display.  The  foliage,  however,  on  the. 
remaining  growth  may  need  e'eansing.  This  can  be  effectually 
done  by  well  welting  every  part  with  a  solution  consisting  of  2  ozs. 
of  softsoap  to  a  gallon  of  water  and  a  pint  of  tobacco  juice, 
thoroughly  well  mixed  together.  With  the  addition  of  a  handful  of 
sulphur,  formed  first  into  a  paste  and  mixed  in,  this  will  destroy 
mildew  on  the  foliage.  Stir  the  surface  of  the  soil  afttr  this  and 
mulch  with  manure,  watering  copiously  with  clear  water  and  liquid 
manure. 
Briers  and  other  stocks  on  wh  ch  Roses  are  budded  are  now 
sufficiently  forward  to  admit  of  budding  being  carried  out.  In  very 
dry  weather  a  prevl  us  watering  is  of  assistance  in  causing  the  sap  to 
run  freely.  Summer  pruning  climbers  may  be  carried  out.  Cut  out 
old  shoots  and  branches  from  such  varieties  as  Gloire  de  Dijon  and. 
Mardchal  Niel,  nailing  or  tying-in  the  new  growths  as  they  are' 
produced. — E.  D.  S. 
