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JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
August  6,  1903 
Stocks  for  Roses» 
The  present  disastrous  season  will  set  those  who  have  seen  their 
newly  planted  Roses  perishing  with  melancholy  frequency,  thinking 
on  the  question  of  the  suitability  of  certain  stocks  for  certain  soils. 
By  comparing  the  facts  furnished  by  contributors,  and  by  actual 
observation  in  different  parts  of  the  country  on  the  growth  of  Roses 
in  different  soils,  I  believe  the  truth,  as  far  as  yet  ascertained,  amounts 
to  this  :  That  Roses  flourish  on  their  own  roots  in  a  greater  variety 
of  soils  than  in  any  other  form ;  that  they  db  best  on  the  Manetti 
stock  in  light  soils,  where  sands  of  later  formations  predominate ; 
and  that  they  do  well  on  the  Bi’iar  (Rosa  eanina),  where  the  Briar  is 
found  to  grow  most  luxuriantly  in  its  wild  state,  as  on  stiff  chalky 
land,  and  some  clays.  Assuming  these  data  as  approximating  reality, 
we  can  readily  account  for  the  preference  given  by  so  many  cultivators 
to  Roses  on  their  own  roots,  for  the  Manetti  being  selected  by  others, 
and  for  the  disappointment  frequently  expressed  by  purchasers  of 
Roses  on  the  Briar,  because  these  have  been  transplanted  into  soils 
less  adapted  to  the  stock  than  that  from  which  it  was  taken  before 
the  Rose  was  budded  on  it. 
The  soil  here  is  very  light  and  of  good  depth,  and  being  on  a  slight 
eminence  is  naturally  well  drained,  the  subsoil  is  the  green  ferruginous 
sand  found  in  connection  with  the  chalk  system.  I  have  at  present 
in  the  garden  about  one  thousand  Roses  in  all  forms,  budded,  grafted, 
on  Briars  high  and  low,  and  on  their  own  roots.  As  I  have  stated 
above,  the  soil  is  of  the  kind  in  which  I  have  always  found  the 
Manetti  stock  preferred ;  hence,  I  soon  discovered  the  evident 
superiority  of  that  stock  for  propagation  to  any  other  method,  and 
that,  too,  as  a  medium  for  getting  Roses  on  their  own  roots.  Roses 
planted  out  in  a  soil  like  mine  on  their  own  roots,  are  very  long  in 
becoming  strong,  and  vigorous  enough  to  withstand  all  the  vicissitudes 
of  the  climate — not  so  with  well-budded  Manetti  plants,  in  nine  eases 
out  of  ten  they  make  strong  shoots  the  first  year,  and  in  the  second 
the  flowers  are  satisfactory. 
There  is  a  greater  distinction  between  grafted  Manettis  and  budded 
ones  than  many  people  would  at  first  be  inclined  to  believe.  My 
experience  thus  far  shows  that  Manetti  stocks  grafted  under  glass 
with  artificial  heat,  useful  as  the  plan  is  tor  securing  a  rapid  propaga¬ 
tion  of  new  varieties,  have  drawbacks  when  planted  out  of  doors.  In 
the  first  season  they  are  very  liable  to  mildew,  make  little  growth, 
and  produce  few  flowers,  and  it  is  not  till  the  second  or  third  year 
that  they  become  useful  plants.  I  have  also  found  that  they  do  not 
readily  throw  out  rootlets  at  the  point  of  union.  With  budded  Manetti 
stocks  the  case  is  different,  provided  they  are  budded  as  low  as  possible 
and  with  the  stock  in  the  open  ground.  If  budded  early  in  the  season 
a  plant  is  formed  at  once  which  should  be  removed  in  the  autumn  ; 
and  planted  in  such  a  soil  as  mine,  the  bud  should  not  be  less  than 
4in  below  the  surface.  If  planted  deeply  enough  roots  will  be  formed 
much  more  rapidly  than  when  the  junction  is  too  near  the  surface  ; 
care  must,  of  course,  be  taken  that  the  root  of  the  stock  is  not  buried 
in  wet  cold  soil,  which  will  be  very  likely  to  cause  the  death  of  the 
plant.  If  Manetti  stocks  are  budded  late  in  the  season,  it  is  better  to 
leave  the  bud  dormant  all  the  winter.  This  is  done  by  deferring  till 
the  following  February  or  March  the  cutting  off  any  of  the  stock  into 
which  the  bud  is  inserted.  In  severe  winters  some  casualties  may 
occur  in  late  budding. 
In  October  last  I  examined  the  roots  of  about  fifty  of  my  oldest 
plants,  now  grown  strong.  In  most  of  the  budded  plants  of  more 
than  three  years  old,  roots  had  been  formed  upon  the  stems,  spring¬ 
ing  from  the  point  of  union  and  that  part  of  the  first  shoot  below 
the  surface.  In  the  grafted  plants  which  were  bought,  plants  of 
the  then  new  kinds,  and  propagated  under  glass,  no  such  roots  have 
been  formed,  although  it  is  quite  probable  that  they  will  be  produced. 
Not  wishing  to  remove  the  plants,  I  cannot  say  whether  the  stocks 
■of  those  plants  Avhich  have  roots  formed  from  the  Rose  are  dead  or 
not.  I  cut  off  several  stems  with  roots  on  them  and  transplanted 
them  to  another  place. — Surrey  Hills. 
[As  a  commentary  on  the  above  we  quote  the  following  from  “  The 
Rose  Garden  ”  of  Mr.  William  Paul : — “  The  Manetti  is  desirable  for 
Roses  in  pots  and  admissible  for  hardy  kinds  when  an  extremely 
vigorous  growth  is  desired.  It  has  been  recommended  for  delicate 
kinds  that  do  not  grow  well  on  the  Dog  Rose,  but  my  experience  does 
not  uphold  the  recommendation.  That  plants  grow  more  vigorously 
on  the  Manetti  the  first  year  we  do  not  deny,  but  their  subsequent 
decline  is  also  more  rapid.”] 
Roman  Love  for  Roses. 
The  love  of  the  ancients  for  Roses  was  something  fanatical.  I  do 
not  so  much  refer  to  the  poets;  for  probably  the  modern  and  the 
antique  bards  may  vie  with  each  other  in  the  use  of  the  Rose  as  a 
common-place  of  poetical  illustration  ;  but  I  allude  to  a  strong  passion 
for  the  visible,  tangible,  scent-giving  Rose,  as  something  to  be  enjoyed 
by  al  the  five  senses,  scarcely  excluding  that  of  hearing,  for  a  rustle 
of  many  Roses  must  have  attended  some  of  the  more  extraordinary 
manifestations  of  idolatry.  A  time  without  Roses  was  a  contingency 
to  be  avoided  at  any  cost ;  and  the  Romans,  though  the  mildness  of 
their  climate  allowed  the  adored  fiower  to  grow  at  an  unusually  late 
season,  could  not  submit  to  the  privations  of  a  winter.  Not  only  were 
whole  shiploads  of  Roses  brought  from  Alexandria  in  the  inclement 
season,  but  various  means  were  devised  for  preserving  the  gathered 
flowers  throughout  the  year  with  as  much  freshness  as  was  attainable. 
The  wreath  of  Roses,  of  which  one  reads  and  writes  about  so  often 
without  any  other  image  than  that  of  a  curved  twig  with  a  tolerably 
rich  supply  of  floral  ornaments,  was  capable  of  a  high  degree  of 
elaboration  ;  for  the  Roman  florists  looked  upon  an  enlaeement  of 
whole  flowers  as  an  exceedingly  meagre  affair.  For  a  grand  work  of 
art  they  took  the  Rose  leaves  separately,  laid  them  over  each  other 
like  scales,  and  thus  produced  a  sort  of  fragrant  sausage. 
This  refinement  in  the  construction  of  wreaths  will  show  that  the 
luxurious  ancients  not  only  insisted  on  the  constant  presence  of  Roses, 
but  were  determined  to  have  them  in  as  large  a  quantity  as  possible. 
The  anecdotes  which  illustrate  this  form  of  the  floral  passion  could 
scarcely  be  surpassed  in  wonder  by  the  wildest  imagination : — “  To 
enjoy  the  scent  of  Roses  at  meals,”  says  Herr  Wustemann,  “  an 
abundance  of  Rose  leaves  was  shaken  out  upon  the  table,  so  that  the 
dishes  were  completely  surrounded.  By  an  artificial  contrivance, 
Roses,  during  meals,  descended  on  the  guests  from  above.  Helio- 
gabalus,  in  his  folly,  caused  Violets  and  Roses  to  be  showered  down 
upon  his  guests  in  such  quantities,  that  a  number  of  them,  being 
unable  to  extricate  themselves,  were  suffocated  in  flowers.  During 
meal  times  they  reclined  upon  cushions  stuffed  with  Rose  leaves,  or 
made  a  couch  of  the  leaves  themselves.  The  flooi’,  too,  was  strewn 
with  Roses,  and  in  this  custom  great  luxury  was  displayed.  Cleopatra, 
at  an  enormous  expense,  procured  Roses  for  a  feast  which  she  gave 
to  Antony,  had  them  laid  two  cubits  thick  on  the  floor  of  the  banquet- 
room,  and  caused  nets  to  be  spread  over  the  flowers  in  order  to  render 
the  footing  elastic.  Heliogabalus  caused  not  only  the  banquet  rooms, 
but  also  the  colonnades  that  led  to  them,  to  be  covered  with  Roses, 
interspersed  ivith  Lilies,  Violets,  Hyacinths,  and  Narcissi,  and  walked 
about  upon  his  flowery  platform.” 
As  a  source  of  artificial  perfumes  the  Rose  was  employed  by  the 
ancients  in  other  ways  than  in  those  oils  and  waters  that  are  familiar 
to  modern  life.  When  the  leaves  had  been  pressed  out  for  higher 
uses,  they  were  dried  and  reduced  into  a  powder,  called  “  diapasma,” 
which  was  laid  on  the  skin  after  a  bath,  and  then  washed  off  with 
cold  water.  The  object  of  the  process  was  to  impart  a  fragrance  to 
the  skin.  As  a  medicine,  Quinces  preserved  in  honey  were  introduced 
into  a  decoction  of  Rose  leaves ;  and  the  preparation  was  deemed 
good  for  complaints  of  the  stomach.  In  the  culinai'y  art  Roses  had 
likewise  their  place  of  honour,  and  were  put  into  many  dishes  for 
the  sake  of  their  pleasant  flavour.  For  this  end  they  were  sometimes 
preserved — a  delicate  process,  as  they  were  very  apt  to  become 
mouldy. — D.  A. 
This  Summer  Time. 
Gather  ye  Rosebuds  while  ye  may,  ' 
Old  time  is  still  a-tijnng  ; 
And  this  same  fl  twer  which  smiles  to-day. 
To  morrow  will  be  dying. 
In  these  words  of  Herrick  there  is  a  combination  of  joyous¬ 
ness  and  sadness ;  a  tone  of  mingled  pleasure  and  foreboding,  and 
yet  they  sound  a  predominant  note  of  delight  and  of  pleasure  in 
the  present,  which  we  gardeners  would  do  well  to  adopt.  It  is 
true  enough  that  the  autumn  and  winter  are  before  us,  when  our 
favourite  flowers  will  be  no  longer  things  of  beauty,  but  mere 
shrivelled  vestiges  of  what  they  are  now.  Yet  in  the  present  it 
is  given  to  us  to  draw  from  their  beauty  inspiring  draughts  which 
will  keep  our  hearts  unseared  and  hopeful  when  they  have  passed 
away.  Thus  we  may  look  upon  the  reign  of  Queen  Summer  as.  a 
period  of  joy  to  give  us  strength  for  the  future,  and  a  time  which 
it  is  our  duty  to  make  the  most  of,  so  that  we  may:  enter  upon  the 
dreary  days  undisheartened  and  full  of  hopefulness.  And  how  our 
flowers  do  minister  to  these  cheering  thoughts !  These  Rosebuds 
Herrick  counsels  us  to  gather  “while  we  may,”  with  all  their 
beauteous  sister  flowers,  speak  eloquently  to  us  and  inspire  us 
with  “  thoughts  too  deep  for  words but  thoughts  which  help  us 
immeasurably.  Let  us  look  at  them  now,  even  if  our  glance  can 
only  include  a  few  of  the  many  things  which  might  come  within 
its  range. 
Lately  we  have  all  been  praising  the  Rose,  whose  opening 
flowers  called  forth  the  delightful  stanza  of  the  old  poet,  but 
sitting  now  ivith  this  queenly  flower  in  full  view  one  must  once 
again  express  one’s  delight  in  the  “  summer’s  queen.”  From  the 
window  of  my  little  garden  study  one  cannot  look  out  without 
the  eye  being  caught  by  the  sprays  of  Wichuariana  hybrid 
jiink  Roamer  which  hang  over  a  part  of  some  of  the  panes,  as  if  to 
insist  that  these  pretty  single  flowers  in  such  profusion  cannot  go 
unrecorded.  From  another  window  there  is  a  glimpse,  too,  of 
the  brilliant  flowers  of  Crimson  Rambler,  not  so  plentiful  this 
season  as  one  would  like,  and  a  lovely  unnamed  double  ivhite 
Rose,  which  has  proved  more  generous  than  William  Allen 
Richardson,  which  grows  beside  it,  but  which  is  this  year  chary 
of  its  blooms.  There,  again,  is  the  old  blush  Monthly  Rose, 
almost  a  constant  bloomer  here,  save  for  a  short  time  in  the  depth 
of  winter.  On  a  pillar  is  the  free-blooming  Longworth  Rambler; 
