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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  30,  1901. 
National  Rose  Society. 
One  of  the  most  interesting  points  in  the  relation  of  the  forthcoming 
Rose  season  is,  how  will  the  National  Rose  Society  fare  ?  Its  first 
exhibition  will  take  place  at  Richmond,  on  Wednesday  the  26th  of 
June,  in  connection  with  the  Richmond  Horticultural  Society.  Thi8 
Society  has  for  many  years  enjoyed  a  season  of  prosperity,  and  last 
year  invited  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  to  hold  a  show  there,  and 
this  year  it  invited  the  National.  It  is  a  charming  situation,  and 
being  so  close  to  the  metropolis,  ought  to  attract  a  good  attendance  of 
both  exhibitors  and  visitors. 
The  Northern  will  be  held  in  the  far  distant  town  of  Ulverston, 
so  that  the  provincial  exhibitions  will  be  as  far  north  and  as  far  south 
as  they  can  well  be  ;  but  the  main  interest  will  be  concentrated  on  the 
metropolitan  show,  where,  as  we  know,  a  real  revolution  has  taken 
place.  The  change  to  the  gardens  of  the  Inner  Temple  has  been 
enthusiastically  welcomed  by  exhibitors  of  all  degrees;  they  have  no 
longer  to  look  forward  to  the  terrible  journey  to  the  Crystal  Palace, 
for,  at  whichever  station  you  arrived  at,  thbre  was  a  tiresome  and 
uphill  journey  to  be  made ;  there  wfll  be  no  occasion  to  calculate  the 
time  necessary  to  make  the  second  journey  from  London  to  Sydenham, 
all  will  be  on  the  level,  and  bo  plain  sailing. 
There  is  one  pitfall  to  be  avoided,  and  that  is  the  underground 
railway  ;  let  exhibitors  beware  how  they  trust  themselves  to  it  and 
its  gloomy  recesses.  Some  of  those  who  live  near  London  will 
probaely  drive  direct  from  their  own  homes  to  the  Temple  Gardens, 
nut  where  they  come  by  rail  their  better  plan  will  be  to  drive  from 
the  station  at  which  they  arrive  to  the  place  of  exhibition.  The 
Society  has  issued  a  better  schedule  than  it  has  ever  before  done,  and 
the  decorative  aspect  of  the  exhibition  has  been  amply  provided  for. 
Vases,  bowls  and  stands  have  been  arranged  for,  while  an  opportunity 
will  be  given  for  showing  what  can  be  done  in  the  way  of  table 
decorations.  Special  prizes  will  form  a  distinct  feature  ;  there  will  not 
merely  be  the  trophies,  but  also  Miss  Willmot’s  prize  for  garden  Roses, 
the  Ben  Cant  Memorial  prizes,  and  various  minor  ones  offered  by 
warm  supporters  of  the  Society.  Of  course  one  feature  in  the 
Metropolitan  Exhibition  is  always  regarded  with  keen  interest — viz., 
the  pioduction  of  new  varieties.  There  are  not  very  many  already 
announced,  for  although  the  foreign  Roses  are  as  usual  plentiful 
enough,  we  have  learned  to  discount  their  grand  descriptions,  and  to 
regard  them  at  their  proper  value,  which  I  need  hardly  say  is  not  that 
which  their  raisers  accord  to  them  ;  still,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  we 
may  find  in  them  something  worth  cultivating,  especially  in  the  Tea 
and  decorative  sections.  We  have  had  many  beautiful  flowers  in  that 
section,  and  perhaps  Nabonnand  may  have  something  good  in  store 
for  us. 
Messrs.  Paul  &  Son  have  exhibited  lately  some  grand  specimetos  of 
a  new  Hybrid  Tea  Rose  Lady  Battersea.  It  is  a  brilliant  carmine 
red  of  large  size  and  of  good  build,  and  likely  to  be  a  good  exhibition 
Rose.  Messrs.  W.  Paul  &  Son  have  three  promising  Teas,  and  Messrs. 
Alexander  Dickson  &  Sons  some  good  Roses  from  their  Newtownards 
nursery,  and  from  what  I  have  heard  from  other  quarters  there  are 
some  which  are  likely,  although  not  yet  announced,  to  attract  the 
attention  of  Rose  growers.  The  Tea  Rose  Mrs.  B.  R.  Cant  is  likely 
to  be  shown  from  Colchester.  With  these  prospects  before  us  we 
may  well  look  hopefully  forward  to  the  forthcoming  Rose  season. 
There  may  be  indeed  “  many  a  slip  between  the  cup  and  the  lip,”  but 
we  may  hope  in  the  case  of  the  National  this  proverb  may  not  apply. 
One  very  happy  circumstance  in  connection  with  the  exhibition  is 
that  it  will  be  so  materially  assisted  by  the  staff  of  the  Royal 
Horticultural  Society.  Mr.  Wright,  Chiswick  Superintendent,  who  is 
so  thoroughly  up  to  the  ins  and  outs  of  the  Inner  Temple,  has  been 
promised  by  the  Council  and  Secretary  to  assist  in  carrying  out 
all  connected  with  the  show,  so  that  we  may  well  hope  all  may  go 
“  merrily  as  a  marriage  bell,”  and  the  Benchers  of  the  Inner  Temple 
may  rejoice  in  their  generous  help  by  opening  their  gardens  to  the 
Society,  and  may  themselves  enjoy  the  pleasure  they  have  afforded 
so  many  thousands. — D.,  Deal. 
Rose  Liberty. 
This  lovely  Rose  should  be  noted  by  those  who  cultivate  the 
grower  for  profit,  as  it  possesses  merits  esteemed  by  the  market 
flower.  The  colour  is  a  nice  clear  shade  of  crimson.  It  is  not  a  big 
exhibition  bloom,  but  quite  large  enough  for  purposes  of  sale.ltln 
the  bud  and  half-open  state  it  is  the  perfection  of  form,  and  full  of 
quality  in  the  petals.  The  plant  is  free  and  branching  in  growth, 
and  certain  in  its  habit  of  flowering.  This  Rose — a  Hybrid  Tea — 
will  undoubtedly  be  largely  grown  in  the  future,  and  it  is  not  the 
least  valuable  one  that  has  come  from  the  eminent  raisers,  A.  Dickson 
and  Sons,  so  famous  as  the  producers  of  such  charming  Roses  as  Mrs. 
W.  J.  Grant,  Bessie  Brown,  the  Marchionesses  of  Downshire,  Dufferin,. 
and  Londonderry,  and  others. 
Tea  Rose  Mrs.  B.  R.  Cant. 
Those  who  saw  this  new  flower  last  autumn  were  impressed  with 
its  beauty.  It  seems  one  that  will  be  valued  for  general  culture,, 
apart  from  exhibition  merely.  The  habit  of  the  plant  is  most 
vigorous  and  branching,  the  sort,  too,  being  a  perpetual  bloomer. 
Its  colour,  or  shades,  are  a  combination  of  bright  salmon  rose  and 
buff,  and  the  shape  is  handsome,  both  in  the  bud  state  and  when 
fully  out.  It  is  sweetly  scented.  The  foliage,  again,  is  striking  and 
ample,  thus  it  should  be  an  ideal  Rose  for  massing. 
Hybrid  Tea  Roses. 
This  section  has  become  a  favoured  one,  and  there  seems  to  be  no 
limit  to  its  improvement.  But  a  few  years  back  we  had  La  France 
only,  so  that  they  are  of  recent  origin.  We  are  sometimes  asked  if 
Roses  are  better  than  they  were  a  dozen  years  back.  The  stride  made 
in  this  class  alone  would  make  us  answer,  Yes  ;  yet  in  thinking  of 
Roses  of  that  period  we  do  think  the  very  dark  Roses  were  better 
exhibited  than  they  are  now. 
Who  would  not  be  fascinated  by  the  remarkable  beauty  of  that 
perfect  flower  Mrs.  W.  J.  Grant,  or  fail  to  admire  the  wonderful  petals 
of  Marquise  Litta?  Lady  Mary  Fitzwilliam,  and  its  sport  White 
Lady,  are  among  the  most  glorious  of  Rases,  and  it  is  a  pity  they  are 
not  easy  to  grow.  Viscountess  Folkestone,  a  flower  not  quite  the 
form  of  a  show  bloom,  is  one  of  the  finest  ot  garden  Roses. 
It  is  in  bloom  the  whole  summer,  and  makes  a  fine  bead  as  a 
standard.  BarJou  Job  is  an  almost  single  Rose,  but  the  extra  large 
petals,  of  a  glowing  crimson  colour,  make  it  a  very  attractive  garden 
variety.  Caroline  Testout  is  almost  a  rival  of  La  France  as  a  salmon 
pink  perpetual-flowering  Rose.  Gustave  Regis,  again,  is  a  sort  with 
few  petals,  but  it  is  very  showy  in  the  garden. 
The  Hybrid  Teas  provide  other  handsome  show  kinds,  such  as 
Bessie  Brown,  creamy  white,  new  aod  choice  ;  Madame  Cadeau 
Ramey,  rose  and  yellow  ;  Madame  Eugene  Boullet,  salmon  rose.  These 
two  last-named  are  not  so  well  known  as  is  Kaiserin  Augusta  Victoria, 
white  with  lemon  shade,  a  charming  show  flower.  Killarney,  pale 
pink,  has  immense  petals  of  fine  substance ;  this  will  be  valued  for 
exhibition.  Madame  Abel  Chatenay  gives  a  charming  shade  of 
salmon  rose;  the  blooms  are  not  over-large,  but  very  freely  produced, 
and  are  good  quite  late  in  autumn.  Augustine  Guinoisseau,  called 
the  white  La  France,  is  scarcely  white,  but  is  a  particularly  good 
ever-blooming  variety. 
This  type  may  not  be  pruned  hard,  and  although  they  are  mostly 
not  rampant  in  growth,  are  yet  vigorous  enough  to  make  showy 
specimens  as  bushes  or  standards.  They  succeed,  too,  on  light  soils, 
which  are  not  found  suitable  for  the  rich,  high-coloured  Hybrid 
Perpetuals.  Maybe  in  time  vivid  crimsons  and  reds  will  be 
forthcoming  in  this  recent  section  of  Roses.  If  so,  they  will  be  highly 
appreciated.  Two  strikingly  fine  single  Roses  in  this  class  are  Irish 
Glory  and  Irish  Beauty,  the  former  pink  and  the  latter  white.  They 
are  sweetly  scented,  and  now  that  singles  are  becoming  popular  these 
new  kinds  are  likely  to  be  esteemed. — H.  Shoesmith. 
Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution. 
Annual  Dinner. 
It  is  unfortunate  that  the  annual  dinner  of  this  beneficent  Institution 
should  annually  be  held  at  so  early  a  date.  Perhaps  a  week  or  two 
later  would  be  better,  as  then  the  “  London  season  ”  is  nearer  its 
height.  However,  the  Institution  still  continues  to  do  inestimably 
good  work,  and  at  the  62nd  annual  dinner,  held  on  the  first  evening 
of  the  Temple  Show — that  is,  Wednesday  the  22nd  inst,  in  the  Whitehall 
Rooms,  Hotel  Metropole,  vigour  and  support  were  amply  apparent. 
Lord  Llangattook  presided  on  this  occasion.  The  Dean  of  Rochester 
was  beside  Lord  Llangattook,  and  amongst  other  gentlemen  present 
were  the  Earl  Egerton  of  Tatton,  Sir  James  Rankin,  Mr.  0.  E.  Keyser. 
Mr.  Harry  J.  Veitch  (Treasurer),  Mr.  A.  Sutton,  Mr.  L.  Sutton, 
and  Mr.  N.  N.  Sherwood.  The  ohairman  proposed  the  usual  loyal 
toasts,  and  touchingly  referred  to  the  loss  of  our  good  Queen  Victoria. 
The  Institution  has  now  the  King,  Queen  Alexandra,  and  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  of  York  as  its  patrons.  It  is  sixty-two  years  since  the 
