*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 47232 ***

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THE BOOK OF ROSES

By Francis Parkman

Boston

J. E. Tilton And Company.

1871.




INTRODUCTION

|IT IS needless to eulogize the Rose. Poets from Anacreon and Sappho,
and earlier than they, down to our own times, have sung its praises; and
yet the rose of Grecian and of Persian song, the rose of troubadours
and minstrels, had no beauties so resplendent as those with which its
offspring of the present day embellish our gardens. The "thirty sorts
of rose," of which John Parkinson speaks in 1629, have multiplied to
thousands. New races have been introduced from China, Persia, Hindostan,
and our own country; and these, amalgamated with the older families by
the art of the hybridist, have produced still other forms of surpassing
variety and beauty. This multiplication and improvement are still
in progress. The last two or three years have been prolific beyond
precedent in new roses; and, with all regard for old favorites, it
cannot be denied, that, while a few of the roses of our forefathers
still hold their ground, the greater part are cast into the shade by the
brilliant products of this generation.

In the production of new roses, France takes the lead. A host of
cultivators great and small--Laffay, Vibert, Verdier, Margottin,
Trouillard, Portemer, and numberless others--have devoted themselves to
the pleasant art of intermarrying the various families and individual
varieties of the rose, and raising from them seedlings whose numbers
every year may be counted by hundreds of thousands. Of these, a very few
only are held worthy of preservation; and all the rest are consigned to
the rubbish heap. The English, too, have of late done much in raising
new varieties; though their climate is less favorable than that of
France, and their cultivators less active and zealous in the work. Some
excellent roses, too, have been produced in America. Our climate is
very favorable to the raising of seedlings, and far more might easily be
accomplished here.

In France and England, the present rage for roses is intense. It
is stimulated by exhibitions, where nurserymen, gardeners, landed
gentlemen, and reverend clergymen of the Established Church, meet in
friendly competition for the prize. While the French excel all others
in the production of new varieties, the English are unsurpassed in
the cultivation of varieties already known; and nothing can exceed
the beauty and perfection of some of the specimens exhibited at
their innumerable rose-shows. If the severity of our climate has its
disadvantages, the clearness of our air and the warmth of our summer
sun more than counterbalance them; and it is certain that roses can be
raised here in as high perfection, to say the very least, as in any part
of Europe.

The object of this book is to convey information. The earlier
portion will describe the various processes of culture, training, and
propagation, both in the open ground and in pots; and this will be
followed by an account of the various families and groups of the rose,
with descriptions of the best varieties belonging to each. A descriptive
list will be added of all the varieties, both of old roses and those
most recently introduced, which are held in esteem by the experienced
cultivators of the present day. The chapter relating to the
classification of roses, their family relations, and the manner in
which new races have arisen by combinations of two or more old ones, was
suggested by the difficulties of the writer himself at an early
period of his rose studies. The want of such explanations, in previous
treatises, has left their readers in a state of lamentable perplexity on
a subject which might easily have been made sufficiently clear.

Books on the rose, written for the climates of France or England,
will, in general, greatly mislead the cultivators here. Extracts will,
however, be given from the writings of the best foreign cultivators, in
cases where experience has shown that their directions are applicable
to the climate of the Northern and Middle States. The writer having been
for many years a cultivator of the rose, and having carefully put in
practice the methods found successful abroad, is enabled to judge with
some confidence of the extent to which they are applicable here, and
to point out exceptions and modifications demanded by the nature of our
climate.

Among English writers on the rose, the best are Paul, Rivers, and
more recently Cranston, together with the vivacious Mr. Radclyffe, a
clergyman, a horticulturist, an excellent amateur of the rose, and a
very amusing contributor to the "Florist." In France, Deslongchamps
and several able contributors to the "Revue Horticole" are the
most prominent. From these sources the writer of this book drew the
instructions and hints which at first formed the basis of his practice;
but he soon found that he must greatly modify it in accordance with
American necessities. There was much to be added, much to be discarded,
and much to be changed; and the results to which he arrived are given,
as compactly as possible, in the following pages.

Jan. 1,1866.

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CHAPTER I. OPEN AIR CULTURE


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|THE ROSE requires high culture. This belle of the parterre, this "queen
of flowers," is a lover of rich fare, and refuses to put forth all her
beauties on a meagre diet. Roses, indeed, will grow and bloom in any
soil; but deficient nourishment will reduce the size of the flowers,
and impair the perfection of their form. Of all soils, one of a sandy or
gravelly nature is the worst; while, on the other hand, a wet and dense
clay is scarcely better. A rich, strong, and somewhat heavy garden loam,
abundantly manured, is the soil best adapted to all the strong-growing
roses; while those of more delicate growth prefer one pro-portionably
lighter.

Yet roses may be grown to perfection in any soil, if the needful pains
are taken. We will suppose an extreme case: The grower wishes to plant
a bed of roses on a spot where the soil is very poor and sandy. Let him
mark out his bed, dig the soil to the depth of eighteen inches? throw
out the worst portion of it, and substitute in its place a quantity
of strong, heavy loam: rotted sods, if they can be had, will be an
excellent addition; and so, also, will decayed leaves. Then add a
liberal dressing of old stable manure: that taken from a last year's
hot-bod will do admirably. It is scarcely possible to enrich too highly.
One-fourth manure to three-fourths soil is not an excessive proportion.
Now incorporate the whole thoroughly with a spade, level the top, and
your bed is ready.

Again: we will suppose a case, equally bad, but of the opposite
character. Here the soil is very wet, cold, and heavy. The first step is
to drain it. This may be done thoroughly with tiles, after the approved
methods; or, if this is too troublesome or expensive, simpler means may
be used, which will, in most situations, prove as effectual. Dig a
hole about five feet deep and four feet wide at the lower side of your
intended bed of roses: in this hole place an inverted barrel, with the
head knocked out; or, what is better, an old oil cask. In the latter
case, a hole should be bored in it, near the top, to permit the air to
escape. Fill the space around the cask or barrel with stones, and then
cover the whole with earth. If your bed is of considerable extent, a
drain, laid in stone or tile, should be made under or beside the bed,
at the depth of three feet, and so constructed as to lead to the sunken
barrel. Throw out, if necessary, a portion of the worst soil of the bed,
substituting light loam, rotted leaves, and coarse gritty sand. Then add
an abundance of old stable manure, as in the former case.

In the great majority of gardens, however, such pains are superfluous.
Any good garden soil, deeply dug, and thoroughly enriched, will grow
roses in perfection. Neither manure nor the spade should be spared.
Three conditions are indispensable,--sun, air, and exemption from the
invasion of the roots of young growing trees. These last are insidious
plunderers and thieves, which invade the soil, and rob its lawful
occupants of the stores of nutriment provided for them.

A rose planted on the shady side of a grove of elm or maple trees is in
one of the worst possible of situations. If, however, the situation is
in other respects good, the evil of the invading roots may be cured for
a time by digging a trench, three feet deep, between the trees and the
bed of roses; thus cutting off the intruders. The trench may then be
filled up immediately; but, if the trees are vigorous, it must be dug
over again the following year. It is much better to choose, at the
outset, an airy, sunny situation, at a reasonable distance from growing
trees; but, at the same time, a spot exposed to violent winds should be
avoided, as they are very injurious and exhausting.

[Illustration: 0024]

Roses may be planted either in spring or in autumn. In the Northern
States, the severity of the winter demands some protection, when planted
in autumn, for all except the old, hardy varieties. Plant as early as
possible, that the roots may take some hold on the soil before winter
closes. October, for this reason, is better than November. The best
protection is earth heaped around the stem to the height of from six
inches to a foot. Pine, cedar, or spruce boughs are also excellent. When
earth alone is used, the top of the rose is often frost-killed; but
this is usually of no consequence, the growth and bloom being only more
vigorous for this natural pruning. Dry leaves heaped among or around the
roses, and kept down by sticks or pieces of board, or by earth thrown on
them, are also good protectors. In spring, plant as early as the soil
is in working order; that is to say, as soon as it is dry enough not to
adhere in lumps to the spade.

In planting, prune back the straggling roots with a sharp knife, but
save as many of the small fibres as possible. If you plant in spring,
prune back the stem at least half way to the ground; but, if you plant
in autumn, by all means defer this operation till the winter is over.
The ground around autumn-planted roses should be trodden down in the
spring, since the plant will have been somewhat loosened in its place
by the effect of frost; but this treading must not take place until the
soil has become free from excessive moisture. Budded roses require a
peculiar treatment in planting, which we shall describe when we come to
speak of them.

[Illustration: 0025]

Next to soil and situation, pruning is the most important point of
attention to the rose-grower. Long treatises have been written on it,
describing in detail different modes applicable to different classes
of roses, and confusing the amateur by a multitude of perplexing
particulars.

One principle will cover most of the ground: _Weaklygrowing roses
should be severely pruned: those of vigorous growth should be pruned but
little_. Or, to speak more precisely, _roses should be pruned in inverse
proportion to the vigor of their growth._

Much, however, depends on the object at which the grower aims. If
he wishes for a profusion of bloom, without regard to the size and
perfection of individual flowers, then comparatively little pruning is
required. If, on the other hand, he wishes for blooms of the greatest
size and perfection, without regard to number, he will prune more
closely.

The pruning of any tree or shrub at a time when vegetation is dormant
acts as a stimulus to its vital powers. Hence, when it is naturally
vigorous, it is urged by close pruning to such a degree of growth, that
it has no leisure to bear flowers, developing instead a profusion of
leaves and branches. The few flowers which it may produce under such
circumstances, will, however, be unusually large.

The most vigorous growers among roses are the climbers, such as the
"Boursaults" and the "Prairies."

These require very little pruning: first, because of their vigor; and,
secondly, because quantity rather than quality of bloom is asked of
them. The old and dry wood should be cut wholly away, leaving the
strong young growth to take its place, with no other pruning than a
clipping-off of the ends of side-shoots, and a thinning-out of crowded
or misshapen branches. In all roses, it is the young, well-ripened wood
that bears the finest flowers. Old enfeebled wood, or unripe, soft, and
defective young wood, should always be removed.

Next in vigor to the climbers are some of the groups of hardy June
roses; such, for example, as those called the Hybrid China roses. These
are frequently grown on posts or pillars; in which case they require a
special treatment, to be indicated hereafter. We are now supposing them
to be grown as bushes in the garden or on the lawn. Cut out the old
wood, and the weak, unripe, and sickly shoots, as well as those which
interfere with others; then shorten the remaining stems one-third,
and cut back the side-shoots to three or four buds. This is on the
supposition that a full mass of bloom is required, without much regard
to the development of individual flowers. If quality rather than
quantity of bloom is the desideratum, the pruning both of the main stems
and of the side-shoots must be considerably shorter.

Roses of more moderate growth, including the greater part of the June,
Moss, Hybrid Perpetual, and Bourbon roses, require a proportionally
closer pruning. The stems may be cut down to half their length, and
the side-shoots shortened to two buds. All the weak-growing roses, of
whatever class, may be pruned with advantage even more closely than
this. Some of the weak-growing Hybrid Perpetuals grow and bloom
best when shortened to within four or five buds of the earth. The
stronggrowing kinds, on the contrary, if pruned thus severely, would
grow with great vigor, but give very few flowers.

The objects of pruning are threefold: first, to invigorate the plant;
secondly, to improve its flowers; and, thirdly, to give it shape and
proportion. This last object should always be kept in view by the
operator. No two stems should be allowed to crowd each other. A mass of
matted foliage is both injurious and unsightly. Sun and air should have
access to every part of the plant. Six or seven stems are the utmost
that should be allowed to remain, even on old established bushes; and
these, as before mentioned, should be strong and well ripened, and
should also be disposed in such a manner, that, when the buds have grown
into shoots and leaves, the bush will have a symmetrical form. In young
bushes, three, or even two, good stems are sufficient.

Pruning in summer, when the plant is in active growth, has an effect
contrary to that of pruning when it is in a dormant state. Far from
increasing its vigor, it weakens it, by depriving it of a portion of its
leaves, which are at once its stomach and its lungs. Only two kinds of
summer pruning can be recommended. The first consists in the removal of
small branches which crowd their neighbors, and interfere with them:
the second is confined to the various classes of Perpetual roses, and
consists merely in cutting off the faded flowers, together with the
shoots on which they grow, to within three or four buds of the main
stem. This greatly favors their tendency to bloom again later in the
summer.

When old wood is cut away, it should be done cleanly, without leaving
a protruding stump. A small saw will sometimes be required for this
purpose; though in most cases a knife, or, what is more convenient, a
pair of sharp pruning-shears, will be all that the operator requires.

[Illustration: 0029]

When roses are trained to cover walls, trellises, arches, or pillars,
the main stems are encouraged to a strong growth. These form the
permanent wood; while the side-shoots, more or less pruned back, furnish
the flowers. For arbors, walls, or very tall pillars, the strongest
growers are most suitable, such as the Prairie, Boursault, and Ayrshire
roses. Enrich the soil strongly, and dig deep and widely. Choose a
healthy young rose, and, in planting, cut off all the stems close to the
earth. During the season, it will make a number of strong young shoots.
In the following spring cut out half of them, leaving the strongest,
which are to be secured against the wall, or over the arbor, diverging
like a fan or otherwise, as fancy may suggest. The subsequent pruning
is designed chiefly to regulate the growth of the rose, encouraging the
progress of the long leading shoots until they have reached the required
height, and removing side-shoots where they are too thick. Where a
vacant space occurs, a strong neighboring shoot may be pruned back in
spring to a single eye. This will stimulate it to a vigorous growth,
producing a stem which will serve to fill the gap. Of the young shoots,
which, more or less, will rise every season from the root, the greater
part should be cut away, reserving two or three to take the place of the
old original stems when these become weak by age. When these climbing
roses are used for pillars, they may either be trained vertically, or
wound in a spiral form around the supporting column.

Roses of more moderate growth are often trained to poles or small
pillars from six to twelve feet high. Some of the Hybrid China roses
are, as before mentioned, well adapted to this use; and even some of
the most vigorous Moss roses, such as _Princess Adelaide_, may be so
trained. Where a pole is used, two stems are sufficient. These should be
examined, and cut back to the first strong and plump bud, removing the
weaker buds always found towards the extremity of a stem. Then let the
stems so pruned lie flat on the earth till the buds break into leaf,
after which they are to be tied to the pole. If they were tied up
immediately, the sap, obeying its natural tendency, would flow upward,
expanding the highest bud, and leaving many of those below dormant, so
that a portion of the stem would be bare. (The same course of proceeding
may be followed with equal advantage in the case of wall and trellis
roses.) The highest bud now throws up a strong leading shoot, while the
stem below becomes furnished with an abundance of small side-shoots.
In the following spring, the leading shoot is to be pruned back to the
first strong bud, and the treatment of the previous year repeated. By
pursuing this process, the pillar may, in the course of two or three
years, be enveloped from the ground to the summit with a mass of leaves
and blossoms.

These and all other rose-pruning operations are, in the Northern States,
best effected in March, or the end of February; since roses pruned
in autumn are apt to be severely injured and sometimes killed by the
severity of our winters.

[Illustration: 0032]

Nothing is more beneficial to roses than a frequent digging and stirring
of the soil around them. The surface should never be allowed to become
hard, but should be kept light and porous by hoeing or forking several
times in the course of the season. A yearly application of manure will
be of great advantage. It may be applied in the autumn or in the spring,
and forked in around the plants. Cultivators who wish to obtain the
finest possible blooms sometimes apply liquid manure early in the
summer, immediately after the flower-buds are formed. This penetrates at
once to the roots, and takes immediate effect on the growing bud.

[Illustration: 0033]

The amateur may perhaps draw some useful hints from an experiment made
by the writer in cultivating roses, with a view to obtaining the best
possible individual flowers. A piece of land about sixty feet long by
forty wide was "trenched" throughout to the depth of two feet and a
half, and enriched with three layers of manure. The first was placed at
eighteen inches from the surface; the second, at about nine inches; and
the third was spread on the surface itself, and afterwards dug in. The
virgin soil was a dense yellow loam of considerable depth; and, by the
operation of "trenching," it was thoroughly mixed and incorporated with
the black surface soil. Being too stiff and heavy, a large quantity of
sandy road-scrapings was laid on with the surface-dressing of manure.
When the ground was prepared, the roses were planted in rows. They
consisted of Hardy June, Moss, Hybrid Perpetual, Bourbon, and a few of
the more hardy Noisette roses. They were planted early in spring, and
cut back at the same time close to the ground. Many of the Perpétuais
and Bourbons flowered the first season, and all grew with a remarkable
vigor. In November, just before the ground froze, a spadesman, working
backward midway between the rows, dug a trench of the depth and width of
his spade, throwing the earth in a ridge upon the roots of the roses
as he proceeded. This answered a double purpose. The ridge of earth
protected the roots and several inches of the stems, while the trench
acted as a drain. In the spring, the earth of the ridge was drawn back
into the trench with a hoe, and the roses pruned with great severity;
some of the weak-growing Perpetuals and Mosses being cut to within
two inches of the earth, and all the weak and sickly stems removed
altogether. The whole ground was then forked over. The bloom was
abundant, and the flowers of uncommon size and symmetry. Had the pruning
been less severe, the mass of bloom would have been greater, but the
individual flowers by no means of so good quality.

[Illustration: 0034]

Of budded roses we shall speak hereafter, in treating of propagation.
There is one kind, however, which it will be well to notice here. In
England and on the Continent, it is a common practice to bud roses
on tall stems or standards of the Dog Rose, or other strong stock,
sometimes at a height of five feet or more from the ground. The head
of bloom thus produced has a very striking effect, especially when the
budded rose is of a variety with long slender shoots, adapted to form
what is called a "weeper."

[Illustration: 0035]

In France, standard roses are frequently planted near together in
circular or oval beds, the tallest stems being in the centre, and the
rest diminishing in regular gradation to the edge of the bed, which is
surrounded with dwarf roses. Thus a mound or hill of bloom is produced
with a very striking and beautiful effect.

Unfortunately, the severe cold and sudden changes of the Northern
States, and especially of New England, are very unfavorable to standard
roses. The hot sun scorches and dries the tall, bare stem; and the
sharp cold of winter frequently kills, and in almost every case greatly
injures, the budded rose at the top. It is only by using great and very
troublesome precaution that standards can here be kept in a thriving
condition. This may be done most effectually by cutting or loosening the
roots on one side, laying the rose flat on the ground, and covering it
during winter under a ridge of earth. Some protection of the stem from
the hot sun of July and August can hardly be dispensed with.

With regard to the mounds of standard roses first mentioned, it is
scarcely worth while to attempt them here; but a very good substitute
is within our reach. By choosing roses with a view to their different
degrees of vigor,--planting the tall and robust kinds in the middle, and
those of more moderate growth in regular gradation around them,--we may
imitate the French mounds without the necessity of employing standards.
Of course it will require time, and also judicious pruning, to perfect
such a bed of roses; but, when this is done, it will be both a beautiful
and permanent ornament of the lawn or garden.

[Illustration: 0038]

A new mode of growing roses, so as to form a tall pyramid instead of a
standard, has been recently introduced in England. Instead of inserting
buds at the top of the stem only, they are inserted at intervals
throughout its whole length, thus clothing it with verdure and flowers.
By this means it is effectually protected from the sun, and one of
the dangers which in our climate attend standard roses is averted. The
following directions are copied from a late number of the "Gardener's
Chronicle:"--

"Some strong two-years-old stocks of the Manetti Rose should be planted
in November, in a piece of ground well exposed to sun and air. The soil
should have dressings of manure, and be stirred to nearly two feet in
depth. In the months of July and August of the following year, they
will be in a fit state to bud. They should have one bud inserted in each
stock close to the ground. The sort to be chosen for this preliminary
budding is a very old Hybrid China Rose, called Madame Pisaroni; a rose
with a most vigorous and robust habit, which, budded on strong Manet-ti
stocks, will often make shoots from six to seven feet in length, and
stout and robust in proportion. In the month of February following,
the stocks in which are live buds should be all cut down to within six
inches of the bud. In May, the buds will begin to shoot vigorously:
if there are more shoots than one from each bud, they must be removed,
leaving only one, which in June should be supported with a slight stake,
or the wind may displace it.

"By the end of August, this shoot ought to be from five to six feet in
height, and is then in a proper state for budding to form a pyramid.
Some of the most free-growing and beautiful of the Hybrid Perpetual
roses should be selected, and budded on these stems in the following
manner: Commence about nine inches from the ground, inserting one bud;
then on the opposite side of the stock, and at the same distance from
the lower bud, insert another; and then at the same distance another and
another; so that buds are on all sides of the tree up to about five feet
in height, which, in the aggregate, may amount to nine buds. "You will
thus have formed the foundation of a pyramid. I need scarcely add that
the shoots from the stock must be carefully removed during the growing
season, so as to throw all its strength into the buds. It will also be
advisable to pinch in the three topmost buds rather severely the first
season, or they will, to use a common expression, draw up the sap too
rapidly, and thus weaken the lower buds. In the course of a year or two,
magnificent pyramids may thus be formed, their stems completely covered
with foliage, and far surpassing any thing yet seen in rose culture."

[Illustration: 0040]

Another new method of culture is put forward in recent French and
English journals, and is said to have proved very successful, increasing
both the size of the flowers and the period of bloom. I cannot speak of
it from trial; but, as it may be found worth an experiment, I extract
from the "Florist and Pomologist" the account there given of the process
by a Mr. Perry, who was one of the first to practise it. He says,--

"As I have now spoken of the advantages attendant upon this mode of
training, I will proceed to explain the method of carrying it out. I
will suppose that the plants are well established, and are either on
their own roots, or budded low on the Manetti (the former I prefer). The
operation of bending and pegging-down should be performed in the month
of March, or early in April. All the small growth should be cut clean
away, and the ends of the strong shoots cut off to the extent only of
a few inches. These shoots should then be carefully bent to the ground,
and fastened down by means of strong wooden pegs, sufficiently stout to
last the season, and to retain the branches in their proper positions.
Care must be taken that the branches do not split off at the base; but
the operator will soon perceive which is the best and easiest mode of
bending the tree to his wishes. Many shoots will spring up from the base
of the plants, too strong to produce summer blooms; but most of them
will gratify the cultivator will such noble flowers in the autumn that
will delight the heart of any lover of this queen of flowers. These
branches will be the groundwork for the next year. I have recently been
engaged in cutting all the old wood away which last season did such good
duty, and am now furnished with an ample supply of snoots from four to
eight feet high, which, if devoid of leaves, would strongly remind me of
fine raspberry-canes, and which, by their appearance, promise what they
will do for the forthcoming season. I would suggest that these long
shoots should now be merely bundled together, and a stake put to each
plant, so as to prevent their being injured by the wind. In this state
let them remain until the latter end of March, and then proceed as
I have before mentioned. I feel convinced, that, when this method of
pegging-down and dwarfing stronggrowing roses becomes generally known,
many of the justly esteemed and valuable robust show varieties will
occupy the position in our flower-gardens they are justly entitled to."

[Illustration: 0042]

A good soil, a good situation, free air and full sun, joined with good
manuring, good pruning, and good subsequent culture, will prevent more
diseases than the most skilful practitioner would ever be able to cure.
There are certain diseases, however, to which roses, under the best
circumstances, are more or less liable. Of these, the most common, and
perhaps the worst, is mildew. It consists in the formation on the
leaves and stems of û sort of minute fungus, sometimes presenting the
appearance of a white frost. Though often thought to be the result
of dampness, it frequently appears in the dryest weather. Many of the
Bourbon roses, and those of the Hybrid Perpétuais nearest akin to the
Bourbons, are peculiarly liable to it. In the greenhouse, the best
remedy is sulphur, melted and evaporated at a heat not high enough to
cause it to burn. In the open air, the flour of sulphur may be sifted
over the diseased plants. English florists use a remedy against mildew
and other kinds of fungus, which is highly recommended, but of which I
cannot speak from trial. It consists in syringing the plants affected
with a solution of two ounces of blue vitriol dissolved in a largo
stable bucket of water.

The worst enemies of the rose belong to the insect world. Of these there
are four, which, in this part of the country, cause far more mischief
than all the rest combined. The first is the aphis, or green fly; the
second is the rose-slug, or larva of the saw-fly; the third is the
leaf-hopper, sometimes called the thrip; and the fourth is the small
beetle, popularly called the rose-bug. The first three are vulnerable,
and can be got rid of by using the right means. The slug is a small,
green, semi-transparent grub, which appears on the leaves of the rose
about the middle of June, eats away their vital part, and leaves nothing
but a brown skeleton, till at length the whole bush looks as if burned.
The aphis clings to the ends of young shoots, and sucks out their sap.
It is prolific beyond belief, and a single one will soon increase to
thousands. Both are quickly killed by a solution of whale-oil soap, or
a strong decoction of tobacco, which should be applied with a syringe in
the morning or evening, as the application of any liquid to the leaves
of a plant under the hot sun is always injurious. The same remedy will
kill the leaf-hopper, which, being much more agile than the others, is
best assailed on a cold day, when its activity is to some degree chilled
out of it. Both sides of the leaves should be syringed, and the plant
thoroughly saturated with the soap or tobacco-water.

Two thorough and well-timed applications will suffice to destroy the
year's crop of slugs.

The rose-bug is endowed with a constitution which defies tobacco and
soap; and, though innumerable remedies have been proposed, we know no
better plan than to pick them off the bushes by hand, or, watching a
time when they are chilled with cold, to shake them off upon a cloth
laid on the ground beneath. In either case, sure work should be made of
them by scalding or crushing them to death.

The following account of the rose-bug and the slug is from Dr. Harris's
work on "Insects Injurious to Vegetation:"--

"The saw-fly of the rose, which, as it does not seem to have been
described before, may be called _Selandria Rosae_, from its favorite
plant, so nearly resembles the slug-worm saw-fly as not to be
distinguished therefrom except by a practised observer. It is also very
much like _Selandria barda, Vitis_, and _pygmaea_, but has not the
red thorax of these three closely-allied species. It is of a deep and
shining black color. The first two pairs of legs are brownish-gray, or
dirty white, except the thighs, which are almost entirely black.
The hind legs are black, with whitish knees. The wings are smoky and
transparent, with dark-brown veins, and a brown spot near the middle of
the edge of the first pair. The body of the male is a little more than
three-twentieths of an inch long; that of the female, one-fifth of an
inch or more; and the wings expand nearly or quite two-fifths of an
inch. These saw-flies come out of the ground at various times between
the 20th of May and the middle of June, during which period they pair,
and lay their eggs. The females do not fly much, and may be seen, during
most of the day, resting on the leaves; and, when touched, they draw up
their legs, and fall to the ground. The males are now active, fly from
one rose-bush to another, and hover around their sluggish partners.
The latter, when about to lay their eggs, turn a little on one side,
unsheathe their saws, and thrust them obliquely into the skin of the
leaf, depositing in each incision thus made a single egg. The young
begin to hatch in ten days or a fortnight after the eggs are laid. They
may sometimes be found on the leaves as early as the 1st of June, but
do not usually appear in considerable numbers till the 20th of the same
month. How long they are in coming to maturity, I have not particularly
observed; but the period of their existence in the caterpillar state
probably does not exceed three weeks. They somewhat resemble young
slug-worms in form, but are not quite so convex. They have a small,
round, yellowish head, with a black dot on each side of it; and are
provided with twenty-two short legs. The body is green above, paler at
the sides, and yellowish beneath; and it is soft and almost transparent,
like jelly. The skin of the back is transversely wrinkled, and covered
with minute elevated points; and there are two small, triple-pointed
warts on the edge of the first ring, immediately behind the head.

"The gelatinous and sluggish creatures eat the upper surface of the
leaf in large, irregular patches, leaving the veins and the skin beneath
untouched; and they are sometimes so thick, that not a leaf on the
bushes is spared by them, and the whole foliage looks as if it had been
scorched by fire, and drops off soon afterwards. They cast their skins
several times, leaving them extended and fastened on the leaves: after
the last moulting, they lose their semi-transparent and greenish color,
and acquire an opaque yellowish hue. They then leave the rose-bushes;
some of them slowly creeping down the stem, and others rolling up and
dropping off, especially when the bushes are shaken by the wind. Having
reached the ground, they burrow to the depth of an inch or more in the
earth, where each one makes for itself a small oval cell of grains
of earth, cemented with a little gummy silk. Having finished their
transformations, and turned to flies within their cells, they come out
of the ground early in August, and lay their eggs for a second brood of
young. These, in turn, perform their appointed work of destruction in
the autumn: they then go into the ground, make their earthen cells,
remain therein throughout the winter, and appear in the winged form
in the following spring and summer. During several years past, these
pernicious vermin have infested the rose-bushes in the vicinity of
Boston, and have proved so injurious to them as to have elicited the
attention of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, by whom a premium
of one hundred dollars, for the most successful mode of destroying these
insects, was offered in the summer of 1840. In the year 1832, I
first observed them in the gardens in Cambridge, and then made myself
acquainted with their transformations. At that time they had not reached
Milton, my former place of residence; and they did not appear in that
place till six or seven years later. They now seem to be gradually
extending in all directions; and an effectual method for preserving our
roses from their attacks has become very desirable to all persons who
set any value on this beautiful ornament of our gardens and shrubberies.
Showering or syringing the bushes, with a liquor made by mixing with
water the juice expressed from tobacco by tobacconists, has been
recommended: but some caution is necessary in making this mixture of a
proper strength; for, if too strong, it is injurious to plants; and the
experiment does not seem, as yet, to have been conducted with sufficient
care to insure safety and success. Dusting lime over the plants, when
wet with dew, has been tried, and found of some use; but this and all
other remedies will probably yield in efficacy to Mr. Haggerston's
mixture of whale-oil soap and water, in the proportion of two pounds of
the soap to fifteen gallons of water.

"Particular directions, drawn up by Mr. Haggerston himself, for the
preparation and use of this simple and cheap application, may be found
in the 'Boston Courier' for the 25th of June, 1841, and also in most
of our agricultural and horticultural journals of the same time. The
utility of this mixture has already been repeatedly mentioned in this
treatise, and it may be applied in other cases with advantage. Mr.
Haggerston finds that it effectually destroys many kinds of insects; and
he particularly mentions plant-lice, red spiders, canker-worms, and a
little jumping insect, which has lately been found quite as hurtful
to rose-bushes as the slugs or young of the saw-fly. The little insect
alluded to has been mistaken for a Thrips, or vinc-frettor: it is,
however, a leaf-hopper, or species of _Tettiyonia_, and is described in
a former part of this treatise.

"The rose-chafer, or rose-bug as it is more commonly and incorrectly
called, is also a diurnal insect. It is the _Melolontha subspinosa_ of
Fabricius, by whom it was first described, and belongs to the modern
genus _Macrodaclylus_ of Latreille. Common as this insect is in the
vicinity of Boston, it is, or was a few years ago, unknown in the
northern and western parts of Massachusetts, in New Hampshire, and in
Maine. It may, therefore, be well to give a brief description of it.
This beetle measures seven-twentieths of an inch in length. Its body
is slender, tapers before and behind, and is entirely covered with
very short and close ashen-yellow down; the thorax is long and narrow,
angularly widened in the middle of each side, which suggested the
name _subspinosa_, or somewhat spined; the legs are slender, and of a
pale-red color; the joints of the feet are tipped with black, and are
very long; which caused Latreille to call the genus _Macrodactylus_:
that is, long toe, or long foot.

"The natural history of the rose-chafer, one of the greatest scourges
with which our gardens and nurseries have been afflicted, was for a
long time involved in mystery, but is at last fully cleared up. The
prevalence of this insect on the rose, and its annual appearance
coinciding with the blossoming of that flower, have gained for it the
popular name by which it is here known. For some time after they were
first noticed, rose-bugs appeared to be confined to their favorite,
the blossoms of the rose; but within forty years they have prodigiously
increased in number, have attacked at random various kinds of plants
in swarms, and have become notorious for their extensive and deplorable
ravages. The grape-vine, in particular, the cherry, plum, and apple
trees, have annually suffered by their depredations: many other
fruit-trees and shrubs, garden vegetables and corn, and even the
trees of the forest and the grass of the fields, have been laid under
contribution by these indiscriminate feeders, by whom leaves, flowers,
and fruits are alike consumed. The unexpected arrival of these insects
in swarms at their first coming, and their sudden disappearance at the
close of their career, are remarkable facts in their history. They come
forth from the ground during the second week in June, or about the time
of the blossoming of the damask-rose, and remain from thirty to forty
days. At the end of this period the males become exhausted, fall to the
ground, and perish; while the females enter the earth, lay their eggs,
return to the surface, and, after lingering a few days, die also.

"The eggs laid by each female are about thirty in number, and are
deposited from one to four inches beneath the surface of the soil: they
are nearly globular, whitish, and about one-thirtieth of an inch in
diameter, and are hatched twenty days after they are laid. The young
larvæ begin to feed on such tender roots as are within their reach. Like
other grubs of the Scarabæians, when not eating they lie upon the side,
with the body covered, so that the head and tail are nearly in contact:
they move with difficulty on a level surface, and are continually
falling over on one side or the other. They attain their full size in
the autumn, being then nearly three-quarters of an inch long, and about
an eighth of an inch in diameter. They are of a yellowish-white color,
with a tinge of blue towards the hinder extremity, which is thick, and
obtuse or rounded. A few short hairs are scattered on the surface of
the body. There are six short legs; namely, a pair to each of the first
three rings behind the head: and the latter is covered with a horny
shell of a pale rust color. In October they descend below the reach
of frost, and pass the winter in a torpid state. In the spring they
approach towards the surface, and each one forms for itself a little
cell of an oval shape by turning round a great many times, so as to
compress the earth, and render the inside of the cavity hard and smooth.
Within this cell the grub is transformed to a pupa during the month of
May by casting off its skin, which is pushed downwards in folds from
the head to the tail. The pupa has somewhat the form of the perfected
beetle, but is of a yellowish-white color; its short, stump-like wings,
its antennæ, and its legs, are folded upon the breast; and its whole
body is enclosed in a thin film, that wraps each part separately.
During the month of June, this filmy skin is rent: the included beetle
withdraws from its body and its limbs, bursts open its earthen cell,
and digs its way to the surface of the ground. Thus the various changes,
from the egg to the full development of the perfected beetle, are
completed within the space of one year.

"Such being the metamorphoses and habits of these insects, it is evident
that we cannot attack them in the egg, the grub, or the pupa state: the
enemy in these stages is beyond our reach, and is subject to the control
only of the natural but unknown means appointed by the Author of Nature
to keep the insect tribes in check. When they have issued from their
subterranean retreats, and have congregated upon our vines, trees,
and other vegetable productions, in the complete enjoyment of their
propensities, we must unite our efforts to seize and crush the invaders.
They must indeed be crushed, scalded, or burned, to deprive them of
life; for they are not affected by any of the applications usually
found destructive to other insects. Experience has proved the utility
of gathering them by hand, or of shaking them or brushing them from
the plants into tin vessels containing a little water. They should be
collected daily during the period of their visitation, and should be
committed to the flames, or killed by scalding water. The late John
Lowell, Esq., states that, in 1823, he discovered on a solitary
apple-tree the rose-bugs 'in vast numbers, such as could not be
described, and would not be believed if they were described, or at least
none but an ocular witness could conceive of their numbers. Destruction
by hand was out of the question,' in this case. He put sheets under the
tree, shook them down, and burned them.

"Dr. Green of Mansfield, whose investigations have thrown much light on
the history of this insect, proposes protecting plants with millinet,
and says that in this way only did he succeed in securing his
grape-vines from depredation. His remarks also show the utility of
gathering them. 'Eighty-six of these spoilers,' says he, 'were known to
infest a single rose-bud, and were crushed with one grasp of the hand.'
Suppose, as was probably the case, that one-half of them were females:
by this destruction, eight hundred eggs, at least, were prevented from
becoming matured. During the time of their prevalence, rose-bugs
are sometimes found in immense numbers on the flowers of the common
white-weed, or ox-eyed daisy (_Chrysanthemum leucanihemum_); a worthless
plant, which has come to us from Europe, and has been suffered to
overrun our pastures and encroach on our mowing-lands. In certain cases,
it may become expedient rapidly to mow down the infested white-weed in
dry pastures, and consume it, with the sluggish rose-bugs, on the spot.

"Our insect-eating birds undoubtedly devour many of these insects, and
deserve to be cherished and protected for their services. Rose-bugs
are also eaten greedily by domesticated fowls; and when they become
exhausted and fall to the ground, or when they are about to lay their
eggs, they are destroyed by moles, insects, and other animals, which
lie in wait to seize them. Dr. Green informs us that a species of
dragon-fly, or devil's-needle, devours them. He also says that an
insect, which he calls the enemy of the cut-worm (probably the larva of
a Carabus or predaceous ground-beetle), preys on the grubs of the common
dor-bug. In France, the golden ground-beetle (_Carabus auratus_) devours
the female dor, or chafer, at the moment when she is about to deposit
her eggs. I have taken one specimen of this fine ground-beetle in
Massachusetts; and we have several other kinds equally predaceous, which
probably contribute to check the increase of our native Melolonthians."

[Illustration: 0052]




CHAPTER II. POT CULTURE

[Illustration: 0053]

|MANY OF the ever-blooming roses cannot, in our climate, be cultivated
in the open air without extreme precaution to protect them from the
cold. To grow them most successfully, the aid of glass is necessary.
Many of the Hardy Perpetual roses may also be grown with advantage in
pots, by which means their bloom may be prolonged into the early winter
months, or they may be forced into premature flowering long before their
natural season of bloom. The first essential in the pot culture of roses
is the preparation of the soil. Those of delicate growth, like most of
the China and Tea roses, require a lighter soil than the more robust
varieties, like most of the Hardy Perpetuals. A mixture of loam, manure,
leaf-mould, and sand, in the proportion of two bushels of loam to one
bushel of manure, one bushel of leaf-mould, and half a bushel of sand,
makes a good soil for the more delicate roses. For the more robust
kinds, the proportion of loam and of manure should be greater. In all
cases, the materials should be mixed two or three months before they
are wanted for use, and turned over several times to incorporate them
thoroughly. They are frequently, however, mixed, and used at once. The
best loam is that composed of thoroughly rotted turf. A very skilful
English rose-grower, Mr. Rivers, recommends the compact turf shaved from
the surface of an old pasture, and roasted and partially charred on a
sheet of iron over a moderate fire. I have found no enriching material
so good as the sweepings from the floor of a horse-shoer, in which
manure is mixed with the shavings of hoofs. It is light and porous, and
furnishes, in decomposing, a great quantity of ammonia. For the more
delicate roses it is particularly suited, while the stronger kinds will
bear manures of a stronger and denser nature. The light black soil from
the woods is an excellent substitute for leaf-mould; or, to speak more
correctly, it is a natural leaf-mould in the most thorough state of
decomposition.

Young and thrifty roses which have been grown during summer may be
potted for the house in September. They should be taken up with care,
the large straggling roots cut back, and all bruised ends removed with a
sharp knife. The ends of the branches should also be cut back. They
may then be potted in the compost just described, which should first be
sifted through a very coarse sieve. The pots must be well drained with
broken crocks placed over the hole at the bottom. Care must be taken
that the pot be not too large, as this is very injurious. A sharp stick
may be used to compact the soil about the roots; and from half an
inch to an inch in depth should be left empty at the top, to assist in
thorough watering, which is a point of the first importance.

When the roses are potted, they should be placed in a light cellar or
shed, or under a shady wall. They must be well watered, and it is well
to syringe them occasionally. In a week or two they will have become
established, and may then be removed to a greenhouse without fire,
and with plenty of air; care, however, being taken to protect them from
frost at night.

The roses so treated are intended for blooming from mid-winter to the
end of spring; and we shall soon speak further of them under the head of
Forcing.

A great desideratum is the obtaining of roses in the early part of
winter. This may be done by growing everblooming roses in pots in the
open air during summer, plunging the pot in the earth, and placing a
tile or brick beneath it to prevent the egress of roots and the ingress
of worms. Towards the end of August, cut off all the flowers and buds,
at the same time shortening the flower-stalks to two or three eyes. Then
give the roses a supply of manure-water to stimulate their growth.
If they are in a thrifty condition, they will form new shoots and
flower-buds before the frost sets in; and may then be removed to a cold
greenhouse, where they will continue, to flower for several months.

The following is the description given by Mr. Rivers of a practice
recently introduced in England, and which seems well worth a trial here,
with such modifications as the heat of our sun may require:--

"To have a fine bloom of these roses, or, indeed, of any of the Hybrid
Perpetuals, Bourbons, or China roses, in pots towards the end of summer
or autumn, take plants from small pots (those struck from cuttings in
March or April will do), and put them into six-inch, or even eight-inch
pots, using a compost of light turfy loam and rotten manure, equal
parts: to a bushel of the compost add half a peck of pounded charcoal,
and the same quantity of silver sand; make a hot-bed of sufficient
strength, say three to four feet in height, of seasoned dung, so that
it is not of a burning heat, in a sunny, exposed situation,' and on this
place the pots; then fill up all interstices with sawdust, placing it so
as to cover the rims, and to lie on the surface of the mould in the pots
about two inches deep. The pots should have a good sound watering before
they are thus plunged, and have water daily in dry weather. The bottom
heat and full exposure to the sun and air will give the plants a vigor
almost beyond belief. This very simple mode of culture is as yet almost
unknown. I have circulated among a few friends the above directions;
and have no doubt, that, in the hands of skilful gardeners, some
extraordinary results may be looked for in the production of specimens
of soft-wooded plants. I may add, that, when the heat of the bed
declines towards the middle of July, the pots must be removed, some
fresh dung added, and the bed remade, again plunging the plants
immediately. Towards the end of August, the roots of the plants must
be ripened: the pots must, therefore, be gradually lifted out of the
saw-dust; i.e., for five or six days, expose them about two inches below
their rims; then, after the same lapse of time, a little lower, till the
whole of the pot is exposed to the sun and air: they may be then removed
to the greenhouse, so as to be sheltered from heavy rain. They will
bloom well in the autumn, and be in fine order for early forcing. If
plants are required during the summer for exhibition, or any other
purpose, care must always be taken to harden or ripen their roots, as
above, before they are removed from the hot-bed."

[Illustration: 0058]

"Forcing" is the very inappropriate name of the process by which roses
and other plants are induced to bloom under glass in advance of their
natural season. We say that the name is inappropriate, because one
of the chief essentials to the success of the process consists in an
abstinence from all that is violent or sudden, and in the gentle and
graduated application of the stimulus of artificial heat.

Roses may be forced in the greenhouse, but not to advantage, because the
conditions of success will be inconsistent with the requirements of many
of the other plants. The process is best carried on in a small glass
structure made for such purposes, and called a "forcing-pit."

A pit ten or twelve feet long and eight or ten wide will commonly be
large enough. It may be of the simplest and cheapest construction. In a
dry situation, there is advantage in sinking the lower part of it two or
three feet below the surface of the ground. The roses may be placed on
beds of earth, or on wooden platforms, so arranged as to bring the
top of the plants near the glass; and a sunken path may pass down the
middle. The pit may be heated by a stove enclosed with brick-work, and
furnished with a flue of brick or tile passing along the front of the
pit, and entering the chimney at the farther end. The lights must be
movable, or other means provided' for ample ventilation; and if these
are such that the air on entering will pass over the heated flues, and
thus become warmed in the passage, great advantage will result. A pit
may be appended to a greenhouse; in which case it may be heated by
hot-water pipes furnished with means of cutting off or letting on the
water.

The roses potted for forcing, as directed in the last section, should be
kept in a dormant state till the middle of December. A portion of them
may then be brought into the pit, and the young shoots pruned back to
two or three eyes. The heat at first must be very moderate, not much
exceeding forty-five degrees in the daytime: and, throughout the
process, the pit should be kept as cool as possible at night; great
care, however, being taken that no frost is admitted. With this view,
the glass should be covered at sunset with thick mats. Syringe the
plants as the buds begin to swell, and lose no opportunity to give air
on mild and bright days. Raise the heat gradually till it reaches sixty
degrees; which is enough during the winter months, so far as fire-heat
is concerned. The heat of the sun will sometimes raise it to seventy
or eighty degrees. Syringe every morning; and, if the aphis appears,
fumigate with tobacco; then syringe forcibly to wash off the dead
insects. As the plants advance in growth, they require plenty of water;
and, as the buds begin to swell, manure-water may be applied once or
twice. When the buds are ready to open, the pots may be removed to the
greenhouse or drawing-room, and another supply put in their place for a
second crop of flowers. When the blooms are faded, the flower-stalks
may be cut back to two or three eyes, and the plants placed again in
the forcing-pit for another crop. This, of course, is applicable to
ever-blooming roses only.

The most common and simple way, however, of obtaining roses in winter,
is to grow them on rafters in the greenhouse. Some of the Noisette,
China, and Tea roses, thus treated, will furnish an abundant supply
of excellent flowers. By pruning them at different periods during the
summer and autumn, they will be induced to flower in succession; since,
with all roses, the time of blooming is, to a great degree, dependent on
the time of pruning.

Roses potted in the manner described for forcing may also be brought
into bloom in the sunny window of a chamber or drawing-room. They will
bloom much better if allowed to remain at rest in a cool cellar for a
month or two after potting.

[Illustration: 0061]

The following is a cheap mode of forcing, described by an English
cultivator. The amateur may, perhaps, be disposed to make the
experiment.

"Those who wish for the luxury of forced roses at a trifling cost may
have them by pursuing the following simple method: Take a common garden
frame, large or small, according to the number of roses wanted; raise it
on some posts, so that the bottom edge will be about three feet from the
ground at the back of the frame, and two feet in front, sloping to the
south. If it is two feet deep, this will give a depth of five feet under
the lights at the back of the frame, which will admit roses on little
stems as well as dwarfs. Grafted or budded plants of any of the
Perpetual roses should be potted in October, in a rich compost of equal
portions of rotten dung and loam, in pots about eight inches deep and
seven inches over, and plunged in the soil at the bottom. The air in the
frame may be heated by linings of hot dung; but care must be taken that
the dung be turned over two or three times before it is used, otherwise
the rank and noxious steam will kill the young and tender shoots: but
the hazard of this may be avoided by building a wall of turf, three
inches thick, from the ground to the bottom edge of the frame. This will
admit the heat through it, and exclude the steam. The Perpetual roses,
thus made to bloom early, are really beautiful."

[Illustration: 0062]

Now, in the way of exciting the reader's emulation, I will mention a few
items of the opening flower-show of the Crystal Palace, Sydenham, on the
26th of May, a few years ago. The following specimens of roses, in pots,
are chronicled among innumerable others:--

Madame Willeemoz (_Tea-scented Rose_), seven feet high, with more than a
hundred expanded flowers.

Souvenir de la Malmaison (_Bourbon Rose_), with thirty expanded flowers,
the largest more than five inches in diameter.

Paul Pereas (_Hybrid Bourbon Rose_), six feet high, with nearly a
hundred expanded flowers.

Coupe d'Hébé (_Hybrid Bourbon Rose_), six feet high, covered with a mass
of bloom.

These were all raised by Mr. Paul, one of the most skilful of English
rose-growers; and were the results of patience, care, and experience.
We hold the production of specimens like these a work of art worthy of
zealous emulation. Our climate is quite as favorable to their production
as that of England; and, when the floricultural art has reached among
us the same development, our horticultural shows will, no doubt,
boast decorations equally splendid. The plants just mentioned were the
productions of a nurseryman; but specimens of roses grown to the highest
perfection are every year exhibited in England by amateur cultivators.
The competition for prizes, far from being a mere strife for a small sum
of money, is an honorable emulation, in which the credit of success is
the winner's best reward.

One point cannot be too often urged in respect to horticultural
pursuits. Never attempt to do any thing which you are not prepared to
do thoroughly. A little done well is far more satisfactory than a great
deal done carelessly and superficially. He who raises one perfect and
fully developed specimen of a plant is a better horticulturist than he
who raises an acre of indifferent specimens. The amateur who has made
himself a thorough master of the cultivation of a single species or
variety, has, of necessity, acquired a knowledge and skill, which, with
very little pains, he may apply to numberless other forms of culture.
Learn to produce a first-class specimen of the rose grown in a pot, and
you will have no difficulty in successfully applying your observation
and experience to a vast variety of plants. We will, therefore, enter
into some detail as to the methods of procedure. For many of the
specific directions I am indebted to Mr. Paul, the exhibiter of the fine
specimens named above, and the author, among other books, of a useful
little treatise on the cultivation of roses in pots.

_Soil_ is the point that first demands attention, and directions
concerning it have already been given. You have bought a number of young
roses, in small pots, in the spring. Be sure that these roses have been
in a dormant state during the winter; for, if they have been kept in
growth, their vital power is partially exhausted. They may be budded
on short stems of the Manetti or other good stock (see the chapter on
_Budding_), or they may be on their own roots. The Tea and China roses
are certainly better in the latter condition. Shift them from the small
pots into pots a very little larger, without breaking the ball of earth
around their roots. Water them well, and plunge them to the edge of the
pot in earth, in an open, airy, sunny place. Or they may be set on the
surface, provided the spaces between them are well packed with tan,
coal-ashes, or swamp-moss. The last is excellent: it holds moisture like
a sponge. In every case, the pots should rest on flat bricks, slates,
tiles, or inverted pans, in order that worms may be excluded, and that
the roots may not be tempted to thrust themselves through the hole. In
potting, thorough drainage should be secured by placing broken crocks at
the bottom of the pot.

Encourage the growth of the plants by pinching off the flower-buds. The
object throughout the summer is to get a few stout well-ripened shoots
by autumn. Therefore the pots should not be very close together, since
this would deprive the plants of free air and sunlight. Watering must be
carefully attended to. Cut out, or pinch off, weak or ill-placed shoots;
or, what is better, prevent their growth by rubbing off the buds that
threaten to form such. Thus, if several buds are crowded together in one
place, rub off all but one or two of them, choosing the strongest for
preservation. This is called _dis-budding_. Those of the plants that
grow most vigorously will require to be shifted into still larger pots
in July; but this should be done only in cases where it is necessary.
As a guide on this point, turn them carefully out of the pots to examine
the roots; and, if these are found protruding in great abundance from
the ball of earth, larger pots will be required; but, if otherwise, the
same one will suffice. Some roses suffer greatly if placed in pots too
large for them; and the same is more or less true of all plants.

Late in autumn, when growth has ceased, shift the roses again, if they
need it, and place them for wintering in a cellar or cold frame. In the
spring, prune them, as directed in the chapter on Pruning. After the
rose is pruned, stake out the shoots to as great distances as possible.
Indeed, the larger ones should be made to lie almost horizontal: this
will cause the buds to "break," or open, regularly along their whole
length; whereas, if left upright, a few at the top would break, and the
rest remain dormant. As soon as the buds have opened, the shoots may
be tied up again. Syringe the opening buds, and water moderately,
increasing the amount of moisture as the leaves expand, and watering
abundantly during all the period of full activity of growth; that
is, during summer and early autumn. An occasional application of
manure-water is useful. Watch for insects and mildew, and apply the
remedies elsewhere directed. About midsummer, shift those that need it
into larger pots; an operation which, if performed with skill, will not
check their growth in the least. Continue to disbud and to remove weak
and ill-placed shoots, tying out the rest, as they grow, to stakes, in
order to bring the plant into a symmetrical form. This form is a matter
of taste with the cultivator: it may be a half-globe, a fan, or a
pyramid or cone. The last is usually the best; one strong stem being
allowed to grow in the centre, and smaller stems trained in gradation
around it. None must interfere with their neighbors, and air should have
free play through the plant.

You have reached the second autumn, and your plants are now excellent
for forcing; but, if you aim at first-class specimens, you must give
them, at the least, one season more of growth and training. To this
end, keep them dormant through the winter in a cellar or cold frame as
before, and prune them early in spring. We will suppose that a pyramidal
plant is desired. As soon as they are pruned, draw the lower shoots
downwards over the rim of the pot, just beneath which a wire should pass
around, to which the shoots are to be tied with strings of bass-matting.
The shoots higher up are to be arranged, with the aid of sticks and
strings, so as to decrease in circumference till they terminate in a
point. Constant care and some judgment are needed throughout the growing
season to preserve symmetry of form. Strong shoots must be pinched back,
and weak ones encouraged. Both the plant, and the pot that contains
it, are, or ought to be, so large by this time, that handling them,
especially in the act of shifting, becomes somewhat difficult. In the
third, or at farthest in the fourth autumn, you may expect, as the
result of your pains, a plant that in its blooming season will make
a brilliant contrast with the half-grown and indifferent specimens
sometimes exhibited at our horticultural shows.

If you forget every other point of the above directions, keep in mind
the following: Drain your pots thoroughly; and, when you water them, be
sure that you give water enough to penetrate the whole mass of the earth
contained in them. Watering only the surface, and leaving the roots dry,
is ruinous.

[Illustration: 0068]




CHAPTER III. PROPAGATION

[Illustration: 0069]

|THERE ARE live modes of propagating the rose,--by layers, by cuttings,
by budding, by grafting, and by suckers.

[Illustration: 0070]

This is perhaps, for the amateur, the most convenient and certain
method. The best season for layering is the summer, from the end of
June to the end of August; and, for some varieties, even later. The rose
which is to be multiplied should be in a condition of vigorous growth.

Loosen and pulverize the soil around it; and, if heavy and adhesive, add
a liberal quantity of very old manure mixed with its bulk of sharp
sand. The implements needed for the operation are a knife, a trowel,
and hooked wooden pegs. Choose a well-ripened shoot of the same season's
growth, and strip off the leaves from its base a foot or more up the
stalk; but, by all means, suffer the leaves at the end to remain. Bend
the shoot gently downward with the left hand, and insert the edge of the
knife in its upper or inner side six or eight inches from its base, and
immediately below a bud. Cut half way through the stem; then turn the
edge of the knife upward, and cautiously slit the stem through the
middle, to the length of an inch and a half, thus a tongue of wood, with
a bud at its end, will be formed. With the thumb and finger of the
left hand raise the upper part of the stem erect, at the same time by a
slight twist turning the tongue aside, steadying the stem meanwhile with
the right hand. Thus the tongue will be brought to a right angle, or
nearly so, with the part of the stem from which it was cut. Hold it in
this position with the left hand, while with the trowel you make a slit
in the soil just beneath it. Into this insert the tongue and bent part
of the stem to a depth not much exceeding two inches. Press the earth
firmly round them, and pin them down with one of the hooked pegs. Some
operators cut the tongue on the lower or outer side of the stem; but
this has a double disadvantage. In the first place, the stem is much
more liable to break in being bent; and, in the next place, the tongue
is liable to re-unite with the cut part, and thus defeat the operation.
When all is finished, the extremity of the shoot should stand out of
the ground as nearly upright as possible, and should by no means be cut
back,--a mistaken practice in use with some gardeners.

In a favorable season, most of the layers will be well rooted before the
frost sets in. If the weather is very dry, there will be many failures.
Instead of roots, a hard cellular substance will form in a ball around
the tongue. In the dry summer of 1864, the rose-layers were thus
"clubbed" with lumps often as large as a hen's egg; but cases like this
are rare.

In November, it is better in our severe climate to take up the rooted
layers, and keep them during winter in a "cold frame;" that is, a frame
constructed like that of a hot-bed, without the heat. Here they should
be set closely in light soil to the depth of at least six inches, and
covered with boards and matting; or they may be potted in small pots,
and placed in a frame or cellar.

Layers may be made in spring from wood of the last season's growth; but
laying the young wood during slimmer, as described above, is much to be
preferred.

[Ill 0072]

All roses may be propagated by cuttings; but some kinds strike root much
more readily than others. The hard-wooded roses, including the entire
family of the Hardy June roses, and especially the Mosses, are increased
with difficulty by cuttings. The Hybrid Perpétuais root more readily;
while the tender ever-blooming roses, including the Teas, Noisettes, and
Chinas, are propagated in this way with great ease.

Cuttings may be made from the ripened or the half-ripened wood. In the
case of roses, and of nearly all ligneous plants, cuttings made from the
ripe wood do not require bottom-heat, and are more likely to be injured
than benefited by it. On the other hand, cuttings of the soft or unripe
wood strike root with more quickness and certainty if stimulated by the
application of a gentle heat from below.

In propagating roses from the ripe wood, the cuttings must be made early
in autumn from wood of the same season's growth. The chances of success
will be increased if they are taken off close to the old wood with what
is called a "heel;" that is, with a very small portion of the old wood
attached. The heel should be trimmed smooth with a sharp knife: the
cuttings may be six or eight inches long. Strip off any leaves which may
still adhere to them, and plant them in rows, at a depth of about five
inches, in a cold frame. The soil should be very light, and thoroughly
drained: water it, to settle it, around the cuttings. On the approach of
frost, they should be protected with boards and mats, giving them air on
fine days during winter. In the spring, a white cellular growth called
a "callus" will have formed at the heel of each cutting, which, if the
process succeeds, will soon emit roots, and become a plant.

Propagation in summer from the half-ripe wood is a better and less
uncertain method. In June and July, immediately after the blossoms
wither, and before the rose has begun its second growth, cuttings should
be made of the flower-stems. Each cutting may contain two or three buds.
The lower leaves must be taken off; but the upper leaves must remain.
Trim off the stem smoothly with a sharp knife below the lowest bud, and
as near to it as possible without injuring it.

If the cuttings are taken off with a heel, as above described, the
chance of success will be greater. They may now be inserted at the depth
of an inch and a half around the edge of a small pot filled one-third
with broken crocks, and the remainder with a mixture of loam,
leaf-mould, and sharp sand. Now place them in a frame on the shady
side of a hedge or fence, water them to settle the soil, and cover them
closely with glass. Sprinkle them lightly every morning and night; and,
when moisture gathers on the inner surface of the glass, turn it over,
placing the dry side inward. If mould or decay attacks the cuttings,
wedge up the glass a little to give them air. In a week or two, they
will form a callus; after which they may be removed to a gentle hot-bed,
kept moderately close, and shaded from the direct sun. Here they will
quickly strike root, and may be potted off singly into small pots.

Another mode of propagation, and a favorite one with nursery-men, is
practised early in the spring. In this case, the cuttings are made from
forced roses, or roses grown on greenhouse rafters. Some propagators
prefer the wood in a very soft state, cutting it even before the flowers
are expanded. The cuttings may be placed in pots as in the former case,
or in shallow boxes or earthen pans thoroughly drained with broken
crocks. The soil should be shallow enough to allow the heel of the
cutting to touch the crocks. They are to be placed at once on a moderate
bottom-heat, covered closely with glass, and shaded from the direct rays
of the noontide sun. Their subsequent treatment is similar to that of
summer cuttings. They must be closely watched, and those that show signs
of mould or decay at once removed.

After the callus is formed, they will bear more air. When rooted, they
should be potted into small pots, and placed on a hot-bed of which the
heat is on the decline. Towards the end of May, when the earth is warmed
by the sun, they may be turned out of the pots into the open ground,
where they will soon make strong plants.

Many American nursery-men strike rose-cuttings in spring, in pure
sand, over a hot-bed or a tank of hot water, in the close air of the
propagating-house. They must be potted immediately on rooting, as
the sand supplies them with nothing to subsist on. We have seen many
hundreds rooted in this way with scarcely a single failure.

The management of difficult cuttings requires a certain tact, only to
be gained by practice and observation; and the gardener who succeeds in
rooting a pot of cuttings of the Moss Rose has some reason to be proud
of his success.

With respect to the relative value of roses propagated by the methods
above described, the most experienced cultivators are unanimous in the
opinion, that those raised from layers and from cuttings of the ripe
wood, without artificial heat, are superior in vigor and endurance to
those raised from the half-ripe wood with the stimulus of a close heat.
Unfortunately, the former method is so slow and uncertain when compared
with the latter, that nurserymen rarely employ it to any great extent;
and a good choice of roses on their own roots, raised without heat, is
sometimes difficult to find.

The following is a mode of propagation not often practised, but which is
well worthy of trial, as it is applicable to prunings which are usually
thrown away. The extract is from the "Gardener's Chronicle."

"The rose is as easily propagated by means of buds or eyes as the vine.
If your correspondent 'X' will take a strong shoot from almost any kind
of rose in a dormant state, and with a sharp knife cut it into as many
pieces as there are good eyes on the shoots, the pieces not being more
than one inch long, taking care to have the eye in the centre of the
piece, he will doubtless succeed. One-third of the wood should be cut
clean off from end to end at the back of the eye, just as you would
prepare a vine eye. In preparing the cutting-pans, it is most essential
to put a good quantity of broken potsherds in the bottom, beginning with
large pieces, and finishing with others more finely broken: then mix a
quantity of good loam, leaf-soil, and sand, in equal proportions; rub it
through a fine sieve, and fill the pans to within one inch of the top,
pressing down the soil moderately firm. After that, put in the eyes in
a leaning or slanting position, pressing them firmly into the soil with
the thumb and finger; taking care to keep the thumb on the bottom end of
the cutting, to prevent the bark from being injured. After the eyes are
put in, give the pan two or three gentle raps on the bench; then put
half an inch of silver or clean river sand on the top, water with a fine
rose, and plunge the pans in a nice bottom heat of say sixty degrees,
covering the surface over with moss to prevent the soil from getting
dry: they will not require any more water for a week or ten days. The
moss should be carefully removed as soon as the young shoots begin to
push through the sand. In three weeks from that time, the roses will
be fit for potting off into large sixty-sized pots. They should then be
placed in a temperature of seventy degrees, when they will soon repay
the care bestowed on them. I, however, prefer grafting on the Manetti
stock. I grafted a lot in a dormant state seven weeks ago: they are now
nice plants, and will be in bloom by May."--_J. Willis, Oulton Park,
Cheshire_.

[Illustration: 0077]

This mode of propagation is attended with great advantages and great
evils. A new or rare rose may be increased by it more rapidly and surely
than by any other means; while roses of feeble growth on their own
roots will often grow and bloom vigorously when budded on a strong and
congenial stock. On the other hand, the very existence of a budded rose
is, in our severe climate, precarious. A hard winter may kill it down to
the point of inoculation, and it is then lost past recovery; whereas a
rose on its own roots may be killed to the level of the earth, and yet
throw up vigorous shoots in the spring. Moreover, a budded rose requires
more attention than the cultivator is always willing to bestow on it.
An ill-informed or careless amateur will suffer shoots to grow from
the roots or stem of the stock; and, as these are always vigorous, they
engross all the nourishment, and leave the budded rose to dwindle or
die; while its disappointed owner, ignorant of the true condition of
things, often congratulates himself on the prosperous growth of his
plant. At length he is undeceived by the opening of the buds, and the
appearance of a host of insignificant single roses in the place of the
Giant of Battles or General Jacqueminot.

Budding, however, cannot be dispensed with, since, in losing it, we
should lose the most effectual means of increasing and distributing
the choicest roses. The process consists in implanting, as it were, an
undeveloped leaf-bud, of the variety we wish to increase, in the bark
and wood of some other species of rose. The latter is called the stock,
and it should be of a hardy and vigorous nature. Two conditions are
essential to the process. The first is, that the bark of the stock will
"slip;" in other words, separate freely from the wood. The second is,
that the rose to be increased should be furnished with young and sound
leaf-buds in a dormant state. These conditions are best answered
in summer and early autumn, from the first of July to the middle of
September. During the whole of this period, the sap being in active
motion, the bark separates freely from the wood, while there is always
a supply of plump and healthy buds on shoots of the same year's growth.
The only implement necessary is a budding-knife. The operator should
also provide himself with strings of bass-matting, moistened to make
them pliant. Instead of the bass, cotton-wicking is occasionally used.
Cut well-ripened shoots of the variety to be increased, provided with
plump and healthy buds. In order to prevent exhaustion by evaporation
from the surface of the leaves, these should be at once cut off;
leaving, however, about half an inch of the leaf-stalk still attached to
the stem. Insert the knife in the bark of the stem half an inch above a
bud, and then pass it smoothly downward to the distance of half an inch
below the bud, thus removing the latter with a strip of bark attached. A
small portion of the wood will also adhere. This may be removed; though
this is not necessary, and is attended with some little risk of pulling
out with it the eye, or vital part, of the bud. Now place the bud
between the lips while you take the next step of the process. This
consists in cutting a vertical, slit in the bark of the stock. This
done, cut a tranverse slit across the top of the vertical one. Both
should be quite through the bark to the wood below; then, with the
flat handle of the budding-knife, raise the corners of the bark, and
disengage it from the wood sufficiently to allow of the bud being
slipped smoothly into the crevice between the wood and bark of the
stock. Next apply the edge of the knife to the protruding end of the
bark attached to the bud, and cut it smoothly off immediately over
the tranverse slit in the bark of the stock. The bud is now adjusted
accurately in its place, the overlapping bark closing neatly around
it. Now tie it above and below pretty firmly with repeated turns of the
bass-matting, and the work is done. It must be remembered, that, to be
well done, it must be quickly done; and it is better to insert the bud
on the north or shady side of the stock.

The bud and the stock will soon begin to grow together. After a week or
two they should be examined, and the tie loosened. If the bud is put
in early in the season, it may be made to grow almost immediately
by cutting off the ends of the growing shoots of the stock, and thus
forcing sap towards the bud. As the bud grows, the stock should be still
further shortened, and all the shoots growing below the bud should be
removed altogether.

Budded stocks require in this country, at least when the buds are
dormant, a protection against the winter. Where there are but few, oiled
paper, or something of' a similar nature, may be tied over the bud as
a shelter from snow, rain, and sun; but, when there are many, this is
impossible, and the stocks may be taken up, and "heeled" close together
in a dry soil under a shelter of boards and mats. "Heeling" is merely a
temporary planting.

In the following spring, the stocks may be cut off to within an inch
of the bud, and then planted where they are to remain. When the bud
is inserted near the ground,--which in our climate should always be
done,--the stock should be planted in such a manner that the bud is a
little below the level of the earth. To this end, the stock should be
set in a slanting position in the hole dug for it; the bud, of course,
being uppermost, and about an inch below the level of the edge of the
hole: then the hole should be partially filled in. When the bud has
grown out to the height of six or eight inches, the hole may be filled
altogether. No part of the stock will now be seen above the earth. By
this means, the point of junction of the stock and the bud is protected
from the cold of winter and the heat of summer, and the rose will live
longer and thrive better than where the stock is exposed. In many cases,
the rose will throw out roots of its own above its junction with the
stock, and thus become in time a self-rooted plant.

There are two kinds of stocks in common use at the present time for
out-door roses. One is the Dog Rose, a variety growing wild in various
parts of Europe; the other is the Manetti Rose, a seedling raised by the
Italian cultivator whose name it bears. There can be no doubt, that, of
the two, the Manetti is by far the better for this climate. It is very
vigorous, very hardy, easily increased by layers or cuttings of the ripe
wood, and free from the vicious habit of the Dog Rose, of throwing out
long under-ground suckers. We would by no means say that it will not
throw up an abundance of shoots from the roots if allowed to do so; but
these shoots are easily distinguished by a practised eye from those of
the budded rose. They may be known at a glance by the peculiar reddish
tint of the stem, and by the shape and the deep glossy hue of the
leaves.

They must be removed as soon as seen, not by cutting them off, but by
tearing them off under ground, either by hand if possible, or with the
help of a forked stick, which, pressed strongly into the earth, slips
them off at their junction with the root.

It cannot be denied that many kinds of roses, budded low on the Manetti
stock, will grow with a vigor, and bloom with a splendor, which they do
not reach on their own roots, and which will often repay the additional
labor which they exact. We once planted in the manner above described
a strong Manetti stock containing a single bud of the Hybrid Perpetual
Hose,---Triomphe de l'Exposition. In the September following, it had
thrown up a stem with several branches, the central shoot rising to the
height of six feet and a half, and bearing on its top the largest and
finest blossom we have ever seen of that superb variety. Some roses,
however, will not grow well on the Manetti. Others, again, can scarcely
be grown with advantage in any other way, refusing to strike root from
layers, and often failing when the attempt is made to root them from
cuttings even of the soft wood. Some, even when rooted, remain feeble
and dwarfish plants; while, if a bud from them is implanted in a good
Manetti stock, it would grow to a vigorous bush in one season. To sum
up, we would say, that, for the amateur, nine roses out of ten are
better on their own roots, while there are a few which can only be grown
successfully, budded on a good stock.

[Illustration: 0085]

All the evil that can be spoken of budded roses is doubly true of
grafted roses; while the advantages which the former can claim are
possessed in a less degree by the latter. The reason is, simply, that,
in the case of the budded rose, the junction between the stock and
foreign variety is commonly more perfect than in the case of the grafted
rose. Indeed, it would not be worth while to graft roses at all, were it
not for the fact that grafting can be practised at times when budding
is impossible. This is because it is indispensable, in budding, that the
sap of the stock should be in full motion; whereas, in grafting, it may
be at rest.

There are innumerable modes of grafting; but, for the rose, the simplest
form of what is called "whip-grafting" is perhaps the best. In the end
of winter, or at the beginning of spring, take young well-rooted plants
of the Ma-netti stock, having stems not much larger than a quill.
Beginning very near the root, shave off with a sharp knife a slip of the
bark, with a little of the wood, to the length of something more than
an inch; then shave down the lower end of the graft until it fits
accurately the part of the stock whence the bark and wood have been
pared off. The essential point is, that the inner bark of the graft
should be in contact with the inner bark of the stock. When the two are
fitted, bind them around with strings of wet bass-matting. Now plant the
stock in a pot, setting it so deeply, that its point of junction with
the graft is completely covered with soil. Place the pots thus prepared
on a gentle hot-bed, and cover them closely with glass. When the shoots
from the graft are well grown out, give them air by degrees to harden
them.

A better way is to pot the stocks early in autumn, so that they may
become well established. In this case, it will be necessary to cover
the junction of the stock and graft with grafting wax or clay in such
a manner as to exclude all air; then plunge the pots in old tan over a
gentle hot-bed, so deeply that the grafted part is completely covered,
the ends only of the grafts being visible. This keeps them in an equable
heat and moisture. The subsequent treatment is the same as in the former
case. As the stock has acquired a hold on the earth of the pot, or is,
as the gardeners express it, "established," the graft will grow much
more quickly, and make a strong blooming plant the same season.

In all grafting, whether of roses or other woody plants, it is necessary
that the buds of the graft should be completely dormant. In the stock,
on the other hand, a slight and partial awakening of the vital action at
the time the graft is put on seems rather beneficial than injurious.

[Illustration: 0086]

[Illustration: 8086]

In this mode of increasing roses, Nature, rather than the cultivator,
may be said to do the work of propagation. Many sorts of roses throw out
spontaneously long underground stems, from which roots soon issue, and
which soon throw up an abundance of shoots above ground. When these
suckers, as they are called, are separated from the parent, and planted
apart, they make a strong growth, but rarely form plants so symmetrical
as those raised from cuttings or layers.

[Illustration: 0087]




CHAPTER IV. MISCELLANEOUS OPERATIONS

|RAISING NEW VARIETIES.--A layer, a cutting, a bud, a graft, and a
sucker, are detached portions of an individual plant; and the plant
resulting from them is of precisely the same character with the parent.
But, when the seed germinates, it is not the reproduction of the same
individual, but it is the birth of a new one. The offspring will show a
family likeness; but it is by no means probable, at least in the case of
the rose, that its features will be precisely the same with those of
its parent. Plant the seeds of a rose; as, for example, of the Hybrid
Perpetual, La Reine, and of the resulting seedlings: all will probably
show traces, more or less, of their origin; but the greater part will
be far inferior to the parent. Some will be single; many will be half
double; and, among a large number of seedlings, we shall be fortunate if
we find two or three equal in beauty to La Reine herself. Nor is it at
all likely that even these will be her precise counterparts. They may
possibly be her equals; but they will not exactly resemble her: and thus
we obtain a new and valuable acquisition to the list of roses. Now, if,
instead of singly gathering and sowing the seeds of La Reine, we first
impregnate its flowers with the pollen of a different variety, such
as the Giant of Battles, our chance of a valuable result is increased,
because, if we are fortunate, we combine the desirable qualities of two
sorts. It is not impossible that we may thus produce a rose combining
the vigorous growth and large globular flowers of La Reine with some
portion of the vivid coloring of the Giant of Battles. It is by the
raising of seedlings with or without hybridization that the innumerable
roses that decorate our gardens and fill the catalogues of nursery-men
have been produced. M. Laffay, to whom more than to any other single
cultivator we are indebted for bringing into existence the splendid
family of the Hybrid Perpetual roses, raised in one year more than three
hundred thousand seedlings. Of these, all but a small portion were,
no doubt, pulled up, and thrown away as worthless, after their first
blooming; the rest were allowed to stand for further trial: and if,
finally, a score or two of roses really distinct and valuable were
obtained, the year's culture may have been regarded as a great success.
It requires a long time before the character of a seedling-rose can be
thoroughly ascertained. M. Margottin, another eminent rose-grower, says
that no conscientious cultivator will permit a seedling to pass out of
his hands until lie has given it a six-years' trial.

The raising of roses from seed is an occupation of so much interest,
that few who have fairly entered upon it have ever willingly abandoned
it. Many choice roses have been raised by amateurs; and those who
have the time and means to enter on a large or a small scale upon
this pursuit will find it a source of abundant enjoyment. In the next
chapter, we shall point out the combinations from which the existing
classes of Hybrid roses have sprung; and hereafter, when we come to the
description of these classes, we shall add a few suggestions as to other
combinations likely to produce good results.

Some roses bear seed freely, while others can hardly be induced to bear
it at all. The hybridizer should take note of their peculiarities in
this respect, or he will throw away much labor and patience; for it is
a thankless task to hybridize a rose, which, after all the labor spent
upon it, will not produce a single seed-vessel. Fortunately, many of
the best roses bear seed abundantly; and La Reine, General Jacqueminot,
Jules Margottin, Madame Laffay, and many others as good as these, may
confidently be relied on. It is a good rule, that no seedling-rose is
worth preserving, or at least worth propagating, that is not, in some
one point, superior to or distinct from any other rose existing.

Roses should be hybridized immediately after they open, or they will
become thoroughly fertilized with their own pollen, and the object of
the operation will thus be defeated. The best time of the day is about
ten o'clock in the morning, as soon as the sun has dried the dew from
the centre of the flower. The pollen of the rose whose qualities it
is wished to impart may be applied to the pistils of the maternal or
seed-bearing flower with a camel's-hair pencil; or one rose may be held
over the other, and tapped with the finger till the pollen falls upon
the pistils of the seed-bearer. Roses are uncertain as to the production
of pollen. In some seasons and some situations it is abundant, while in
others it is produced very scantily. The impregnated roses may be
marked by strings or labels tied to their stems. The seed should not be
gathered till the first frost; and, to insure its ripening, the plant
should stand in a warm, sunny exposure. The pods should be laid in the
sun to dry, then broken up, and the seed separated by means of a sieve.

We have found the following mode of sowing a successful one: A frame--a
shallow hot-bed frame answers perfectly--should be prepared by making
within it a bed of loam, old manure, leaf-mould, and sand, at least
eighteen inches deep. These materials should be thoroughly mixed,
and the surface layer for an inch or two in depth sifted through a
moderately coarse sieve, and then levelled and smoothed. The seeds may
be sown broadcast; that is to say, scattered over the surface. They may
be sown thickly, as not a third part will germinate; and, when sown,
they should be pressed firmly into the soil with a board or the back of
a spade. Then the same soil should be sifted over them to the depth of
half an inch, and pressed down very lightly. Some will prefer to sow
them in drills, which should be about six inches apart; the seed in no
case being more than half an inch deep. Now leave the frame open, and
exposed to rain and frost. Just before the heavy snows begin, and when
the whole is hard frozen, cover it with boards and mats, that it may
remain frozen till spring. The object of this is to protect the seeds
from mice, which are exceedingly fond of them. When the mild weather
begins, open the frame, and allow the ground to thaw: keeping, however,
a close watch upon them; for, though these depredators like to do their
work under cover and in darkness, there is still some little danger of
their attacks. As the soil warms, the seeds will begin to come up. Some
of the ever-blooming roses may blossom the first season; but the Hardy
June kinds will not show bloom before the third, or even the fourth
year. If the plants are too crowded, pull up some of them when the
ground is softened after a rain, and plant them in a bed by themselves.
In the autumn, take them all up, and heel them in a mouse-proof frame
for safe keeping through the winter. In the spring, plant them out in
rich soil, a foot apart. They might, indeed, be wintered safely in
the frame where they originally grew: but this is attended with one
disadvantage; for many of the seeds will not germinate till the second
year; and, in removing the plants at that time, these infant seedlings
would be destroyed; whereas, by leaving them undisturbed, a second crop
may be obtained. Care must be taken throughout to keep the frame free
from weeds.

The eminent English rose-grower, Mr. Rivers, recommends a method of
raising seedlings, which we have not tried, but which we have no doubt
is a good one, though not applicable to raising them on a large scale.
We give his directions in his own words:--

"The hips of all the varieties of roses will, in general, be fully ripe
by the beginning of November: they should then be gathered, and kept
entire in a flower-pot filled with dry sand, carefully guarded from
mice. In February, or by the first week in March, they must be broken to
pieces with the fingers, and sown in flower-pots, such as are generally
used for sowing seeds in, called 'seed-pans;' but, for rose-seeds, they
should not be too shallow: nine inches in depth will be enough. These
should be nearly, but not quite, filled with a rich compost of rotten
manure, and sandy loam or peat. The seeds may be covered to the depth of
about half an inch with the same compost. A piece of kiln-wire must then
be placed over the pot, fitting closely at the rim, so as to prevent the
ingress of mice, which are passionately fond of rose-seeds. There must
be space enough between the wire and the mould for the young plants to
come up: half an inch will probably be found enough. The pots of seed
must never be placed under glass, but kept constantly in the open air,
in a full sunny exposure, as the wire will shade the mould, and prevent
its drying. Water should be given occasionally in dry weather. The young
plants will perhaps make their appearance in April or May; but very
often the seed will not vegetate till the second spring. When they have
made their 'rough leaves,' that is, when they have three or four leaves,
exclusive of their seed-leaves, they must be carefully raised with the
point of a narrow priming-knife, potted into small pots, and placed in
the shade: if the weather be very hot and dry, they may be covered with
a hand-glass for a few days. They may remain in those pots a month, and
then be planted out into a rich border: by the end of August, those that
are robust growers will have made shoots long enough to take buds from.
Those that have done so may be cut down, and one or two strong stocks
budded with each: these will, the following summer, make vigorous
shoots; and the summer following, if left unpruned, to a certainty they
will produce flowers. This is the only method to insure seedling roses
flowering the third year: many will do so that are not budded; but very
often the superior varieties are shy bloomers on their own roots, till
age and careful culture give them strength.

"It may be mentioned here, as treatment applicable to all seed-bearing
roses, that, when it is desirable the qualities of a favorite rose
should preponderate, the petals of the flower to be fertilized must
be opened gently with the fingers. * A flower that will expand in the
morning should be opened the afternoon or evening previous, and the
anthers all removed with a pair of pointed scissors: the following
morning, when this flower is fully expanded, it must be fertilized
with a flower of some variety, of which it is desired to have seedlings
partaking largely of its qualities.

     * "It requires some watchfulness to do this at the proper
     time: if too soon, the petals will be injured in forcing
     them open; and in hot weather, in July, if delayed only an
     hour or two, the anthers will be found to have shed their
     pollen. To ascertain precisely when the pollen is in a fit
     state for transmission, a few of the anthers should be
     gently pressed with the finger and thumb: if the yellow dust
     adheres to them, the operation may be performed. It requires
     close examination and some practice to know when the flower
     to be operated upon is in a fit state to receive the pollen:
     as a general rule, the flowers ought to be in the same state
     of expansion; or, in other words, about the same age. It is
     only in cases where it is wished for the qualities of a
     particular rose to predominate that the removal of the
     anthers of the rose to be fertilized is necessary: thus, if
     a yellow climbing rose is desired by the union of the Yellow
     Brier with the Ayrshire, 'every anther should be removed
     from the latter, so that it is fertilized solely with the
     pollen of the former. In some cases, where it is desirable
     to have the qualities of both parents in an equal degree,
     the removal of the anthers need not take place: thus I have
     found by removing them from the Luxembourg Moss, and
     fertilizing that rose with a dark variety of Rosa Galliea,
     that the features of the Moss Rose are totally lost in its
     offspring, and they become nearly pure varieties of Rosa
     Galliea; but if the anthers of the Moss Rose are left
     untouched, and it is fertilized with Rosa Galliea,
     interesting hybrids are the result, more or less mossy. This
     seems to make superfetation very probable; yet Dr. Lindley,
     in 'Theory of Horticulture' p.332, 'thinks it is not very
     likely to occur.'"

To exemplify this, we will suppose that a climbing Moss Rose with red or
crimson flowers is wished for. The flowers of the Blush Ayrshire, which
bears seed abundantly, may be selected, and, before expansion, the
anthers removed. The following morning, or as soon after the operation
as these flowers open, they should be fertilized with those of the
Luxembourg Moss. If the operation succeed, seeds will be procured, from
which the probability is that a climbing rose will be produced with
the habit and flowers of the Moss Rose, or at least an approximation
to them; and as these hybrids often bear seed freely, by repeating the
process with them, the at present apparent remote chance of getting a
climbing Moss Rose may be brought very near.

"I mention the union of the Moss and Ayrshire roses by way of
illustration, and merely to point out to the amateur how extensive and
how interesting a field of operations is open in this way. I ought to
give a fact that has occurred in my own experience, which will tell
better with the sceptical than a thousand anticipations. About four
years since, in a pan of seedling Moss roses was one with a most
peculiar habit, even when very young: this has since proved a hybrid
rose, partaking much more of the Scotch Rose than of any other, and,
till the plant arrived at full growth, I thought it a Scotch rose, the
seed of which had by accident been mixed with that of the Moss Rose,
although I had taken extreme care. To my surprise, it has since proved
a perfect hybrid, having the sepals and the fruit of the Provence Rose,
with the spiny and dwarf habit of the Scotch Rose: it bears abundance of
hips, which are all abortive. * The difference in the fruit of the Moss
and Provence roses and that of the Scotch is very remarkable, and this
it was which drew my particular attention to the plant in question.

     * "It is more than probable, that, if the flowers of this
     rose were fertilized with those of the single Moss Hose,
     they would produce seed from which some curious hybrid Moss
     roses might be expected."

It was raised from the same seed and in the same seed-pan as the
Single Crimson Moss Rose. As this strange hybrid came from a Moss Rose,
accidentally fertilized, we may expect that art will do much more for
us."

[Illustration: 0097]

Some of the more hardy kinds of climbing roses, as, for example, the
Queen of the Prairies, may be induced to wear borrowed robes, and assume
beauties beyond those with which Nature endowed them. At the proper
season, they may be budded here and there with some of the most hardy
and vigorous of the June and Hybrid Perpetual roses. As these varieties
bloom earlier than the Prairie roses, the period of bloom of the climber
will be greatly protracted by this process, while at the same time it
will be made to bear flowers incomparably finer in form and color than
its own. It will be necessary, however, in our Northern climate, to
protect it by nailing mats over it, since otherwise many of the buds
will be winter-killed; and, as it is expected to yield more than its
natural share of bloom, it should be stimulated with more than the usual
manuring, and pruned more closely than the ordinary climbing roses.

[Illustration: 0098]

We have before spoken of the difficulty of cultivating standard roses,
or roses budded on tall stems, in our climate. It is possible, however,
to produce a kind of standard without a resort to budding. We may choose
some of the most hardy and vigorous of the June roses,--we may find such
especially in the class known as the Hybrid Chinas,--and encourage the
growth of a single, strong, upright stem, removing all other shoots from
the base of the plant as fast as they appear. The stem should be kept
straight by tying it to a stick till it has gained strength enough to
hold itself erect. Thus, in a single season, we shall have, with some
varieties, a stem five or six feet high. Early in spring, prune it down
to the first healthy and plump bud. During the following season,
allow no shoots to develop themselves, except at the top; and, in the
succeeding spring, prune back these top-shoots to two or three eyes.
All of these eyes will, in their turn, develop into shoots; and these,
again, are to be pruned back like the first. Thus, in two or three
seasons, we obtain a thick bushy head at the top of a tall upright stem;
in short, a standard, capable of bearing even a New-England winter.

[Illustration: 0099]

It is always better to prepare beds for roses in the autumn, that they
may have the benefit of a thorough exposure to the winter frost. With
this view, the soil should be thrown up into ridges as roughly as
possible. It will then be thoroughly frozen through, and subjected to
all the changes of temperature during the season. This will not only
tend to destroy worms and noxious insects, but it will separate the
particles of the soil, and leave it light and pliable. Soil thrown into
ridges can also be worked earlier in the spring than that which is left
at its natural level.

The cardinal points of successful rose-culture are a good soil, good
pruning, and good cultivation. By cultivation, we mean a repeated
digging, hoeing, or forking of the earth around the plants, by which the
surface is kept open, and enabled freely to receive the dew, rain, and
air, with its fertilizing gases. Plants so treated will suffer far less
in a drought than if the soil had been left undisturbed; for not only
will it now absorb the dew at night, but it will freely permit the
moisture which always exists at certain depths below the surface to
rise, and benefit the thirsty roots. For a similar reason, the process
of subsoiling, or trenching, by which the earth is loosened and stirred
to a great depth, is exceedingly beneficial to roses, since the lower
portions of the disturbed soil are a magazine of moisture which the
severest drought cannot exhaust.

With newly-planted roses it is well to practise "mulching" with manure;
or, in other words, to place manure on the surface around the roots
of the plants. This keeps the ground moist and open, while every rain
washes down a portion of nutriment to the roots.

[Illustration: 0100]

Roses may be planted in clumps, on the lawn, with far better effect than
when arranged in formal beds. They may be separated according to their
classes, as June roses, Bourbons, Hybrid Perpétuals, Mosses, &c.;
and the effect will be vastly better, if, instead of mingling colors
indiscriminately, each is placed by itself. Thus the pure white of
Madame Plantier will form a rich contrast with the deep crimson of
General Jacqueminot, the vivid rose of Jules Margottin, the clear
flesh-color of Ville de Bruxelles, and the pale rose of Baronne Prévost,
each massed by itself; while all these varied hues are beautifully
relieved by the fresh green of a well-kept lawn with its surrounding
trees and shrubbery.

[Illustration: 0101]

[Illustration: 0103]

[Illustration: 0105]




CHAPTER V. GROUPS and FAMILIES

|LIKE ALL things living, in the world of mind or of matter, the rose
is beautified, enlarged, and strengthened by a course of judicious and
persevering culture, continued through successive generations. The
art of horticulture is no leveller. Its triumphs are achieved by rigid
systems of selection and rejection, founded always on the broad basis of
intrinsic worth. The good cultivator propagates no plants but the best.
He carefully chooses those marked out by conspicuous merit; protects
them from the pollen of inferior sorts; intermarries them, perhaps, with
other varieties of equal vigor and beauty; saves their seed, and raises
from it another generation. From the new plants thus obtained he again
chooses the best, and repeats with them the same process. Thus the rose
and other plants are brought slowly to their perfect development. It
is in vain to look for much improvement by merely cultivating one
individual. Culture alone will not make a single rose double, or a dull
rose brilliant. We cultivate the parent, and look for our reward in the
offspring.

The village maiden has a beauty and a charm of her own; and so has
her counterpart in the floral world,--the wild rose that grows by the
roadside. Transplanted to the garden, and, with its offspring after it
to the fourth and fifth generation, made an object of skilful culture,
it reaches at last a wonderful development. The flowers which in the
ancestress were single and small become double in the offspring, and
expand their countless petals to the sun in all the majesty of the Queen
of Flowers. The village maid has risen to regal state. She has lost
her native virgin charm; but she sits throned and crowned in imperial
beauty.

Now, all the roses of our gardens have some wild ancestress of the woods
and meadows, from whom, in the process of successive generations, their
beauties have been developed, sometimes by happy accidents, but oftener
by design. Thus have arisen families of roses, each marked with traces
of its parentage. These are the patricians of the floral commonwealth,
gifted at once with fame, beauty, and rank.

The various wild roses differ greatly in their capacity of improvement
and development. In some cases, the offspring grow rapidly, in color,
fulness, and size, with every successive generation. In other cases,
they will not improve at all; and the rose remains a wild rose still,
good only for the roadside. With others yet, there seems to be a fixed
limit, which is soon reached, and where improvement stops. It requires,
even with the best, good culture and selection through several
generations before the highest result appears. In horticulture, an
element of stability is essential to progress. When the florist sees in
any rose a quality which he wishes to develop and perfect, he does not
look for success to the plant before him, but to the offspring which
he produces from this plant. 'But this production and culture must
be conducted 'wisely and skilfully, or the offspring will degenerate
instead of improving.

There are different kinds of culture, with different effects. That which
is founded in the laws of Nature, and aims at a universal development,
produces for its result not only increased beauty, but increased
symmetry, strength, and vitality. On the other hand, it is in the power
of the skilful florist to develop or to repress whatever quality he may
please. By artificial processes of culture, roses have been produced,
beautiful in form and color, but so small, that the whole plant, it
is said, might be covered with an egg-shell. These are results of the
ingenious florists of China and Japan. The culture that refines without
invigorating, belongs, it seems, to a partial or perverted civilization.

These several families of roses, resulting from the development of the
several species of wild rose, have mingled together; in other words,
they have intermarried: for Linnaeus has shown that "the loves of
the flowers" are more than a conceit of poetical fancy. From the
fertilization of the flowers of a rose of one family with the pollen
of a rose of another family arises a mixed offspring, called _hybrids_:
Seeds--which are vegetable eggs--are first produced; and these seeds
germinate, or hatch, into a brood of young plants, combining in some
degree the qualities of their parents. As this process of intermixture
may be carried on indefinitely, a vast number of new varieties has
resulted from it.

The botanical classification of the rose is a perplexity to botanists.
Its garden classification--quite another matter--is no less a source of
embarrassment to its amateur, not to say professional, cultivator. To
many, indeed, its entire nomenclature is a labyrinth of confusion;
and some have gone to the length of proposing to abolish distinctions,
which, in their eyes, seem arbitrary or fanciful. These distinctions,
however, are founded in Nature, though the superstructure built upon her
is sometimes flimsy enough to justify the impatience of its assailants.
The chief difficulty arises from the extent to which the hybridization
of the rose has been carried, and the vast entanglement of combinations
which has resulted. Out of a propensity to classify, where, in the
nature of things, precise classification is impossible, has arisen the
equivocal and shadowy character of many of the nominal distinctions.

Omitting less important divisions, the following are the groups into
which cultivated roses are ordinarily divided: The Provence,* the Moss,*
the French,* the Hybrid China, the Damask,* the Alba,* the Austrian
Brier,* the Sweet-brier,* the Scotch,* the Double Yellow,* the
Ayrshire,* the Sempervirens,* the Multiflora,* the Boursault,* the
Banksia,* the Prairie.* These bloom once in the season. The following
are perpetual or _remontant_: The China,* the Tea,* the Bourbon,
the Hybrid Perpetual, the Perpetual Moss, the Damask Perpetual,* the
Noisette, the Musk,* the Macartney,* the Microphylla.*

Some of the above are marked with a star*: these are roses of _pure
blood_. The rest are roses of mixed or hybrid origin. By the former are
meant those which have sprung, without intermixture, from the wild roses
which grew naturally in various parts of the world, and which are the
only roses of which the botanical classifier takes cognizance. Many
of them are of great beauty, and would be highly prized for ornamental
uses, were they not eclipsed by the more splendid double varieties,
which the industry of the florist has developed from them. Each of
these groups of unmixed roses, however modified in form, size, or color,
retains, as already mentioned, distinctive features of the native type
from which it sprang. Yet it often happens that the name is misapplied.
Thus a rose called Damask is not always a Damask, but a hybrid between
a Damask and some other variety. The true distinctive features of the
group are thus rendered, in some nominal members of it, so faint, that
they can scarcely be recognized. Leaving these bastards out of view, we
will consider at present only the legitimate offspring of the various
families of the rose.

On Mount Caucasus grows a single wild rose, from the seeds of which
have sprung the numerous family of the Provence or Cabbage roses, very
double, very large, and very fragrant. This race is remarkable for its
tendency to sport, from which have resulted some of the most singular
and beautiful forms of the rose. For example, a rose-colored variety of
the Provence produced a branch bearing striped flowers, and from that
branch has been propagated the Striped Provence. The Crested Moss is the
product of another of these freaks, being of the pure Provence race. The
Common Moss, and all its progeny, have the same origin; being derived,
in all probability, from a sporting branch of one of the Provence roses.

The family of the French-Rose, or Rosa Gallica, is of vast extent, and,
though including many diverse shades of color,--some pale, some bright,
others spotted, striped, or marbled,--is commonly recognized without
much difficulty by its family features. It is a native of Southern
Europe.

The wild progenitor of the Damask or Damascus roses is a native
of Syria. The name _Damask_, by the way, is popularly applied to
deep-colored roses in general; but its floral signification is very
different. In this group, for the first time, we meet with a feature,
which, desirable as it is, was not many years since regarded as rare and
exceptional. June has always been regarded as the month of the rose; but
some of the Damasks have the peculiarity of blooming twice, or more
than twice, during the season. These have been placed in a group by
themselves, and christened Damask Perpétuais. The remontant character,
however, is not confined to them; for individual plants belonging to
groups and varieties which usually bloom but once will sometimes display
an autumnal bloom. Thus the common wild rose of New England is now and
then to be seen covered with flowers in September; and there is little
doubt, that, from the seeds of these twice-blooming individuals, a new
race of hardy _remontant_ roses might be produced. It should be added,
that many of the so-called Damask Perpetuals are not pure Damask, but
crossed with the blood of other families.

Of the remaining races of pure blood, the Alba is remarkable for the
delicate coloring of its flowers; the greater part being, as the name
imports, white, or nearly so. The original variety grows wild in Central
Europe.

The Austrian Brier is another family, of features very strongly marked.
Yellow and copper are its prevailing colors; and from its habit of
growth, and the color of its twigs, it is easily recognized under all
its forms. Its original types are natives of the south of Europe, and
probably of Persia; to which country we owe its finest development,--the
well-known Persian Yellow.

The Double Yellow Rose, Rosa Sulphurea, remarkable for its beauty, and,
in our climate, notorious for its intractable and uncertain character,
is regarded by some botanists as belonging to a group distinct from the
preceding. The Single Yellow, from which it must have sprung, has been
found wild in the north of India.

The Sweet-brier, found wild in various parts of the world, is too well
known to need further notice. The American variety differs distinctly
from the European.

The Scotch roses owe their origin to the dwarf wild rose of Scotland.
The Ayrshire is a family of climbing roses, originating from the wild
trailing rose, Rosa Arven-sis, common in the British islands. The best
of them are said, however, to be hybrids between this rose' and other
species. The Boursault roses are descendants of Rosa Alpina, a native of
the Alps; and no family is more clearly marked by distinctive features.
The Sempervirens and the Multiflora are, with us at least, less
familiar. Both are climbers, like the former; the one originating from
a wild rose of Italy, the other from a wild rose of Japan. The Banksia,
with its smooth, shining leaves, and slender, green stems, is well known
in every greenhouse. Its progenitor is a native of China or Tartary,
and the improved varieties are chiefly due to the labors of Chinese
florists.

There is another race of climbers, held in great scorn by foreign
florists, but admirably adapted to our climate, under whose influences
they put forth beauties by no means contemptible. These are the progeny
of the wild Michigan or Prairie Rose, rampant growers, and generally
sturdy enough to outface our hardest winters. The best of them, however,
the Baltimore Belle, is evidently the offspring of a foreign marriage,
which, while contributing fragrance and beauty to the rugged race of
the prairies, has detracted something from its hardihood. The union,
probably accidental, seems to have been with the Tea Rose or the
Noisette.

Of the foregoing groups, all except the Damask Perpetual are
once-blooming. The following have, to a greater or less extent, the
desirable character of a continued or successive bloom.

The Macartney Rose is a wild rose of China, from which a few improved
varieties have been raised from seed. Its evergreen shining foliage is
its most attractive feature. The Microphylla, or Small-leaved Rose, is
closely akin to the Macartney, and, like the latter, is a native of the
East.

The Musk is a rose much more familiarly known. It descends from a
Persian or Syrian progenitor, and its vigorous growth, rich clusters of
bloom, and peculiar fragrance, have long made it a favorite. But by
far the most interesting and valuable among the unmixed races of
ever-blooming roses are the numberless offspring of Rosa Indica, in its
several varieties. To it we owe all the China and Tea-scented roses,
while to its foreign alliances we are indebted for a vast and increasing
host of brilliant hybrids.

Thus, from the families of pure blood, we come at length to those in
which is mingled that of two or more distinct races. Convey the pollen
of a China rose to the stigmas of a French, Damask, or Provence rose,
and from the resulting seed an offspring arises different from either
parent. Hence a new group of roses known as the Hybrid Chinas. The
parents are both of moderate growth. The offspring is usually of such
vigor as to form with readiness a pillar eight feet high. Its foliage is
distinct, its bloom often as profuse and brilliant as that of the China,
and its constitution as hardy, or nearly so, as that of the French Rose.
Unlike the former, it blooms but once in the year, or only in a few
exceptional instances shows a straggling autumnal flower. By a vicious
system of subdivision, the group has been separated into Hybrid China,
Hybrid Bourbon, and Hybrid Noisette. The two latter are the same as
the first: except, in the one case, a slight infusion of the Damask
Perpetual; and, in the latter, of the Musk Rose. In many cases, no human
discernment could detect the effects of the admixture.

Again: convey the pollen of the China or Tea Rose to the flowers of
the Musk, or _vice versa_ and for a result we obtain the Noisette,
inheriting from the former various striking characteristics of
foliage and bloom, and from the latter its vigorous climbing habit
and clustering inflorescence. But, by impregnation through several
generations, some of the Noisettes retain so little of their Musk
parent, that its traits are almost obliterated: they no longer bloom in
clusters, and can scarcely be distinguished from the pure Tea Rose.

Again: a union of a Damask Perpetual with a China rose has produced a
distinct race, of vigorous habit and peculiar foliage, possessing in
a high degree the ever-blooming character of both its parents. It is
hardier than the China Rose, though usually unable to bear a New-England
winter unprotected. This is the Bourbon Rose, a brilliant and beautiful
group, worth all the care which in this latitude its out-door culture
requires.

The Moss Rose, impregnated with various ever-blooming varieties, has
borne hybrids partially retaining the mossy stem and calyx, with a
tendency more or less manifest to bloom in the autumn. Hence the group
of the Perpetual Moss, a few only of whose members deserve the name.

It is evident, that, by continuing the process of hybridizing, hybrids
may be mixed with hybrids, till the blood of half a score of the
original races is mingled in one plant. This, in some cases, is, without
doubt, actually the case; and this bastard progeny must, of necessity,
be classified rather by its visible characteristics than by its
parentage. Thus a host of ever-blooming hybrids, which are neither
Noisette nor Bourbon nor Perpetual Moss, have been cast into one grand
group, under the comprehensive title of Hybrid Perpetuals. Whence have
they sprung? What has been their parentage? The question is easier asked
than answered: for as, in a great nation of the West, one may discern
the lineaments and hear the accents of diverse commingled races; so
here we may trace the features of many and various families of Indian
or Siberian, Chinese or European, extraction. The Hybrid Perpetuals,
however, inherit their _remontant_ character chiefly from Rosa
Indica,--the China or Tea Rose,--and, in a far less degree, from the
Damask Perpetual. An infusion of the former exists, in greater or less
degree, in all of them; while the blood of the Damask Perpetual shows
its traces in comparatively few. Many of the group are the results of
a union between the Hybrid China roses and some variety of the China or
Tea. Others owe their origin to the Hybrid China and the Bourbon, both
parents being hybrids of Rosa Indica. Others are offspring of the
Hybrid China crossed with the Damask Perpetual; while many spring from
intermarriages within the group itself,--Hybrid Perpetual with Hybrid
Perpetual.

By some over-zealous classifiers, this group has been cut up into
various subdivisions, as Bourbon Perpetual, Rose de Rosomène, and the
like; a procedure never sufficiently to be deprecated, as tending to
produce no results but perplexity and confusion. Where there, can be no
definite basis of division, it is well to divide as little as may be;
and it is to be hoped that secession from the heterogeneous commonwealth
of the Hybrid Perpetuals will be effectually repressed. In regard to
roses in general, while a classification founded on evident natural
affinities is certainly desirable, yet, in the name of common sense,
let us avoid the multiplication of new hybrid groups, founded on flimsy
distinctions, and christened with new names, which begin with meaning
little, and end with meaning nothing.

In our enumeration of the families and varieties of the rose, we shall
make two great divisions,--that of the "Summer," or once-blooming,
and that of the "Autumnal," or "ever-blooming" roses. In each of these
divisions, we shall place first the roses of unmixed race, and, after
them, the hybrids which have sprung from their combinations.

[Illustration: 0119]

[Illustration: 0120]




CHAPTER VI. SUMMER ROSES

|THESE ARE roses which bloom but once in the year; hence they have lost
favor of late: for superb families of roses, fully equal in beauty,
if not in hardiness, and endowed with an enviable power of renewing or
perpetuating their charms,--of smiling in October as well as in June,
and glowing in full effulgence even on the edge of winter,--have dazzled
us into a forgetfulness of our ancient favorites.

Yet all the poetry of the rose belongs to these old roses of summer. It
is they that bloomed in white and red in the rival shields of York
and Lancaster; and it is they that, time out of mind, have been the no
silent interpreters of hearts too full to find a ruder utterance.

For the rest, they are, in the main, very hardy, very easy of culture,
and often very beautiful.

[Illustration: 0121]

_Rosa Centifolia_.--This is the family of the old, well-known, and
deservedly admired Cabbage Rose. Its ancestors, as we have seen, grew
on Mount Caucasus; though some have supposed that it is a native of the
south of France: hence the name Provence, by which it is often known
in England, though it is never so designated in France. The French,
translating its Latin name, Rosa Centifolia, or the Hundred-leaved Rose,
commonly call it Rose à Cent Feuilles. It is supposed to have been known
to the Romans, and to have been one of their favorite roses; and it was
introduced into England before the end of the sixteenth century, where
at least, until these latter days, it has been greatly admired and
prized. Recently, however, the introduction of the families of hardy,
ever-blooming roses, has thrown the Cabbage and all its compeers into
the shade. Nevertheless, it is one of the most desirable of flowers; and
even those who are disposed to pass it by with slight regard will never
deny that some of the progeny which have arisen from it are unsurpassed
in beauty and attractiveness. It is remarkable among roses for the
singular changes, in horticultural language called "sports," which it
has assumed, and which, among other results, have given rise to the
entire family of Moss roses, of which we shall speak in the next
section.

The prevailing colors in this group are light. The Cabbage Rose is a
somewhat weak grower in a heavy soil, though in a light soil it grows
vigorously. As a general rule, it needs close pruning. The members of
the family are numerous; but, besides the Old Cabbage, the following are
the best: The Dutch Provence is remarkable for the size of its flowers,
in which respect it even surpasses the Old Cabbage. The Unique Provence
is probably a sport from the Old Cabbage; that is to say, an accidental
variation of the flowers on some particular branch; which branch
being propagated, the accidental features become permanent. The Unique
Provence, which is pure white, has, in its turn, produced another sport,
called the Striped Unique, the flowers being white, striped with lake;
though they are very capricious in their coloring, sometimes opening
pure white, and occasionally light rose. But a more remarkable sport of
the Provence is the variety called the Crested Provence, Rosa Cristata,
or, very commonly among us, the Crested Moss. It is not, however, a true
Moss, as its stems are smooth. Its peculiarity consists in a curious and
very beautiful mossy growth about the calyx. This growth is developed
in proportion to the vigor of the plant: therefore it should be strongly
manured and closely pruned, as should the whole race of Provence roses.
Adeline, the Duc de Choiseul, the Stadtholder, and, above all, the
Reine de Provence, are beautiful varieties of this group. To it also
belong a sub-group of Miniature or Pompone roses, well suited for edging
beds. They bloom early, and are exceedingly pretty and graceful. Among
the best of them are the White Burgundy, the Dwarf Burgundy, De Meaux,
and Spong.

The above are all old roses; for it is rarely that a cultivator of the
present day will give himself the trouble to raise new varieties of any
of the June roses, excepting always the Mosses, which can never be out
of favor.

[Illustration: 0123]

_Rosa Centifolia Muscosa_.--We have spoken of the tendency of the
Provence Rose to "sport." The most widely known and the most beautiful
of the results arising from this tendency is the Moss Rose and its
varieties; for that such is the true origin of this unique family, there
can be very little doubt. There is, however, no record of the first
appearance of the Moss Rose. The original type of the race--the Old Red
Moss--was introduced into England as early as 1596. It came immediately
from Holland, but seems not to have originated there: indeed, to this
day, we have remained in doubt as to whence it drew its birth. Of the
large number of Moss roses now on the lists of nursery-men, some owe
their origin to sporting branches, others to seed. Of the plants arising
from the seed of a Moss rose, not more than one in three will show the
characteristic of the parent; that is, the "moss," the rest will be mere
varieties of the Provence Rose. Sometimes a Moss rose will put forth a
branch perfectly free from the mossy covering.

In cold, heavy soils, Moss roses are somewhat difficult of cultivation;
but in a light, rich loam, and a sunny exposure, free from roots of
growing trees, they thrive luxuriantly.

They all require high enrichment. All excepting the strongest growers
should be closely pruned; and, in the Northern States, it is well to
give them protection in winter by means of pine-boughs, or by laying
them down like raspberries.

Here, as in other classes of the rose, the hybridist has been at work.
By impregnating Moss roses with the pollen of some of the ever-blooming
sorts, a group of Perpetual Mosses has been produced. These have, to a
greater or less extent, the ever-blooming quality; but this is acquired
at some sacrifice of the peculiar beauty of the moss. They will receive
a separate notice. Again: these roses have been fertilized with
the pollen of the Hybrid China Rose; and the result is a Moss rose,
remarkably vigorous in growth, and particularly well suited to form
pillars. Any, however, of the more vigorous Mosses may be used for this
purpose, provided always that they receive the highest culture in a warm
and open exposure. We have it on the authority of the well-known English
rose-grower, Mr. Paul, that, in the garden of an amateur near Cheshunt,
there is a pillar of the Old Red Moss fifteen feet high!

At the present day, when the annual progeny of new Perpetual roses from
the nurseries of France, with a humble re-enforcement from those
of England, has eclipsed by numbers the old garden favorites, the
well-remembered roses of our infancy, the Moss alone stands in tranquil
defiance of this gay tide of innovation. Nothing can eclipse and nothing
can rival her. She is, and ever will be, the favorite of poetry and art;
and the eloquence of her opening buds, half wrapped in their mossy
envelope, will remain through all generations a chosen interpreter of
the language of youth and beauty.

Alice Le Roy is a distinct and beautiful rose, very large, full,
and mossy; color, lilac and rose; form, cupped: it grows vigorously.
Angélique Quétier is also of a rosy-lilac hue, large, very double,
and very mossy: it grows freely, like the former. The Blush Moss is of
growth somewhat more moderate: the flower is large and full, the foliage
fine, and stems and buds well mossed; color, clear pale pink. Celina is
of a deep, rosy crimson, sometimes verging to purple. The Common, or
Old Moss, is still one of the most beautiful of the whole family. Its
flowers are large and full, and of a pale rose-color and globular form.
It is more abundantly mossed than most of its progeny; and none of them
surpass it, indeed very few equal it, in the beauty of its half-opened
bud. Its growth is tolerably vigorous, and foliage fine. Laneh is a
vigorous and beautiful rose; flowers large, full, and globular; color,
a light rosy-crimson. The buds are large, full, and well mossed; its
growth is vigorous; and, under good cultivation, the whole plant, with
its large and bright-green foliage, bears a striking appearance of
thrift and health.

Luxembourg is of a deep crimson, moderately double, and of growth nearly
as vigorous as the last, with which the deep hue of its buds forms
a striking contrast. Malvina is a good rose, with clusters of pink
flowers. Eclatante is of a deep pink, large, double, and well mossed.
Comtesse de Murinais is one of the best of the White Mosses. Its
flowers, though not so double as the Old Moss, are large, and of the
purest white; and the growth is very vigorous. The Crimson or Tinwell
Moss somewhat belies its name; for its flowers are rather of a deep rose
than crimson. It is, however, a beautiful variety. Princess Adelaide
is remarkable for the extreme vigor of its growth, and is evidently
a hybrid of some of the Hybrid Bourbon or Hybrid China roses. It is
admirably suited for a pillar or a wall, but requires a full sun, and,
if closely pruned, will not bloom at all. It blooms in large clusters:
the flowers are of a light glossy rose, very large and full; and, if
not too closely pruned, they are very abundant. The White Bath is an
admirable White Moss, large and full in flower, and exquisite in bud. As
it is of moderate growth, it will bear dose pruning. Prolific is a very
beautiful variety, resembling the Old Moss. Baronne de Wassenaër is a
very vigorous rose, of a bright red, and flowering in clusters. Captain
Ingram is of a dark, velvety purple. Gloire des Mousseuses is very
large and double, and of a blush-color. Rosa Bonheur is of a bright
rose-color. Nuits d'Young is of a very dwarfed growth, and small
deep-purple flowers. Vandael is purple, edged with lilac.

The above afford excellent examples of the various characteristics of
the family of the Mosses. Additions in considerable number are
still made to it every year; but it is very rarely that any decisive
improvement upon the old varieties is shown in the recent seedlings.

"Moss roses, when grown on their own roots, require a light and rich
soil: in such soils, they form fine masses of beauty in beds on lawns.
The varieties best adapted to this purpose are the Common Moss, the
Prolific, the Luxembourg, the Crimson, and Lane's Moss. Plants of these
are procurable at a moderate price; and, by pegging down their shoots
with hooked sticks, the surface of the bed will be covered with a mass
of foliage and flowers. They require the same severe pruning as the
Provence Rose. To have a succession of flowers on the same bed, half
of the shoots may be shortened in March, the remainder the beginning
of May, pruning closely as recommended for the Provence roses. By this
method, the blooming season may be prolonged from a fortnight to three
weeks. They should have an abundant animal dressing of manure on the
surface in November, and the bed lightly stirred with the fork in
February....

"To raise Moss roses from seed is a most interesting employment for the
genuine rose amateur; such a pleasing field is open, and so much may yet
be done. The following directions will, I hope, assist those who have
leisure, perseverance, and love for this charming flower. A plant of
the Luxembourg Moss, or one of the Celina Moss, and one of the Single
Crimson Moss, should be planted against a south wall, close to each
other, so that their branches may be mingled. In bright, calm, sunny
mornings, in June, about ten o'clock, those flowers that are expanded
should be examined by pressing the fingers on the anthers. It will then
be found if the pollen be abundant: if so, a flower of the former should
be shaken over the latter; or, what perhaps is better, its flower-stalks
should be fastened to the wall, so that the flower will be kept in an
erect position. Then cut a flower of the Luxembourg Moss, strip off its
petals with a sharp pair of scissors, and place the anthers firmly, but
gently, upon a flower of the Single Crimson, so that the anthers of each
are entangled: they will keep it in its position: a stiff breeze will
then scarcely remove it. The fertilizing will take place without further
trouble, and a fine hip full of seed will be the result. To obtain seed
from the Luxembourg Moss, I need scarcely say that this operation must
be reversed. A wall is not always necessary to ripen seed; for in dry
soils, and airy, exposed situations, the above Moss roses bear seed in
tolerable abundance. The treatment of the hips, sowing the seed, and the
management of the young plants, as applicable to all, has already been
given."--_Rivers._

[Illustration: 0130]

_Rosa Damascena_.--Any deeply colored rose is popularly called a Damask;
but the true Damask--the rose of Damascus--is of various shades, from
the darkest to the lightest. All these varieties have sprung from one
origin,--the wild rose of Syria, which was introduced into England in
the year 1573, or, according to some writers, much earlier. It is this
rose from which is made the rosewater of the East, and on this the
Eastern poets and their Western imitators have lavished the wealth of
their fancy. In poetry, indeed, the Damask Rose has woven more garlands
than the Moss. Nor is it unknown to history, since the five hundred
camel-loads of rose-water with which the Sultan Saladin purified
the Mosque of Omar after it had been used as a Christian church were
doubtless distilled from its leaves. But, without falling into an
anachronism, it is hardly possible to claim for it, as some have done,
the honor of having been the renowned Red Rose of Lancaster.

Both the Damask and the Provence roses are extensively cultivated in
France and England for the purpose of making rose-water.

The Damask is very hardy, vigorous of growth, and abundant in bloom.
Its shoots are full of spines, and its leaves of a light green. Its old
original varieties are wholly eclipsed by those which the industry of
the florist has produced from their seed. The following are among the
best of these:--

La Ville de Bruxelles is a very beautiful rose, of delicate waxy tint
and vigorous growth. Madame Stoltz is of a pale straw or lemon color.
Madame Soëtmans is of delicate cream-color, tinged with buff. Madame
Hardy is a large and very full rose of the purest white. It has but one
fault,--that of sometimes showing a green bud in the centre. But for
this, it would be almost unrivalled among white roses. Leda is of a
blush tint, edged with lake.

There are but few new varieties of this family, as the double sorts do
not bear seed freely.

[Illustration: 0132]

_Rosa Alba_.--The parent of the Alba, or White roses, is a native of
Central Europe. The species is so called from the prevailing delicacy of
hue in its varieties, many of which are of a pure white, while none
are of a deeper coloring than a bright pink. The original stock is
spineless; but many of its progeny, in consequence, probably, of
hybridization, have spines in greater or less number. The upper surface
of the leaves has a glaucous or whitish tinge, and the shoots are of a
clear green.

Félicité is a large double rose, of a delicate flesh-color, and a most
symmetrical shape. La Séduisante is of a bright rose in the centre,
shading into flesh-color at the circumference: it rivals the last in the
perfection of its shape. Madame Audot is of a pale flesh-color. Madame
Legras is a white rose of a peculiar delicacy, and very graceful in its
habit of growth. The Queen of Denmark is of a clear rosy pink. Sophie de
Marsilly is of a delicate rose-color, slightly mottled, and, when half
opened, is a rose of remarkable beauty.

The Alba roses bloom abundantly, and form in masses a beautiful
contrast, in their chaste and delicate hues, with the deeper colors of
the French and Hybrid China roses. They rarely bear seed freely.

[Illustration: 0133]

_Rosa Gallica_.--This rose draws its origin from the south of Europe,
where its wild progenitor still grows abundantly in the hedges. It
is one of the best known, and longest under cultivation, of all the
species. We confess our strong partiality for it. It is perfectly
hardy, compact in growth, abundant in bloom, beautiful in form, and rich
and various in coloring. It will grow and bloom anywhere, and endures
neglect with a patience unknown to most others of its race. Yet none
better rewards a careful and generous culture. It returns a rich
response to the care bestowed upon it; and, under high cultivation, the
members of this group have no superiors in beauty. It is not, however,
in favor at the present day. Roses of equal beauty, though, not of equal
hardihood, and endowed with the one valuable quality in which it is
wanting,--that of continuous or repeated blooming,--have, of late,
supplanted it. We may as well say here, while protesting against the
neglect into which the hardy June roses have fallen, that, of the
so-called Perpetuals, a great many are undeserving of the name. Some,
even with tolerably good treatment, rarely show a flower after the
June blooming; and none will put forth freely and abundantly in autumn,
without more pains in the management than most persons are willing to
bestow.

The French Rose has been known in England since the close of the
sixteenth century. It is very prolific, and innumerable seedlings have
been raised from it. Some of these produce flowers exceedingly double,
of the most vivid color, and remarkable even now for the symmetry of
their forms. Among the rest is a great variety of marbled, striped, and
spotted roses, which, though curious and interesting, are certainly less
beautiful than the "self-colored" sorts.

The varieties of this rose formerly catalogued and cultivated might be
numbered by hundreds. Of these, it is needless to mention any but a few
of the best and most distinct.

Boula de Nanteuil is a rose of the richest crimson-purple, with a
centre, at times, of a vivid red. It varies, however, very much in
different seasons, and, while sometimes splendid in coloring, is
occasionally dull and cloudy. Grandissima is of a deep purplish-rose,
very large and double. Kean closely resembles it. Adele Prévost is of
a silvery blush. Blanchefleur is white, with a tinge of flesh-color.
Cynthia is of a pale rose. The Duchess of Buccleugh is of a dark rose.
Ohl is of a deep crimson and scarlet, and, when grown in perfection, is
one of the finest roses in existence. La Reine des Français is also of
a bright crimson. Perle des Panachées is white, striped with rose;
and Oeillet Parfait is white, striped with light crimson, much like a
carnation. D'Aguesseau, Gloire de Colmar, Latour d'Auvergne, Triomphe de
Jaussens, Letitia, Napoléon, Duc de Valmy, and Transon Goubault, are all
excellent roses of this family.

"To grow them fine for exhibition, as single blooms or 'show-roses,'
the clusters of buds should be thinned early in June, taking at least
two-thirds of the incipient flowers from each: manure should also be
laid round their stems on the surface, and manure-water given to them
plentifully in dry weather. With this description of culture, these
roses will much surpass any thing we have yet seen in this country.

"Although the varieties of this group are summer roses only, their
period of flowering may be prolonged by judicious pruning; and for this
purpose two trees of each variety should be planted, one to be pruned in
October, the other early in May, or just when the buds have burst into
leaf: these will give a regular succession of flowers. In pruning, cut
out with a sharp knife all the spray-like shoots, and then shorten to
within six or eight buds of their base all the strong shoots (by such I
mean those that are above fifteen inches in length): the weak shoots
cut down to two or three buds. This is the pruning required by the Alba,
Damask, and Hybrid Provence roses....

"To raise French roses from seed, they should be planted in a warm, dry
border sloping to the south, in an open, airy situation: the shade of
trees is very pernicious to seed-bearing roses. The following kinds *
may be selected, as they bear seed freely: The Tuscany Rose, a very
old variety, with rich, deep crimson, semi-double flowers; also Ohl and
Latour d'Auvergne. The two latter should have their flowers fertilized
with the pollen of the Tuscany Rose, and some fine crimson roses will
probably be raised. The Village Maid and Oillet Parfait are the most
eligible to raise striped roses from: if their flowers are deficient in
pollen, they should be fertilized with those of Rosa Mundi."--_Rivers_.

     * Some of the roses recommended for seed-bearing are old
     varieties, which may be procured from any old-fashioned
     English rose-nursery.

_Rosa Indica Hybrida_.--This class has been divided by some writers
into three; viz., Hybrid China, Hybrid Noisette, and Hybrid Bourbon.
The division seems to us needless, for the reason that all these, on
analysis, resolve themselves into hybrids of the Chinese Rose, since
both the Noisette and the Bourbon owe their distinctive character
to their Chinese parentage. The hybrids of the Noisettes are usually
inclined to bloom in clusters: those of the Bourbons are distinguishable
by their large, smooth, and thick leaves.

This class, then, may be defined as the offspring of intermarriage of
the French and other June roses with the Chinese Rose and its hybrids.
It has, however, none of the ever-blooming qualities which distinguish
the China roses. It is remarkable, as a class, for vigor of growth, in
which, strange as it may appear, it surpasses, in some cases, both its
parents. Most of the Hybrid China roses are, moreover, perfectly hardy
even in the climate of the Northern States; and they are admirably
adapted for forming pillars. For this purpose, they should be planted in
a very deep and rich soil. If the soil is naturally poor, dig it out
to the width and depth of three feet, and replace it with a mixture of
strong loam and old manure. Some of the Hybrid Chinas thus generously
treated, and trained and pruned in the manner recommended in a former
chapter, will form most gorgeous decorations of a garden; for in the
size of the flowers, in beauty of form, and brilliancy of color, some
of the varieties are unsurpassed. Every autumn, the surface of the soil
around the stem should be covered with manure to the depth of several
inches; and this should be allowed to remain throughout the summer,
renewing it as often as necessary, after a previous forking-up of the
soil, which this covering or "mulching" enriches, at the same time that
it keeps it moist and cool.

The following are among the best of this family of roses: Beauty op
Billiard, of vigorous growth, and bright-scarlet and crimson flowers.
Brennus, or Brutus, is a superb rose, of great size, and strong, rapid
growth. Blair, No. 2, is particularly adapted for a pillar rose; its
bloom being very profuse. The color of its flowers is pink or blush.
George the Fourth is an old rose raised some forty years ago by the
excellent English cultivator, Mr. Rivers. Its bright crimson color and
its neat foliage make it very attractive, though it is less double
than some other varieties. The Duke op Devonshire is of a lilac-color,
striped with white, and perfect in form; its petals overlapping with the
greatest regularity. Charles Duval is of a deep pink; Charles Lawson,
of a vivid rose. Chenedolé is regarded by many as the best rose of the
class; for its color is the brightest and clearest crimson, and its
flowers are large and very full. Inferior roses, however, are frequently
sold under its name, especially in I this country. Coupe d'Hébé is
remarkable both for the perfection of its cup-like form, and for the
delicate rose-color of its petals. Its growth is very vigorous; and,
like most of its kindred, it is perfectly hardy. General Jacqueminot is
a large purplish-crimson rose. It must not be confounded with the Hybrid
Perpetual of the same name. Fulgens is of a deep crimson. Triomphe de
Bayeux is white, and an excellent pillar-rose. Madame Plantier is
also white, but very distinct from the last; for, as it sprang on the
mother's side from the Noisette, it blooms in dusters. Its individual
flowers are surpassed by those of one or two other white roses; but
the extraordinary profusion of its bloom, its graceful habit, its neat
foliage, and its hardy, enduring nature, make it, on the whole, the best
rose of its color in cultivation. Paul Perras is Bourbon on the mother's
side, as is also Paul Ricaut. The first is of a pale rose, the second
of a bright crimson. Vivid is a seedling of the English rose-grower, Mr.
William Paul. Its flowers are not large, but they are of the most vivid
crimson; and the vigorous habit of the plant makes it very suitable
either for a pillar or a trellis.

"When grown as large standards, these roses require peculiar pruning. If
their shoots are shortened too much, they will grow vigorously, but give
no flowers. They should, therefore, be thinned out, so that the head of
the tree is not at all crowded, and then be shortened to within twelve
buds of their base: a crop of fine flowers will then be produced. This
is the pruning to be done either in the early part of November or in
February: we will call it the winter pruning. * There is another mode
of pruning these roses, partly in summer, which will be found highly
eligible. Thin out the shoots in the winter, and leave a selected number
of those that are most vigorous nearly their full length, merely cutting
off their tips: these will be loaded with blossoms so as to make the
trees quite pendulous. As soon as the blooming season is past, shorten
them all to within six inches of their base. They will immediately
put forth strong shoots, which, while in a very young state, thin out,
leaving those that are the most vigorous. These shoots treat in the
same manner the following year. By this method of pruning, a pendulous,
graceful head is formed, instead of a stiff, formal one, so common to
standard roses. In pruning these roses, when trained as pillars, the
spurs from the shoots fastened to the stake merely require thinning out,
so as not to be crowded, and then shortened to within five or six buds
of their base. Trained as pillar-roses, they give flowers often too
abundantly; so that they are small and ill-shaped: it is, therefore,
often a good practice to thin the flower-buds as soon as they can be
distinguished.

     * These directions, it will be remembered, are for the
     climate of England. The November pruning will not do here;
     indeed, it will require much precaution to make even the
     hardy roses succeed as standards.

"I shall now proceed to give a list of those roses, from which, in
combination with others, choice seedlings may be raised.

"The Duke of Devonshire, in a very warm and dry soil, will produce hips
in tolerable abundance; and, as it is inclined to be striped, it would
possibly form a beautiful combination with some striped rose, which
should be planted with it.

"Riego, which partakes of the Sweet-brier, might be made the parent
of some beautiful brier-like roses by planting it with the Splendid
Sweet-brier.

"General Allard, a hybrid rose, from which Monsiem Laffay raised his
perpetual rose, Madame Laffay, is much inclined to give a second series
of flowers. This rose should be planted in a very warm border, or
trained against a south wall with Bourbon Gloire de Rosomènes; and,
if carefully fertilized with it, some beautiful crimson autumnal roses
would probably be originated. Chênedolé may also be subjected to
the same treatment. What a fine autumnal rose one like it would
be!"--_Rivers._

[Illustration: 0142]

_Rosa Spinosissima._--The original Scotch Rose is a wild dwarf rose,
common in Scotland and the north of England. As it bears seed in great
abundance, as these seeds vegetate freely, and as the Scotch gardeners
have taken pride in multiplying and improving this native growth of
the soil, the number of varieties is nominally immense. Many of them,
however, are scarcely to be distinguished the one from the other. The
flowers are small, and exceedingly numerous. They bloom earlier than
most roses, and show various shades of crimson, rose, white, and
yellow,--or rather straw-color; for the yellow Scotch Rose is apparently
a hybrid. They are useful for covering banks and forming clumps where
masses of bloom are required. Nothing can exceed their hardiness, and
they increase abundantly by suckers. A list of named varieties of the
Scotch Rose would, from their multiplicity, and want of distinctness,
be even more unsatisfactory than the florist's lists of pansies or
verbenas. The following, however, are good:--

La Neige is pure white, and very double. Guy Mannering is of a deep
blush. Sulphurea, Lady Balllie, and the Marchioness of Lansdowne, are of
a pale straw or sulphur color. The Yellow Scotch is of a deeper yellow
tint. Flora, Daphne, Erebus, Venus, and the Countess of Glasgow, are of
deep shades of rose and crimson.

"Scotch roses, when grown into beds and clumps as dwarfs, are beautiful;
and in early seasons they will bloom nearly a fortnight before the
other summer roses make their appearance. This, of course, makes them
desirable appendages to the flower-garden. They bear seed profusely;
and raising new varieties from seed will be found a most interesting
employment. To do this, all that is required is to sow the seed as soon
as ripe, in October, in pots or beds of fine earth, covering it with
nearly an inch of mould: the succeeding spring they will come up, and
bloom in perfection the season following.

"The aim should be to obtain varieties with large and very double
crimson flowers: this can only be done by slightly hybridizing; and to
effect this it will be necessary to have a plant or two of the Tuscany
Rose trained to a south wall, so that their flowers are expanded at the
same time as the Scotch roses in the open borders: unless thus forced,
they will be too late. Any dark-red varieties of the Scotch roses, such
as Venus, Erebus, or Flora, should be planted separately from others,
and their flowers fertilized with the above French Rose. Some very
original deep-colored varieties will probably be obtained by this
method. Sulphurea and one or two other straw-colored varieties may be
planted with the Double Yellow Austrian Brier; and most likely
some pretty sulphur-colored roses will be the result of this
combination."--_Rivers_.

_Rosa Lutea_.--This is a small family of roses, very distinct in all its
characteristics; a native of Southern Europe and of some parts of the
East. It is seldom that any seedlings have been obtained from it, as
its flowers, even in the single varieties, are usually barren. They may,
however, be made productive by fertilizing them with the pollen of other
varieties. Its stems are spiny, and of a reddish or brownish color. Its
leaves are small, and its growth somewhat straggling. The colors of its
flowers are copper and yellow in various shades. It should not be pruned
too closely; but the shoots may with great advantage be pinched back
in midsummer, thus causing them to throw out a great number of lateral
shoots, and correcting the loose and straggling habit of the bush. The
bloom, with this treatment, is very profuse.

The best known roses of this family are five in number. The Single
Austrian Yellow and the Single Austrian Copper may be regarded as the
original types of the species. William's Double Yellow is an English
seedling of a pale-yellow color. Harrison's Yellow is an excellent
yellow rose, originated in America. It is very vigorous in growth, and,
on the whole, the best yellow rose for general cultivation. The Persian
Yellow, however, is of a much deeper hue, and is unrivalled in its way.
It is one of those roses which are feeble on their own roots, but grow
very vigorously either on the Dog Rose or on the Manetti stock. It is
said to have originated, as its name imports, from Persia.

A moist soil, and a dry, pure air, are essential to the growth of all
this family of roses.

"No family of roses offers such an interesting field for experiments
in raising new varieties from seed as this. First we have the Copper
Austrian, from which, although it is one of the oldest roses in our
gardens, a double flowering variety has never yet been obtained. This
rose is always defective in pollen; and consequently it will not bear
seed unless its flowers are fertilized. As it will be interesting
to retain the traits of the species, it should be planted with and
fertilized by the Double Yellow: it will then, in warm, dry seasons,
produce seed, not abundantly; but the amateur must rest satisfied if he
can procure even one hip-full of perfect seed.

"The beautiful and brilliant Rosa Harrison, however, gives the
brightest hopes. This should be planted with the Double Yellow Brier: it
will then bear seed abundantly. No rose will, perhaps, show the effects
of fertilizing its flowers more plainly than this; and consequently, to
the amateur, it is the pleasing triumph of Art over Nature. Every flower
on my experimental plants, not fertilized, proved abortive; while, on
the contrary, all those that were so, produced large black spherical
hips-full of perfect seed. The Persian Yellow does not seem inclined
to bear seed; but it may be crossed with Rosa Harrison, and, I trust,
with some good effect."--_Rivers_.

[Illustration: 0146]

_Rosa Sulphurea_.--This beautiful rose is difficult of cultivation both
in England and in this country, though in Italy and the south of France
it grows and blooms luxuriantly. Its original species is found growing
wild, and yielding single flowers, on the Himalaya Mountains, and also,
it is said, in Persia. Only two varieties are in cultivation,--the
Double (called also the Yellow Provence) and the Dwarf Double. The
climate of the Southern and Middle States is far more suitable to them
than that of the North; though it is more than probable, that, with
careful and judicious treatment, they would do well even here. They need
a rich diet, and a sunny and airy situation, to induce them to expand
their flower-buds, which are provokingly apt to fall before opening.
They are also very liable to the attacks of insects. The difficulty
of the cultivation of this rose is greatly to be lamented, since it
surpasses even the Persian Yellow in beauty.

"Various situations," says Mr. Rivers, "have been recommended. Some
have said, 'Plant it against a south wall;' others, 'Give it a northern
aspect, under the drip of some water-trough, as it requires a wet
situation.' All this is quackery and nonsense. The Yellow Provence Rose
is a native of a warm climate, and therefore requires a warm situation,
a free and airy exposure, and rich soil: a wall with a south-east or
north-west aspect will be found eligible. Give the plants surface-manure
every autumn, and water with manure-water in May; prune with the finger
and thumb in summer, as recommended for the Persian Yellow. *

     * M. Godefroy, a French nursery-man, has cultivated it as a
     pillar-rose, in a free and open situation, with much
     success. Manuring as above, and summer pruning, are
     indispensable.

"At Burleigh, the seat of the Marquis of Exeter, the effect of situation
on this rose is forcibly shown. A very old plant is growing against the
southern wall of the mansion, in a confined situation, its roots cramped
by a stone pavement: it is weakly, and never shows a flower-bud. In the
entrance-court is another plant, growing in front of a low parapet wall,
in a good loamy soil, and free, airy exposure: this is in a state of the
greatest luxuriance, and blooms in fine perfection nearly every season.

"Mr. Mackintosh, the gardener, who kindly pointed out these plants
to me, thought the latter a distinct and superior variety, as it was
brought from France by a French cook a few years since; but it is
certainly nothing but the genuine Old Double Yellow Rose.

"In unfavorable soils, it will often flourish and bloom freely if budded
on the Musk Rose, the common China Rose, or some free-growing hybrid
China Rose; but the following pretty method of culture I beg to suggest:
Bud or graft it on some short stems of the Rosa Manetti. In the autumn,
pot some of the strongest plants; and, late in spring, force them with a
gentle heat, giving plenty of air. It will now also be very interesting
to plant trees of this variety in orchard-houses: this seems to me to
be the exact climate required by it. By this method, the dry and warm
climate of Florence and Genoa may, perhaps, be partially imitated;
for there it blooms in such profusion, that large quantities of
its magnificent flowers are daily sold in the markets during the
rose-season.

"The following extract relative to this rose is from the quaint old
book, 'Flora, Ceres, and Pomona, by John Rea, Gent., 1655,' showing
that budding and double-budding of roses and trees is no new idea: 'The
Double Yellow Rose is the most unapt of all others to bear kindly
and fair flowers, unless it be ordered and looked unto in an especial
manner. For whereas all other roses are best natural, this is best
inoculated upon another stock. Others thrive and bear best in the sun,
this in the shade. Therefore the best way that I know to cause this rose
to bring forth fair and kindly flowers is performed after this manner:
First, in the stock of a Francford * Rose, near the ground, put in a bud
of the Single Yellow Rose, which will quickly shoot to a good length;
then, half a yard higher than the place where the same was budded, put
into it a bud of the Double Yellow Rose; which growing, the suckers must
be kept from the root, and all the buds rubbed off, except those of the
kind desired; which being grown big enough to bear (which will be in the
two years), it must in winter be pruned very near, cutting off all the
small shoots, and only leaving the biggest, cutting off the tops of them
also, as far as they are small; then in the spring, when the buds for
leaves come forth, rub off the smallest of them, leaving only some few
of the biggest, which by reason of the strength of the stock affording
more nourishment than any other, and the agreeable nature of the Single
Yellow Rose (from whence it is immediately nourished), the shoots will
be then strong, and able to bear out the flowers if they be not too
many, which may be prevented by nipping off the smallest buds for
flowers, leaving only such a number of the fairest as the tree may be
able to bring to perfection; which tree should stand something shadowed,
and not too much in the heat of the sun, and in a standard by itself,
rather than under a wall. These rules being observed, we may expect to
enjoy the full delight of these beautiful roses, as I myself have often
done by my own practice in divers trees so handled, which have
yearly borne store of fair flowers, when those that were natural, not
withstanding all the helps I could use, have not brought forth one that
was kindly, but all of them either broken, or, as it were, blasted.'"

     * This is the Frankfort Rose, a variety of Rosa Gallica,
     with very double flowers, one of our oldest garden-roses.

_Rosa Rubignosa_.--This is the Eglantine of the poets, celebrated in
song by bards known and unknown to fame, from Milton down to the rustic
rhymer offering the trib-. ute of his untutored Muse to the charms of
some village beauty.

Nothing is easier than its cultivation; but, to our mind, it loses half
its attraction when transplanted from its native road-side or thicket
into the garden. From its perfect hardiness and free growth, it is
sometimes used as a stock for budding or grafting. The fragrance of its
leaves readily distinguishes it from other species.

Most of the named varieties under this head in the catalogues
of nursery-men are hybrids; sometimes, as in the case of the
Double-margined Hip, or Madeline, retaining little trace of the
Sweet-Brier. Among the best are the Monstrous Sweet-Brier, the Carmine,
the Celestial, the Splendid, the Scarlet, the Rose Angle, the Royal, and
the Superb.

[Illustration: 0151]

_Rosa Alpina_.--This familiar climbing rose is easily known by its long
shoots, nearly or quite free from thorns, and the reddish tinge, shaded
into green, which marks the stems of most of the varieties. Its parent
is a native of the Alps, and it is perfectly hardy. The flowers grow
in clusters. In the Old Red Boursault, they are semidouble, and
indifferently formed; but some of the other varieties show great
improvements both in shape and color. They are excellent climbing or
pillar roses, and require less sun to develop their flowers than most
other species. Like other climbing roses, they should be primed but
little, though the old stems should be well thinned out.

_Amadis_, or the Crimson Boursault, is of a deep purplish-crimson,
with large semi-double flowers. The Blush Boursault is, in its flowers,
larger and more full than most others of the species. They are of a
deep flesh-color, passing into a lighter shade towards the edge. It can
scarcely owe its qualities to the Boursault race alone, but seems to be
a hybrid of some of the Chinese roses. When in perfection, it is much
the best of the group, but requires a warmer and brighter aspect than
the others. It is, however, perfectly hardy. This variety is also called
Calypso, De l'Isle, The White Boursault, and Florida. Inermis Elegans
and Gracilis are the only other varieties of the group that need be
mentioned here.

[Illustration: 0152]

_Rosa Arvensis Hybrida_.--The origin of the Ayrshire Rose has been
the subject of some discussion among botanists and cultivators. It is
generally supposed, however, to have sprung from the seed of a wild
trailing rose common in Great Britain and in Western Europe, the flowers
of which had been impregnated by accident or design with the pollen of
some other species. The Ayrshire roses are known in Europe for their
astonishing vigor of growth; some species, it is said, growing nearly
thirty feet in a year,--an achievement which we never knew them to equal
in this country. Their growth, however, is very rapid; and, when once
established, their long, slender shoots quickly possess themselves of
every object near them. As may be gathered from their name, most of them
originated in Scotland. In Europe, these roses are valued as standard
weepers, since, when budded on tall stocks, they form huge heads of
pendulous foliage and bloom. Doubtless they would succeed as well or
better in our Southern and Middle States; but in the North they would
probably require, in common with other standard roses, a careful
protection against the changes of the seasons.

Bennett's Seedling and the Dundee Rambler have white flowers; those of
the last being not fully double. The Countess of Lieven is creamy-white
and semidouble. Splendens is white, edged with red; and the Queen of
the Belgians is of a cream-color. The Ayrshire Queen is of a dark
crimson-purple, and less vigorous in growth than the rest. Ruga is of a
pale flesh-color. Like the last, it is a hybrid, probably between the
Tea Rose and one of the Ayrshires; for it has much of the fragrance of
the former.

"I have a steep bank of a hard white clay," says an English writer,
"which, owing to a cutting made in the road, became too steep for
cultivation. About sixteen years since, this was planted with Ayrshire
and other climbing roses. Holes were made in the hard soil with a pick,
two feet over and two feet deep; some manure mixed with the clay, after
it had lain exposed to frost to mellow it, and climbing roses planted.
This bank is, when the roses are in bloom, a mass of beauty: I have
never seen any thing in climbing roses to equal it. On another bank,
they are gradually mounting to the tops of the trees: none of them have
ever been pruned. Ayrshire roses, as articles of decoration in places
unfitted for other ornamental climbers, are worthy of much more
attention than they have hitherto received."

The following extract from the "Dundee Courier" of July 11,1837, will
give some idea how capable these roses are of making even a wilderness a
scene of beauty:--

"Some years ago, a sand-pit at Ellangowan was filled up with rubbish
found in digging a well. Over this a piece of rock was formed for the
growth of plants which prefer such situations, and amongst them were
planted some half-dozen plants of the Double Ayrshire Rose, raised in
this neighborhood about ten years ago. These roses now most completely
cover the whole ground,--a space of thirty feet by twenty. At present
they are in full bloom, showing probably not less than ten thousand
roses in this small space."

[Illustration: 0155]

_Rosa Sempervirens_.--This is a climbing rose of very vigorous growth,
a native of the middle and south of Europe. The garden varieties
originated from it bloom in clusters of small and usually very double
flowers, of which the prevailing tints are light, varying from delicate
shades of rose and pink to a pure white. They are not absolutely
evergreen, but only partially so, retaining their bright, glossy leaves
till spring, provided they are planted in shady and sheltered places,
as under trees, or in the angles of walls, but dropping them in open
situations. In England they have come into great favor as pillar-roses,
and for covering walls, banks, or unsightly objects in the garden or
on the pleasure-ground. Budded on tall stems of the Dog Rose, they
form pendulous standards of magnificent proportions; rivalling, in
this respect, the Ayrshire. Whether such standards would be equally
successful in the Northern States, is, to say the least, doubtful.

Most of the varieties of the Evergreen Rose now most in esteem were
originated in the gardens of Reuilly, near Paris, by M. Jacques,
gardener to King Louis Philippe. One or two are crossed with the
Musk Rose; whence they acquire a fragrance in which their own race
is deficient. Bankslæflora is one of these. It has small double white
flowers. Félicite Perpétuée, in spite of its preposterous name, is one
of the most beautiful of climbing roses; and trained as it sometimes is
in European gardens, drooping in graceful festoons from pillar to pillar
on supporting wires, or mantling some unsightly dead trunk with its
foliage of shining green and its countless clusters of creamy white
flowers, it forms one of the most attractive objects imaginable.
Thin out its shoots; but do not prune them, since, if they are much
shortened, they will yield no flowers whatever. Give it a rich soil,
with autumnal top-dressing of manure; a treatment good for the whole
group, and, indeed, for all climbing roses. Donna Maria has pure white
flowers. Its growth is less vigorous than others, its foliage light
green, and it blooms in large clusters. Myrianthes Rénoncule has
flowers of a pale peach-color, drooping in large clusters, and in form
resembling a double ranunculus. Rosa Plena is of a bright flesh-color,
large and double. Princesse Marie is reddish-pink. Fortune's Yellow is
a native of China and Japan, and is sometimes included in this class.
It is of a bright fawn-color, with a tinge of copper; beautiful under
shelter, but will not bear a winter exposure in the Northern States. It
is of comparatively recent introduction. Rampante blooms profusely in
clusters of pure white. Flora is of a bright rose; Leopoldine d'Orléans,
white, tinged with rose; and Spectabilis, rosy-lilac.

While some of this race are perfectly hardy, others will require
protection against a Northern winter. The ease of their culture, their
rapid growth, and their admirable effect where masses of flowers and
verdure are desired, will commend them all to favor in the Middle and
Southern States.

"I know of no rose idea," says Mr. Rivers, "prettier than that of a
wilderness of evergreen roses, the varieties planted promiscuously, and
suffered to cover the surface of the ground with their entangled shoots.
To effect this, the ground should be dug, manured, and thoroughly
cleaned from perennial weeds, such as couch-grass, &c., and the plants
planted from three to five feet asunder. If the soil be rich, the latter
distance will do. They must be hoed amongst, and kept clean from weeds
after planting, till the branches meet: they will then soon form a
beautiful mass of foliage and flowers, covering the soil too densely
for weeds of minor growth to flourish. Those weeds that are more robust
should be pulled out occasionally; and this is all the culture they will
require. For temples, columns, wire-fences, which they soon cover with
beauty, and verandas, their use is now becoming well known. One of the
most complete temples of roses is that at the seat of-----Warner, Esq.,
Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire; and the prettiest specimens of festooning
these roses from one column to another by means of small iron chains
(strong iron wire will do) may be seen at Broxbourn Bury, near
Hoddesdon, the seat of-------Bosanquet, Esq.

"... About six or eight years ago, I received, among others, some very
stout short stocks of the Dog Rose: they were not more than two feet in
height, but stouter than a large broom-handle, the bark thick and gray
with age. They were planted, and grew most luxuriantly. I was for
some little time at a loss what varieties to bud them with; for, be it
remembered, all stout and old rose-stocks require to be worked with very
strong-growing sorts of roses, to take off the abundance of sap, and
keep them in a healthy state. At last, in a mere freak of fancy, I
had them budded with some varieties of the Evergreen Rose (_Rosa
Sempervirens_). They grew most luxuriantly; and after a year or two,
not being trees adapted for sale, they were planted in a sloping bank of
strong white clay, and left to grow and bloom as Nature dictated: not a
shoot was ever touched with the pruning-knife.

"One of these trees is on a stem a trifle more than two feet in height,
and it has been these two or three summers past a picture of beauty.
When in full bloom, the ends of its shoots rest on the ground, and it
then forms a perfect dome of roses: nothing in rose-culture can really
be more beautiful. It will be at once seen with what facility such
stout, short, old rose-stocks can be found in any hedge. They may be
planted in the kitchen-garden, budded with the above-mentioned sort,
and, to give variety in color, with some of the following kinds,--all
varieties of Rosa Sempervirens, Myrianthes, Jaunâtre, Adelaide
d'Orléans, and Spectabilis. Every bud will succeed, as no roses grow
more freely; and, after remaining one season from budding in their
'nursery,' some nice places must be found for them on the lawn, where,
unpruned, unchecked, they will, with all the freshness of unassisted
Nature, annually delight the eye of the lover of flowers." *

     * This will do for the Southern States. Unhappily, it will
     not do in New England.

[Illustration: 0159]

_Rosa Multiflora_.--The parent of this family belongs to Japan and
China. With few exceptions, we cannot recommend them to Northern
cultivators for growth in the open air, as they bear our winters but
indifferently, and, in some cases, are killed outright. Russelliana,
or Scarlet Grevillia, blooms in large clusters of a rich, dark lake,
changing to various shades of red and lilac, so that the cluster
presents a curious diversity of hue. As it is extremely vigorous in
growth, it would make an admirable pillar or climbing rose, were it
but a little more hardy. It would, no doubt, succeed if the pillar were
protected during winter by fastening around it a covering of pine or
spruce boughs. These exclude sun, but not air; so that the rose is not
exposed to the dangers from dampness which attend a compact mass of
straw soaked by rain and snow. As Russelliana bears pruning better than
most climbing roses, it may be grown as a bush; in which state it
has flourished here for a number of years without protection. De la
Grifferaie may also be grown as a bush with perfect success as far North
as Boston. It gives a great abundance of blush and rose-colored flowers,
forming a high mound of bloom. Laura Davoust forms an admirable
greenhouse stock for rafter roses. Indeed, it is well worth a place for
its own sake. Its small double flowers of bright pink and flesh-color,
changing to white, are produced in large and graceful clusters,
beautiful from the varieties of shade which they exhibit. Carmin
Velouté, Alba, and Coccinea are also good varieties of this family, the
value of which is greatly diminished by the imperfect hardiness of many
of its members.

[Illustration: 0161]

The following are roses of doubtful parentage, several of them
much esteemed abroad; though, for the most part, they have not been
sufficiently tried here to establish their merit and their hardiness in
our Northern climate. All those named below bear an English winter.

Madame d'Arblay, or Wells's White, is of a light flesh-color, and its
growth is exceedingly vigorous. The Garland is of a light fawn-color,
changing to white, and blooms in large clusters of double flowers,
which turn to pink before fading. Sir John Sebright has small semidouble
crimson flowers, a color valuable in a climbing rose, because not very
common. Menoux is also crimson. Indica Major is of a pale blush. Among
others under this head may be mentioned Astrolabe, Bengale Formidable,
Queen, and Clair. The last, however, is but a moderate grower for a
climbing rose.

"Among climbing roses, but few can be found that will bear seed in
England, the Ayrshire roses excepted, from some of which it is probable
that some fine and original climbers may be raised. A most desirable
object to obtain is a dark crimson Rosa ruga: this may possibly be
accomplished by planting that favorite rose with the Ayrshire Queen, and
fertilizing its flowers very carefully with those of that dark rose. It
is remarkable, that although these roses are both hybrids, from species
apparently very remote in their affinities, yet both of them bear seed,
even without being fertilized. The Blush Ayrshire, a most abundant
seed-bearer, may also be planted with the Ayrshire Queen, the Gloire de
Rosomènes, the Double Yellow Brier, Single Crimson Moss, Celina Moss,
the China Rose Fabvier, and its flowers fertilized with the pollen of
these roses: if any combination can be effected, pleasing results may
reasonably be hoped for. To make assurance doubly sure, the anthers
of the Ayrshire Rose should be removed from some of the flowers with
which the experiment is tried."--_Rivers_.

[Illustration: 0162]

_Rosa Banksia_.--This very beautiful and very singular family more
resembles in bloom a double Spiraea prunifolia, dwarf almond, or
Chinese plum, than a rose. Its shoots are long, flexible, and graceful,
and its foliage of a deep, polished green. In the flowering season,
each shoot is like a pendulous garland of white, yellow, or rose-colored
blossoms, small in size, and countless in number. It is not hardy here,
or even in England; but it is one of the few once-blooming roses that
are worth training on a greenhouse rafter. We have found it to succeed
in a house without fire, with the protection of straw placed around it
in winter. It will then bloom in the spring.

This rose is a native of China, and was named in compliment to Lady
Banks. In Italy and the south of France it grows to perfection, climbing
with an astonishing vigor, and covering every object within its reach.
According to the French writer Deslongchamps, there was in 1842 a
Banksia Rose at Toulon, of which the stem was, at its base, two feet
and four inches in circumference; while the largest of the six
branches measured a foot in girth. Its foliage covered a space of wall
seventy-five feet wide, and about eighteen feet high; and it sometimes
produced shoots fifteen feet long in a single year. It flowered in
April and May; from fifty to sixty thousand of its double white blossoms
opening at once, with an effect which the writer describes as magical.
This remarkable tree was then about thirty-four years old. Deslongchamps
also describes another Banksia Rose at Caserta, in the kingdom of
Naples, which climbed to the top of a poplar sixty feet high, killed
it with its embraces, and mantled its lifeless form with its rich green
drapery, and its flowery garlands and festoons of white.

Banksian roses must not be shortened much; for, if they are, they will
not bloom. The branches may be thinned out, however, to any degree
necessary. The strong, thick shoots of overgrown proportions, and often
but half ripened, which they sometimes make towards the end of summer,
should be cut out, as they draw too much life from the blooming part of
the plant. The same rule will also apply to many other species. These
gross and immature shoots occur in many roses, both in the open ground
and under glass; and, as they rarely produce good flowers, they should
not be suffered to rob the rest of the plant of its nourishment.

The Double White Banksia is the best known, and one of the most
beautiful. Jaunâtre Pleine is of a primrose yellow. Jaune Serin is of a
bright yellow. Fortune's Banksia has double white flowers, much larger
than usual with the species, and is greatly admired. The Yellow Banksia
is of a bright yellow, small, and very double. Rosea is of a bright
rose, double.

The Banksia is frequently used in greenhouses and conservatories as a
stock for other climbing roses; and, in many cases, answers well.

[Illustration: 0165]

_Rosa Rubifolia_.--This native rose has been much improved by Mr. Feast
and others, and now has many varieties, some of which are evidently
hybrids. The single variety is in itself very attractive; blooming in
clusters, which last a long time, and exhibit a pleasing diversity of
shade, since the flowers grow paler as they grow old. For our own part,
we prefer the parent to most of its more pretending offspring.

All of this family are held in great scorn by transatlantic cultivators.
Perhaps the climate of England is unfavorable to them; perhaps national
prejudice may color the judgment; or perhaps the fact that a less
rigorous climate permits the successful cultivation of many fine
climbing roses which cannot well be grown here may explain the slight
esteem with which these coarse children of the prairies are regarded.
Coarse, without doubt, they are, except those into which another element
has been infused by hybridization, accidental or otherwise: and yet our
climate forbids us to dispense with them.

The Queen of the Prairies is among those best known and most desirable.
Individually, its flowers are as void of beauty as a rose can be.
Sometimes they are precisely like a small cabbage,--not the rose so
called, but the vegetable,--and they are as deficient in fragrance as in
elegance. Yet we regard this rose as a most valuable possession. It will
cover a wall, a pillar, a bank, or a dead trunk, with a profusion of
bloom, gorgeous as a feature of the garden landscape, though unworthy
to be gathered or critically examined. It is perfectly hardy, and of the
easiest culture. Those who can make no other rose grow rarely fail with
this. The Baltimore Belle is a notable exception to every thing we have
said in disparagement of the Prairie roses. It is evidently a hybrid of
some tender, ever-blooming variety, apparently one of the Noisettes;
and derives, from its paternal parent, qualities of delicacy and beauty
which are not conspicuous in the maternal stock. At the same time, it
has lost some of the robust and hardy character of the unmixed Prairie.
In a severe New-England winter, its younger shoots are often killed
back. It shows a tendency to bloom in the autumn; and a trifle more
of the Noisette blood infused into it would, no doubt, make it a
true autumnal rose. Some florists use it for spring forcing in the
greenhouse; for which the delicacy of its clustering white flowers,
shaded with a soft, flesh-color, well fits it. When the worthy Rivers,
patriarch of English rose-growers, pronounced sentence, ex cathedra,
against the whole race of Prairies,--"I will dismiss them with the
remark, that none of them are worth cultivating,"--he included in
his decree of excommunication one of the prettiest climbing roses in
existence.

Anna Maria has very double flowers of pink and rose. Linnæan Hill Beauty
bears white and pale blush flowers. Miss Gunnell is pale pink, with a
tinge of buff. It is one of the best, though not equal to the Baltimore
Belle. Mrs. Hovey has large white flowers; President, deep pink;
Triumphant, deep rose; Superba, light pink. Among other sorts are the
King of the Prairie, Eva Corinne, Jane, and Seraphim, all excellent for
general effect, but not to be classed with the roses suitable for the
bouquet or the drawing-room.

The Prairie roses might, no doubt, be greatly improved by hybridizing.
Thus, by fertilization with the pollen of the Musk Rose, we should
probably obtain an offspring with some of the delicacy and fragrance of
that species. Again: by applying the pollen of some vigorous, hardy
rose of deep and vivid color, we should improve the color of the Prairie
without impairing its hardiness. Hybrid China Paul Ricaut would probably
answer well for this experiment. The Baltimore Belle bears seed
occasionally; but is so uncertain and capricious in this respect, that
it will require no little perseverance in the hybridist.

[Illustration: 0168]

[Illustration: 0169]




CHAPTER VII. AUTUMNAL ROSES

|THE ROSES of which we have hitherto spoken have but one period of bloom
in the year. June is gay with their flowers; but at midsummer their
glory is departed, not again to return till a winter of rest has
intervened. Various families of roses have, however, the faculty of
continuous or repeated blooming. Some remain in bloom with little
interruption for a long time; while others bloom at intervals, after
periods of rest. These classes are known, with little discrimination, as
"Autumnal Roses," "Ever-blooming Roses," or "Perpetual Roses." The
French have a name for those blooming at intervals, which is very
appropriate. They call them "Remontant Roses,"--_Rosiers
Remontants_,--in other words, roses which grow again. This very well
describes them. They make a growth in spring and early summer, and the
young wood thus produced bears a crop of flowers. Then the plant rests
for a while; but soon begins another growth, which, in turn, bears
flowers, though less abundantly than before. The June, or once blooming
roses, it is true, make also a first and second growth; but, with them,
the second growth gives leaves alone. In the true ever-blooming roses,
or roses that bloom continuously, the growth of young wood capable of
bearing flowers is going on with little interruption during the whole
period when the vital powers of the plant are awake. It is to stimulate
the production of this blooming wood that we prune back the shoots that
have already bloomed, as soon as the flowers have faded.

It is the possession of a great variety of roses of repeated or
continuous bloom that gives to the rose-lovers of our own day their
greatest advantage over those of former times. Our forefathers had but
very few autumnal roses. The ancient Romans, it seems, had roses in
abundance in November and December; but this must have been with the aid
of a supreme skill in cultivation, as there is no reason to believe that
they were in possession of those Chinese and Indian species, to which
the modern florist is indebted, directly or indirectly, for nearly all
his autumnal flowers. As these species are by far the most important of
the ever-blooming and _remontant_ families, both in themselves and in
the numberless progeny of hybrids to whom they have transmitted their
qualities, we place them first on our list.

[Illustration: 0171]

_Rosa Indica.--Rosa Semperflorens._--We include under the head of the
Chinese Rose two botanical species, because they are so much alike,
that, for floral purposes, it is not worth while to separate them, and
because their respective offspring are often wholly undistinguishable.
The most marked distinction between the two is the greater depth and
vividness of the color of Rosa Semperflorens; though, by a singular
freak of Nature, seedlings perfectly white are said to have been
produced from it.

China roses will not endure our winters without very careful protection;
yet they bloom so constantly and so abundantly, that they are very
desirable in a garden. In large English pleasure-grounds, they are
sometimes planted in masses, each of a distinct color. They may also be
so used here by those who will take the trouble to remove them from the
ground in the autumn, and place them in a frame for protection. For this
purpose, a hotbed frame may be used, substantially made of plank. It
should be placed in a situation where the soil is thoroughly drained
either by Nature or Art. The roses are to be placed in it close
together, and overlapping each other, to save room; the roots being
well covered with soil, and the plants laid in a sloping position. By
covering them with boards and mats, they will then be safe from every
thing but mice. The most effectual way to defeat the mischievous designs
of these pestiferous vermin is to cover, not the roots only, but the
entire plants, with earth. The covering of boards and mats must be so
placed as to exclude water from rain and melting snow. Tea roses, of
which we shall speak under the next head, are, as a class, more tender
than the Chinas; and, in order to preserve them, the soil in the frame
should be dug out to the depth of a foot, the roses laid at the bottom,
and wholly covered with earth somewhat dry. On this earth, after the
roses are buried, place a covering of dry leaves some six inches deep,
and then cover the whole with waterproof boards or sashes. The leaves
alone, if in sufficient quantity, would protect the roses from cold,
but, at the same time, afford a tempting harborage for mice, which would
destroy the plants, unless buried out of their reach. Thus treated, the
tenderest Tea roses will bear the winter with impunity in the coldest
parts of New England.

Though China roses are not equal in beauty to some of their hybrid
offspring to be hereafter described, they surpass all other roses for
pot-culture in the window of the parlor or drawing-room. They are more
easily managed than Tea roses, and, though less fragrant, are not less
abundant in bloom. No roses are of easier culture in the greenhouse.
The varieties of this group are the Bengal roses of the French, and are
those familiarly known among us as Monthly roses. They were introduced
into England from the East about the beginning of the last century.

Carmin d'Yèeles, or Carmin Superbe, has bright carmine flowers.
Cramoisie Supérieure has double crimson flowers, and, like the former,
is excellent for pot-culture. Eugène Beauharnais is large, very double,
and of a bright amaranth-color, approaching crimson. Fabvier is of
crimson scarlet, very vivid and striking. President d'Olbeque is of a
cherry-red.

All of the above belong to the Semperflorens species, and are of deep
colors. The following are varieties of Rosa Indica. Archduke Charles is
of a bright rose-color, gradually deepening as the flower grows older,
till it becomes, at times, almost crimson. Cels Multiflora is white,
shaded with pink, and flowers very freely. Madame Bréon is of a rich
rose-color, very large, double, and compact in form. Clara Sylvain is
pure white. Madame Bureau is white, with a faint tinge of straw-color.
Mrs. Bosanquet may be placed in this division; for, though it is
certainly a hybrid, the blood of the China Rose predominates in it, and
characterizes it. It is of a pale, waxy, flesh color, very delicate and
beautiful, at the same time large and double. Napoléon is of a bright
pink, and the Duchess of Kent is white.

The Dwarf roses, called Lawrenceanas, or Fairy roses, are varieties of
the Chinese. They are very small, many of them not exceeding a foot in
height, and are used as edging for flower-beds in countries of which the
climate is not too severe for them. Like all other China roses, they are
very easily grown in pots.

"China roses are better adapted than almost any other class for forming
groups of separate colors. Thus, for beds of white roses,--which, let
it be remembered, will bloom constantly from June till October,--Clara
Sylvain and Madame Bureau are beautiful. The former is the taller
grower, and should be planted in the centre of the bed. For crimson,
take Cramoisie Supérieure,--no other variety approaches this in its
peculiar richness of color; for scarlet, Fabvier; for red, Prince
Charles and Carmin Superbe; for deep crimson, Eugene Beauhamais;
for blush, Mrs. Bosanquet; for a variegated group, changeable as the
chameleon, take Archduke Charles and Virginie; for rose, Madame Bréon.
I picture to myself the above on a well-kept lawn, their branches
pegged to the ground so as to cover the entire surface; and can scarcely
imagine any thing more chaste and beautiful.

"To succeed in making these roses bear and ripen their seed in England,
a warm, dry soil and south wall are necessary; or, if the plants can
be trained to a fined wall, success will be more certain. Eugène
Beauharnais, fertilized with Fabvier, would probably produce first-rate
brilliant-colored flowers. Archduke Charles, by removing a few of
the small central petals, just before their flowers are expanded, and
fertilizing it with pollen from Fabvier or Henry the Fifth, would give
seed; and as the object ought to be, in this family, to have large
flowers with brilliant colors, and plants of hardy, robust habits,
no better union can be formed. China roses, if blooming in an airy
greenhouse, will often produce fine seed: by fertilizing their flowers,
it may probably be insured. In addition, therefore, to those planted
against a wall, some strong plants of the above varieties should be
planted in the orchard-house,--the place, above all others, adapted for
seed-bearing roses."--_Rivers_.

[Illustration: 0176]

_Rosa Indica Odorata_.--This is a Chinese species, closely allied to
the last named, but more beautiful, far more fragrant, and usually more
tender. The two original varieties of it, the Blush Tea and the Yellow
Tea, were introduced into England early in the "present century; and
between them they have produced a numerous family, than which no roses
are more beautiful.

To grow them in the open air, they require,'in the first place, a very
thorough drainage. If the situation is at all damp, the bed should be
raised some six inches above the surrounding surface; but this will be
rarely necessary in our climate. If it rests on a good natural stratum
of gravel, this will be drainage sufficient; but, if not, the whole bed
should be excavated, and underlaid to the depth of four or five inches
with broken stones, broken bricks, or with what is much better than
either,--oyster-shells. Over these, sift coarse gravel to prevent the
soil from working into their crevices, and on the gravel make a bed
somewhat more than a foot deep of good loam, mixed with a nearly equal
quantity of light, well-rotted manure, adding sand if the texture of
the loam requires it. The bed should be in an open, sunny situation, and
sheltered, as far as may be, from strong winds. The Tea roses planted in
it--unless they have been exhausted by forcing in the greenhouse--will
give a liberal supply of bloom until checked by the autumn frosts.

Many of these roses can be grown to great advantage in a cold grapery,
in a bed suitably prepared. They differ greatly in hardiness, and in
respect to ease of culture. Some are so vigorous as to form greenhouse
climbers, and so hardy as to bear a Northern winter by being simply laid
down, and covered with earth, like a raspberry. Of these is Gloire de
Dijon, a rose of most vigorous growth, and closely resembling in the
shape of its blossoms that matchless Bourbon Rose, the well-known
Souvenir de la Malmaison. Its color, however, is very different, being a
mixture of buff and salmon. It has one defect,--a crumpled appearance of
the central leaves, which gives them a somewhat withered look, even when
just open. Five or six large plants of this variety are growing here
with the utmost luxuriance on the rafters of a glass house, without
fire. In winter they are protected by meadow-hay thrust between them and
the glass, and have never been injured by the frost.

For preserving a small number of Tea roses through the winter, an
ordinary cellar answers perfectly, provided there is no furnace in it.
They may either be potted or "heeled" in earth in a box. A few degrees
of frost will not hurt them. Roses and all other plants will bear the
same degree of cold much better in a close, still air than in the open
sunlight and wind.

The prevailing colors of Tea roses are light and delicate: of the
rose-colored varieties, Adam is one of the finest, as is also Souvenir
d'un Ami. Moiret is of a pale yellow, shaded with fawn and rose. Bougere
is of a deep rosy bronze, large and double. Silène resembles it in
color, and is very much admired. Canary is of the color which its name
indicates, and its buds are extremely beautiful. Yet, in this respect,
no variety can exceed the Old Yellow Tea, which is, however, one of the
most tender and difficult of culture in the whole group. Devoniensis is
very large, double, and of a pale clear yellow; a very fine rose, but
shy of bloom. Gloire de Dijon, already mentioned, is a superb rose,
though somewhat wanting in that grace and delicacy, which, in general,
characterize this class. Madame Bravy is of a creamy white, and very
beautifully formed. Madame Damaizin is salmon, and very free in bloom.
Madame William is of a bright yellow, large, and very double. Niphetos
is of a pale lemon, turning to snow-white. Safeano is one of the most
distinct and remarkable roses in the group. It is of a buff and apricot
hue, altogether peculiar. Its buds are beautifully formed; as are also
its half-opened flowers, though they are not very double. It is a very
profuse bloomer, easy of culture, free of growth, and hardy as compared
with most other Tea roses.

"With attention, some very beautiful roses of this family may be
originated from seed; but the plants must be trained against a south
wall, in a warm, dry soil, or grown in pots, under glass. A warm
greenhouse or the orchard-house will be most proper for them, so that
they bloom in May, as their hips are a long time ripening.

"For yellow roses, Vicomtesse Decazes may be planted with and
fertilized by Canary, which abounds in pollen: some fine roses, almost
to a certainty, must be raised from seed produced by such a union. For
the sake of curiosity, a few flowers of the latter might be fertilized
with the Double Yellow Brier, or Rosa Harrison. The Old Yellow
Tea Rose bears seed abundantly; but it has been found from repeated
experiments that a good or even a mediocre rose is seldom or never
produced from it: but, fertilized with the Yellow Brier, something
original may be realized. Souvenir d'un Ami and Adam would produce seed
of fine quality, from which large and bright rose-colored varieties
might be expected; Niphetos would give pure white Tea roses; and Gloire
de Dijon, fertilized with Safrano, would probably originate first-rate
fawn-colored roses: but the central petals of the latter should be
carefully removed with tweezers or pliers, as its flowers are too double
for it to be a certain seed-bearer."--_Rivers_.

[Illustration: 0180]

_Rosa Moschata_.--This rose is a native of Asia, Northern Africa, and
adjacent islands. In Persia it is said to reach a prodigious size,
resembling some gorgeous flowering tree. It is said, too, that it is the
favorite rose of the Persian poets, who celebrated its loves with the
nightingale in strains echoed by their English imitators. Being very
vigorous, it is best grown as a climber; but, with us, it requires the
shelter of glass. It flowers in large clusters late in summer, and in a
warm, moist air, exhales a faint odor of musk.

The Double White Musk has yellowish white flowers of moderate size.
Eponine has pure white flowers, very double. The New Double White, or
Ranunculus Musk, is an improvement on the Double White, which it much
resembles. Nivea, or the Snowy Musk, can hardly be said to belong to the
group, as it blooms only once in the year. Ophir, Princess of Nassau,
and Rivers, are also good examples of this family.

[Illustration: 0181]

_Rosa Moschata Hybrida._--Having treated of the China, Tea, and Musk
roses, we now come to the hybrid offspring which they have jointly
produced. In 1817, M. Noisette, a French florist at Charleston, S.C.,
raised a seedling from the Musk Rose, impregnated with the pollen of
the' common China Rose. The seedling was different from either parent,
but had the vigorous growth of the Musk Rose, together with its property
of blooming in clusters, and a slight trace of its peculiar fragrance.
This was the original Noisette Rose, and it has been the parent of a
numerous family; but as it has, in turn, been fertilized with the pollen
of the Tea, and perhaps of other roses, many of its descendants have
lost its peculiar characteristics, so that in some cases they cannot be
distinguished from Tea roses. It is thus that confusion is constantly
arising in all the families of the rose; the groups becoming merged in
each other by insensible gradations, so that it is impossible to fix any
clear line of demarcation between them.

The distinctive characteristic of the true Noisette is blooming in
clusters. Different varieties have different habits of growth, some
being much more vigorous than others; but the greater part are
true climbing roses. Those in which the blood of the Musk and China
predominate are comparatively hardy. Many of them can be grown as
bushes in the open air, with very little winter protection, even in
the latitude of Boston. Two varieties--Madame Massot and Caroline
Marniesse--are today (Oct. 16) in full bloom here, where they have stood
for several years, with very little precaution to shelter them. Some
other varieties, again, strongly impregnated with the Tea Rose, are
quite as tender as Tea roses of the pure race.

As rafter-roses in the greenhouse, the Noisettes are unsurpassed.

[Illustration: 0183]

Aimée Vibert is one of the prettiest of the group. It was raised by the
French cultivator Vibert, who named it after his daughter. The flowers
are pure white, and grow in large clusters. Though not among the most
vigorous in growth of the Noisettes, this variety is comparatively
hardy, and in all respects very desirable. Miss Glegg resembles her
French sister, but is scarcely so graceful or elegant. Joan of Arc is a
pure white rose, growing very vigorously. Madame Massot, sometimes sold
by American nursery-men under the name of Mademoiselle Henriette, bears
large clusters of small flowers of a waxy white, faintly tinged with
flesh-color. It is one of the hardiest of the group. Caroline Marniesse
somewhat resembles it, but is not equal in beauty.

All of the above have very distinctly the Noisette characteristics, as
inherited from their parent, the Musk Rose. Those which follow have
been hybridized to such a degree with the Tea Rose, that its traits
predominate; and though, in some of them, the cluster-blooming habit
of the Musk is not lost, the flowers bear, in size, shape, color, and
fragrance, a marked resemblance to the Tea. Chroma-tella, or the Cloth
of Gold, is, when in perfection, the most beautiful of all the yellow
roses; but it is shy of bloom, and difficult of culture. Solfaterre is
also a fine yellow rose, much more easily managed than the last. The
same may be said of Augusta, a seedling raised from it in this country.
Isabella Gray was also raised in America, and is a seedling from the
Cloth of Gold, which it rivals in beauty; though, like its parent, it is
somewhat difficult to manage. Jaune Desprez, or Desprez's Yellow, is
of a sulphur-color tinged with red, very large and fragrant. America
is also a large and fine flower of a creamy white; but perhaps the
best known of the whole group is Lam arque, in New England the greatest
favorite among greenhouse climbers. Its flowers are of a sulphur-yellow,
large and double; and its growth is very vigorous.

"But few of the Noisette roses will bear seed in this country: the
following, however, if planted against a south wall, and carefully
fertilized, would probably produce some. The object here should be to
obtain dark crimson varieties with large flowers; and for this purpose
Fellenberg should be fertilized with Octavie, Solfaterre with the Tea
Rose. Vicomtesse Decazes would probably give yellow varieties; and,
these would be large and fragrant, as in Lamarque and Jaune Desprez. In
these directions for procuring seed from roses by fertilizing, I have
confined myself to such varieties as are almost sure to produce it; but
much must be left to the amateur, as many roses may be made fertile by
removing their central petals, and consequently some varieties that I
have not noticed may be made productive."--_Rivers_.

[Illustration: 0187]

_Rosa Damascena_.--This is a race of Damask roses endowed with the
faculty of blooming in the autumn. The old roses known as the Monthly
(not the China roses so called) and the Four Seasons are the parents of
the group, though not without some infusion of foreign blood. The Damask
Perpetuals are hardy, and remarkable for fragrance. They demand rich
culture, even more than most other roses; and the best of them
with neglect and low diet will bloom but once in the year, and that
indifferently. On the other hand, they repay generous treatment
liberally, as some of them are as beautiful as they are fragrant.
American nursery-men usually catalogue them among the Hybrid Perpetuals,
where they are out of place; since the true Damask Perpetual is not, in
any sense, a hybrid, though, as before mentioned, some foreign blood has
found its way into the family.

The French rose-grower Vibert has formed a new group, which he calls the
Rose de Trianon, out of the Damask Perpetuals; but, as the subdivision
seems unnecessary and perplexing, we shall re-annex it to the parent
group.

The following are good examples of these Perpetuals: Joasine Hanet has
deep purplish-red flowers, very showy. Sydonie bears large flowers of
a rose or bright salmon, and blooms profusely. Yolande of Aragon has
deep-pink flowers, and is an abundant autumn bloomer. The above belong
to Vibert's new division. The following are unquestioned Damask:
Crimson, or Rose du Roi, is of a bright crimson, very large, very
fragrant, and an excellent autumn bloomer. There is a history attached
to it. Count Lelieur was superintendent of the royal gardens of St.
Cloud, where this rose was raised from seed, a little before the
restoration of the Bourbons. He named it Rose Lelieur, after himself.
When Louis the Eighteenth came to the throne, an officer of his
household insisted that the new rose should be named after him. Count
Lelieur resisted. A debate ensued. The party of the courtiers prevailed:
the new rose was called the King's Rose, Rose du Roi; and the count
resigned his post in disgust. Mogador is a seedling from this rose, and
is, perhaps, an improvement on it. Portland Blanche is pure white, and
blooms well in autumn. An English writer sets it down as worthless:
whence I infer that there must be two of the same name; for here it lias
proved itself one of the most beautiful of white roses. Bernard is a
small but very beautiful rose, of a clear salmon-color, and is said to
be a sport from the Crimson.

"As the culture of this class of roses," says Rivers, "is at present but
imperfectly understood, I shall give the result of my experience as
to their cultivation, with suggestions to be acted upon according
to circumstances. One peculiar feature they nearly all possess,--a
reluctance to root when layered: consequently, Perpetual Damask roses,
on their own roots, will always be scarce. When it is possible to
procure them, they will be found to flourish much better on dry,
poor soils than when budded, as at present. These roses require a
superabundant quantity of food: it is therefore perfectly ridiculous to
plant them on dry lawns, to suffer the grass to grow close up to their
stems, and not to give them a particle of manure for years. Under these
circumstances, the best varieties, even the Rose du Roi, will scarcely
ever give a second series of flowers. To remedy the inimical nature of
dry soils to this class of roses, an annual application of manure on the
surface of the soil is quite necessary. The ground must not be dug, but
lightly pricked over with a fork in November; after which some manure
must be laid on, about two or three inches in depth, which ought not to
be disturbed, except to clean with the hoe and rake, till the following
autumn. This, in some situations, in the spring months, will be
unsightly: in such cases, cover with some nice green moss, as directed
in the culture of Hybrid China roses. I have said that this treatment
is applicable to dry, poor soils: but, even in good rose soils, it is
almost necessary; for it will give such increased vigor, and such
a prolongation of the flowering season, as amply to repay the labor
bestowed. If the soil be prepared as directed, they will twice in the
year require pruning: in November [in March, for this country] when the
beds are dressed; and again in the beginning of June. In the November
pruning, cut off from every shoot of the preceding summer's growth
about two-thirds its length: if they are crowded, remove some of them
entirely. If this autumnal pruning is attended to, there will be, early
in June the following summer, a vast number of luxuriant shoots, each
crowned with a cluster of buds. Now, as June roses are always abundant,
a little sacrifice must be made to insure a fine autumnal bloom:
therefore leave only half the number of shoots to bring forth their
summer flowers; the remainder shorten to about half their length. Each
shortened branch will soon put forth buds; and in August and September
the plants will again be covered with flowers. In cultivating Perpetual
roses of all classes, the faded flowers ought immediately to be removed;
for in autumn the petals do not fall off readily, but lose their color,
and remain on the plant, to the injury of the forthcoming buds. Though I
have recommended them to be grown on their own roots, in dry soils, yet,
on account of the autumnal rains dashing the dirt upon their flowers
when close to the ground, wherever it is possible to make budded roses
grow, they ought to be preferred; for, on stems from one to two feet in
height, the flowers will not be soiled: they are also brought near to
the eye, and the plant forms a neat and pretty object."

[Illustration: 0191]

_Rosa Hybrida Bourboniensis_.--The China Rose and one of the old Damask
Perpetuals, known as the Red Four Seasons, have produced between them
a distinct family of hybrids known as the Bourbon roses. They are so
called because they were originated on the Isle of Bourbon. One M.
Perichon, an inhabitant of that island, in planting a quantity of
seedling roses raised for a hedge, found one very different from the
rest, and planted it apart. On flowering, it proved to be distinct from
any rose before known. Soon after, in the year 1817, a French botanist,
M. Bréon, arriving at the Isle of Bourbon as curator of the government
botanical garden established there, investigated the case of this
remarkable seedling, and became convinced that it was produced between
the two species named above; since these were then the only roses on the
island, and both were freely used as hedges. M. Bréon sent plants and
seeds of the new rose to Paris; and from these have sprung the whole
race of the Bourbons,--a race of sweeter savor in horticulture than in
history.

They are remarkable as a family for clearness and brightness of color,
perfection of form, and freedom of autumnal blooming. Some of them are
quite hardy; others are not so in New England. Their growth is various;
some climbing vigorously if trained to do so, and others forming compact
bushes. Abundance of manure, a deep and well-dug soil, and mulching
with newly-cut grass or some similar substance to keep them moist in dry
weather, joined to judicious pruning, are needed to bring forth their
beauties in perfection. The stronger growers cannot be pruned severely
without greatly diminishing the quantity of their bloom; but the ends
of tall, strong shoots of the same season's growth may be cut off with
great advantage, thus checking their growth, and causing them to throw
out small blooming side-shoots.

No roses are better than these where the object is to produce a late
autumnal bloom. They may be made to bloom into the winter by pinching
off their summer flower-buds, in order that they may not exhaust
themselves in that season, and by sheltering them from the frost. For
forcing, they are unsurpassed.

Some of the most vigorous varieties would make gorgeous pillar-roses,
provided pains were taken to lay them flat, and cover them with earth
every winter. Without protection, they would suffer severely in the
Northern States.

Acidalie was, till recently, the only white Bourbon; yet it is not pure
white, but has a tinge of blush. Of late, another white Bourbon has been
added,--Blanche Lafitte,--which is also faintly tinged with flesh-color.
Adelaide Bougère is of a rich velvety purple. Du-petit Thouars is of
a vivid crimson, large and double. George Peabody is of a
purplish-crimson. Louise Odier is a rose of very vigorous growth, and
one of the hardier members of the family: its flowers are of a bright
rose-color, of a beautiful cupped form; and it has a tendency to bloom
in clusters. Prince Albert is still hardier. Its color is a brilliant
crimson-scarlet, and its autumn bloom is abundant. Sir Joseph Paxton is
of a bright rose-color, tinged with crimson: its growth is exceedingly
vigorous; and, with moderate protection, it will bear our winters.
Souvenir de la Malmaison is unsurpassed among roses. It is very large,
and beautifully formed. It is of a light, transparent flesh-color; and
no rose is more admired in a greenhouse. It will also thrive in the open
air, and, when the soil is well drained, may safely be trusted to bear a
New-England winter, provided it is covered with earth. In a wet soil, it
is usually killed. Vorace is of a dark purplish-crimson, and, like the
last named, only partially hardy. Hermosa, or Armosa, resembles a China
rose in the character and abundance of its bloom. None surpasses it for
forcing.

The above will serve as favorable examples of the best types of this
group.

"I hope in a few years to see Bourbon roses in every garden; for 'the
Queen of Flowers' boasts no member of her court more beautiful. Their
fragrance also is delicate and pleasing, more particularly in the
autumn. They ought to occupy a distinguished place in the autumnal
rose-garden, in clumps or beds, as standards and as pillars. In any
and in all situations, they must and will please. To insure a very late
autumnal bloom, a collection of dwarf standards, i. e. stems one to
two feet in height, should be potted in large pots, and, during summer,
watered with manure-water, and some manure kept on the surface. Towards
the end of September or the middle of October, if the weather be wet,
they may be placed under glass. They will bloom in fine perfection even
as late as November....

"It is difficult to point out roses of this family that bear seed
freely, except the Common Bourbon; but Acidalie, planted against a south
wall, would probably give some seed. * If any pollen can be found, it
might be fertilized with the flowers of Julie de Loynes. A pure white
and true Bourbon Rose ought to be the object: therefore it should not
be hybridized with any other species. Bouquet de Flore may be planted
against a south wall with Menoux, with which it should be carefully
fertilized: some interesting varieties may be expected from seed thus
produced. Queen of the Bourbons, planted with the yellow China Rose,
might possibly give some seeds; but those would not produce true Bourbon
roses, as the former is a hybrid, partaking of the qualities of the
Tea-scented roses. Anne Beluze, planted with Madame Nerard, would give
seed from which some very delicate Blush roses might be raised; and
Le Florifère, fertilized with the Common Bourbon, would also probably
produce seed worthy of attention."--Rivers.

     * In America, several varieties bear seed well. Sir Joseph
     Paxton rarely fails, and is a very good subject for
     experiment. The varieties named above by Mr. Rivers are not,
     for the most part, of the first merit.

[Illustration: 0195]

We reach, at length, the vast family of the Hybrid Perpetuals,--a race
of brilliant parvenus, which, within the last twenty-five years, have
risen to throw other roses into the shade. As we look upon them, we
survey a gorgeous chaos. Here are innumerable varieties of foliage and
flower, perplexing us in our search for genealogies and relationships.
All of them, however, have, as a basis, some hardy, once-blooming rose,
with which has been mingled the blood of one, and often of many, of the
ever-blooming roses, in sufficient proportion to impart some of their
qualities of autumnal flowering. Many of the Hybrid Perpetuals have, as
their basis, the Hybrid China Rose, already described under the head
of the summer roses. This, as we have seen, blooms but once; but when
crossed with the China, Tea, Bourbon, Damask Perpetual, or several of
these combined, it becomes capable of blooming in the autumn, without
losing its hardiness. Such, then, is the origin of this group; and
the diversity of its characteristics answers to the diversity of its
parentage. Thus two roses can scarcely be more unlike than Baronne
Prévost and the Giant of Battles, or La Reine and Arthur de San sal.
In Baronne Prévost and La Reine, the hardier and more vigorous elements
prevail; and they probably owe their ever-blooming qualities to an
infusion of the Damask Perpetual, rather than of the more tender China
roses. In the Giant of Battles and Arthur de Sansal, on the contrary,
the China and Bourbon clements are very apparent; and, while these roses
are excellent autumn bloomers, they are much less hardy and vigorous
than the other two.

M. Laffay, in his garden at Bellevue, a few miles from Paris, may
be said to have laid the foundations of the Hybrid Perpetual family.
Indeed, to a great extent, he created it; having originated a great
number of beautiful roses, some of which none of the more recent
productions have been able in the least degree to eclipse. Laflay's
roses were chiefly of the hardier and stronger type, with La Reine,
which was produced about the year 1840, at their head.

From the motley character of the group, the lines that separate it from
the Bourbon and from some other families cannot be definitely drawn;
and there are certain varieties which always hold an equivocal position,
being sometimes placed with one group, and sometimes with another.

These Perpetuals differ greatly in the freedom of their autumn blooming;
some giving a second and third crop of flowers in abundance; while
others will not bloom at all after midsummer, except under careful and
skilful treatment. All require rich culture and good pruning. When an
abundant autumn bloom is required, a portion of the June bloom must be
sacrificed by cutting back about half the flower-stems to three or four
eyes as soon as the flower-buds form. When the flowers fade, these also
should be cut off with the stems that bear them, in a similar manner.
The formation of the seed-vessels, by employing the vitality of the
plant, tends greatly to diminish its autumn bloom. Give additional
manure every year, and keep the ground open, and free of weeds. If
rank, strong shoots, full of redundant sap, form in summer, check their
disproportioned growth by cutting off their tops.

In the North, these roses are better for a little winter protection,
such as earthing them up at the base, or thrusting pine-boughs into the
soil among them. They may with great advantage be taken up as often as
once in three years, and replanted after two or three shovelfuls of old
manure have been dug into the soil, which, at the same time, should be
forked to the greatest possible depth. Indeed, it does them no harm to
replant them yearly: on the contrary, they, generally bloom the better
for it.

An excellent way to preserve them during winter, when they have been
taken out of the ground, is to bury them, root and branch, in earth.
The earth for this purpose should not be very moist. The place selected
should be sheltered and dry; the latter point being of the last
importance. The roses may be tied in bundles, and the earth thrown over
them to the depth of six inches or more, in such a manner as to shed
the rain and snow; and if a few boards are placed over it, in a sloping
position, it will be so much the better. In this way, all the half-hardy
roses, and many of those regarded as the most tender, can be safely
wintered in the coldest parts of New England.

It is to the family of Hybrid Perpetuals that the French rose-growers
have given their chief attention. Hence an enormous multiplication of
varieties, every year bringing forth a new brood, perplexing us with
their numbers, and by the clamor with which the merits of each and all
are proclaimed by their respective originators. Some of these new roses
are unsurpassed in beauty, and deserve all that can be said of them.
Yet thoroughly to establish the character of a rose requires several
years,--not less than six, according to the eminent French rose-grower,
M. Jules Margottin: therefore it is impossible to speak with
entire confidence of these novelties. I shall begin with roses of
well-established merit, which have been for years in cultivation here.
Of the rest, which have had not more than a season's trial, mention will
be made afterwards.

La Reine is perhaps entitled to the first mention, as it was one of the
first in its origin, and has never since lost ground. It varies very
much in quality with circumstances of soil and cultivation, and in its
color is surpassed by many other roses. Its very large size when well
grown, its fine form and perfect hardiness, are its points of merit. It
is the mother of a numerous progeny, among which Auguste Mie is one of
the best, growing very vigorously, and bearing flowers equal to those
of its parent in beauty of form, and superior in delicacy of color. They
are of a fine rose-color, several shades lighter than that of La Reine.
Louise Peyronney also, in many respects, surpasses her parent; and is a
rose of great beauty, though scarcely so vigorous as La Reine. Baronne
Prévost is another hardy and vigorous rose, of a type wholly different:
it grows with great vigor, bears the rudest winter, and, both in June
and in the autumnal months, yields an abundance of large, very
double flowers of a light rose-color. Pius IX. has the same vigor of
constitution, and the same abundant bloom: its flowers are of a deep
rose, tinged with crimson. Dr. Arnold is of a deeper color, approaching
to crimson, and is one of the best autumn bloomers. Madame Boll is a
superb rose, very vigorous, very hardy, and very double. L'Enfant du
Mt. Carmel somewhat resembles it, but grows and blooms more freely: its
color is a rosy crimson. Jules Margottin has no superior in its way:
it is of a clear, rosy-crimson color, and its half-opened buds are
especially beautiful. Triomphe de l'Exposition is of a deep crimson;
and Souvenir de la Reine d'Angleterre, of a bright rose: both are very
vigorous and very effective. General Jacqueminot is of a fine crimson,
and, though not perfectly double, is, nevertheless, one of the most
splendid of roses. Its size, under good culture, is immense. It is a
strong grower and abundant bloomer, and glows like a firebrand among
the paler hues around it. It is one of the hardier kinds, and is easily
managed. Its offspring are innumerable. The greater part of the new
roses of the last year or two own it as a parent, and inherit some of
its qualities. Of its older progeny, Triomphe des Beaux Arts and
the Oriflamme de St. Louis may be mentioned with honor. The last,
especially, is a very brilliant rose. Among other deep-colored roses are
Triomphe de Paris, Gloire de Santenay, and General Washington; the last
a seedling from Triomphe de l'Exposition. It is a new rose; but there
can be little doubt of its merit.

Perhaps no rose among the Hybrid Perpetuals has been so famous, and
so much praised, as the Giant of Battles; but we cannot fully echo the
commendations bestowed upon it. All the roses just named are hardy,
vigorous, and of easy culture, available to the half-practised amateur
as well as to the experienced cultivator. But the class of Hybrid
Perpetuals of which the Giant of Battles is the type, and, to a great
extent, the parent, requires more skill and precaution for successful
culture. They are all more or less liable to mildew. "I can do
nothing with the Giant, because the mildew destroys it," a well-known
nursery-man writes me. Besides this tendency, it is by no means of the
vigorous growth which the catalogues of nursery-men commonly ascribe
to it. Its flowers, however, are very brilliant, and, in a favorable
season, are produced in abundance. In color, they resemble those of
General Jacqueminot. Some of the seedlings raised from them are much
darker; and among these may be mentioned Arthur de Sansal, Cardinal
Patrizzi, and the Emperor of Morocco. Lord Raglan is one of the very
finest flowers of this section; and the plant is more vigorous, and less
liable to mildew, than the rest of the group.

The following are of the lighter, and more delicate shades: Caroline de
Sansal is of a clear flesh-color, large, full, and of a vigorous, hardy
constitution. Madame Vidot is, when in perfection, an exquisite rose, of
a transparent, waxy, flesh color, and formed like a camellia: it has
not proved hardy here, and has suffered severely every winter. Queen
Victoria is of a better constitution: it is white, shaded with pink.
William Griffiths is an old and excellent rose, of a peculiar light
satin rose-color: it rarely suffers from the winter. Virginal is pure
white. La Mere de St. Louis is of a waxy flesh-color, and, though not
very full, is distinct and beautiful. Madame Rivers is of a very light
rose. Comtesse de Chabrillant is of a clear pink, and very fine. Madame
Knorr is of a somewhat deeper shade, and singularly beautiful in bud.
Louise Magnan and Dr. Henon may, with Virginal, in the absence of
better, represent the white Hybrid Perpetuals,--a color in which this
class is very deficient; while a yellow or buff rose is as yet unknown
in it, although it is said that such an one has been produced, and will
soon be "brought out."

The following are a selection from the new roses; and, though their
merits have not as yet been tried by the test of time, there can be very
little doubt that all of them will prove of the highest merit:--

Maurice Bernardin is of a bright vermilion, very large and full. Charles
Lefebvre is of a bright crimson, purplish at the centre, and seems
an admirable rose. Mrs. William Paul is of a violet-red, shaded with
crimson.

Madame Clémence Joigne aux is of a red and lilac color, and grows with
great vigor. Lord Macaulay is of a rich scarlet-crimson: a bloom of it
is now before me, cut here, in the open air, on the 22d of October. Sour
des Anges owes its singular name to the delicacy of its tint,--a soft
flesh-color; yet the habit of the plant is vigorous, and it seems of
a hardy nature. Duc de Rohan is red, shaded with vermilion. Beauty of
Waltham, an English seedling like Lord Macaulay, is of a bright carmine,
and blooms profusely. Madame Furtado is very large, fragrant, and
double: its color is a light rosy-crimson. Le Rhone is of a brilliant
and deep vermilion. Duc de Cazes is of a purplish crimson, so deep as
almost to appear black. President Lincoln is cherry-red. Princess of
Wales is a recent seedling of Mr. William Paul, the English rose-grower;
and, though I have not yet seen it in flower, it is so highly extolled
by an English amateur, that I mention it here. It is of a bright
crimson, with thick and firm petals, and said to be very hardy. Sénateur
Vaisse is of a brilliant red, and has found numerous admirers. Victor
Verdier is carmine, shaded with purple, large and showy. Louise
Margottin is of a delicate, glossy rose-color, beautifully formed; and,
though marked of moderate growth on foreign catalogues, it has grown
with uncommon vigor here. Prince Camille de Rohan is of a deep maroon
approaching crimson. It is very large and full.

The above comprise the flowers of most brilliant promise among the
recent novelties. Many others will be mentioned in the supplementary
list.

The Hybrid Perpetuals combine merits so numerous and so brilliant,
that they are rapidly driving out of cultivation many roses once in the
highest esteem. Indeed, with the exception of Moss roses, and some of
the Teas, Noisettes, and Bourbons, none seem likely to maintain their
ground before these gorgeous upstarts, some of which are as robust as
they are beautiful. Their beauties, however, depend greatly on their
culture; and this is true of all roses. A rose which, under indifferent
treatment, will be passed unnoticed, puts on, in the hands of a good
cultivator, its robes of royalty, and challenges from all beholders the
homage due to the Queen of Flowers.

In conclusion, the amateur will do well to make this his golden rule:
Cultivate none but the best, and cultivate them thoroughly. Thoroughness
is at the bottom of all horticultural success.

"Raising new varieties of this family from seed presents an extensive
field of interest to the amateur; for we have yet to add to our
catalogues pure white and yellow and fawn-colored Hybrid Perpetuals: and
these, I anticipate, will be the reward of those who persevere. Monsieur
Laffay, by persevering through two or three generations, obtained a
mossy Hybrid Bourbon rose, and many of the finest varieties described in
the foregoing pages. This information will, I trust, be an incentive to
amateurs in this country. To illustrate this, I may here remark, that a
yellow Ayrshire Rose, now a desideratum, must not be expected from the
first trial; but probably a climbing rose, tinged with yellow or buff,
may be the fruit of the first crossing. This variety must again be
crossed with a yellow rose: the second generation will, perhaps, be
nearer the end wished for. Again: the amateur must bring perseverance
and skill into action; and then, if in the third generation a bright
yellow climbing rose be obtained, its possession will amply repay the
labor bestowed. But these light gardening operations are not labor: they
are a delightful amusement to a refined mind, and lead it to reflect on
the wonderful infinities of Nature.

"Madame Laffay is an excellent seed-bearing rose: this may be fertilized
with the Bourbon Gloire de Rosomènes and with Comte Bobrinsky. Dr. Marx
may be crossed with the Bourbon Paul Joseph and with the Bourbon Le
Grenadier. These should all be planted against a south wall, so that
their flowers expand at the same time; and they will probably give
some fine autumnal roses, brilliant in color, and very double. For
fawn-colored, or yellowish and white roses, Duchess of Sutherland may be
fertilized with the Tea-scented roses Victoria and Safrano. These must
all have a south wall. These hints may possibly be considered meagre
and incomplete; but I trust it will be seen how much depends upon the
enterprise and taste of the cultivator."--_Rivers._

[Illustration: 0207]

_Rosa Bracteata_.--The original species was brought to England from
China by Lord Macartney in 1795. The varieties are few, and very
distinct in appearance from other roses. The leaves are small, and of a
deep shining green. This rose is not hardy, even in England; at least,
the old varieties of it are not so: but one has lately been sent me,
under the formidable appellation of Rosa Bracteata Alba Venusta, which
is reported to have proved hardy in New Jersey.

The Macartney roses are of a climbing habit, and evergreen.

Alba Odorata is white, with a yellow centre. The flowers are double.
Alba Simplex is a single white. Maria Leonida is white, with a blush
centre, and is the best of the group. There is a hybrid rose raised
by M. Hardy, of the Luxembourg Garden, and known by the name of
Berberifolia Hardi. From its resemblance to this division, it is
commonly placed with it, though not properly belonging here. It is a
pretty rose, with bright yellow flowers, marked with a chocolate spot in
the centre; but it is not hardy, nor is it easy of culture.

[Illustration: 0208]

_Rosa Roevigata_.--No foreign work on the Rose includes this species
among those held worthy of culture; yet in our Southern States, where
it is naturalized, it is singularly beautiful. In the North it is not
hardy, though the root commonly survives the winter, while the stem and
branches are destroyed. It comes originally from China. Its shoots
and leaves resemble those of the Banksia Rose; the former being long,
pendulous, and graceful, and the latter of the most vivid green. Its
flowers are single, very large, and of the purest waxy white, in the
midst of which appears the bright yellow of the clustering stamens.
Its long, slender, tapering buds are unsurpassed in beauty. It thrives
admirably in a cool greenhouse, climbing with a rampant growth over the
rafters, and giving forth a profusion of flowers through the greater
part of the winter. Unlike all the other roses described in this book,
it is a species in its original, undeveloped state, and, as such, offers
a tempting subject for the art of the hybridist.

[Illustration: 0209]

_Rosa Microphylla_.--This is an introduction within the present century
from the Himalaya Mountains, and is rather a curiosity than an ornament.
The leaves are very small and very numerous; and, by a curious freak
of Nature, all the spines seem gathered together on the calyx, or outer
covering of the flower-buds. The original variety, Microphylla Rubra,
is perhaps the best. Among others may be named Carnea, Coccinea, Rosea,
and Purpurea.

There is a rose, commonly sold under the name of Microphylla Rugosa,
which is very desirable from the abundance of its autumnal bloom, and
from its hardy nature; a point in which it differs from the true
Microphyllas. It grows vigorously, and in autumn blooms profusely in
large clusters of purplish-red flowers.

[Illustration: 0210]

_Rosa Centifolia_.--This is a group of Moss roses to which, by
hybridization, has been communicated some of the character of the
autumn-blooming roses. The power of repeated blooming has, however,
in some cases, been acquired at the expense of the distinctive
characteristic of the Moss Rose; and few of this group are so well
mossed as the parent to which they owe their name. One of the best
is Salet, which is of a bright rose-color, tolerably well mossed, a
vigorous grower, and an excellent autumn bloomer. Madame Edouard Ory
is of a somewhat brighter hue, but by no means equal in vigor. The
Perpetual White Moss is better deserving of the name of Moss than either
of the others. It is double, blooms in clusters, and grows vigorously.
Besides these, there are many other varieties, most of them indifferent.

These roses require the same culture with the Hybrid Perpetuals. Their
power of autumnal blooming is increased by high enrichment and frequent
transplanting.

[Illustration: 0211]

_Rosa Spinosissima_.--The Perpetual Scotch is a group of the well-known
Scotch roses, endowed, probably by hybridization, with a power of
blooming twice or more in the year. None of them are of much value
except Stan-well, which is of a blush color, double, prettily cupped,
and very fragrant.

[Illustration: 8211]

Here closes our list of Autumnal roses, and with it our book. In
conclusion, we would remind the cultivator, that although, even under
neglect and scorn, the Rose has smiles for all, it is only to a loving
and constant suitor that she clothes herself in all her beauty. Among
all the flowers of our gardens, none is more grateful for a careful
attention, and none more abundantly rewards it.




ROSES MOST APPROVED BY THE BEST CULTIVATORS OF THE PRESENT DAY

In Addition To Those already mentioned under their respective Classes.


PROVENCE ROSES.

Madame Henriette, rosy, very large and beautiful. Madame L'Arbry,
bright rose, large and full.

Royal, pale rink, globular and large, very fine.

White Provence, pure white, large and full.


MOSS ROSES.


ADELE FAVIE, BLUSH.

Aristides, bright crimson.

Arthur Yong.

Ætna, brilliant crimson, tinted with purple, félicité Bohain, bright
rose, large and full.

Gracilis, or Prolific, deep pink, free bloomer, large and full.

Henri Martin, shaded velvety carmine, good.

James Mitchell, rose-shaded, full.

John Cranston, crimson-shaded, full.

Julie de'Mersent, rose, shaded with blush.

Latone, blush, large and full.

Marie de Blois, rosy-lilac, large and full.

Madame de la Rochelambert, amaranth, large and full.

Pompon (Moss de Meaux), blush, peach centre, pretty, small and full.

Princess Alice, blush, pink centre.

Princesse Royale, salmon-flesh, full, fine form.

Princesse de Vaudemont, pink, good.

Purpurea Rubra, purple, large and full.

Reine Blanche, pure white, large and full.

Unique, pure white, large and full.

William Lobb, velvety-lake, very distinct.


DAMASK ROSES.

Calypso, shaded pink, large and good.

Columella, bright rose, large, full.

Helvetius, shaded rosy-crimson, very large and good.

Mariquita, white, lightly shaded, beautiful.


ALBA ROSES.

Blanchefleur, white.

Blush Hip, delicate blush, exquisite in bud, full.

Princesse Lamballe, white.


GALLICA ROSES

Asfasie, beautiful flesh, changing to blush, fine form.

Baron Cuvier, rosy-crimson, good shape.

Bizarre Marbrée, mottled crimson, large and very fine.

Colonel Coombes, light crimson, shaded with purple, very large and full.

Comte Plater, creamy-blush, splendid.

Comtesse de Segur, pale flesh, clear and beautiful, full, fine.

Docteur Deiltheim, rose, often shaded with purple, very large and full.

La Calaisienne, delicate pink, large and beautiful.

La Ville de Londres, shaded rose, very large and good.

Letitia, bright rose, large and full.

Louis Philippe, pinkish-blush, light margin.

Madame Duberry, mottled crimson-lake.

Prince Regent, deep rose, superb, large and full.

William Tell, bright rose, edges blush, very large and full.


HYBRID CHINA ROSES.

Comte Boubert, light rose, large and very double.

Comtesse Lacépède, silvery-blush, flesh centre, large and full

Comtesse Mole, delicate rosy-fink, beautiful.

Élise Mercour, pale-shaded rose, beautiful.

Fimbriata, rosy-crimson, petals fringed at edges.

Frederick the Second, rich crimson-purple, large and double.

General Allard, fine deep rose, very double.

Général Lamoricière, rose, fine form, large and full, fine.

Great Western, bright reddish-crimson, beautiful.

Jenny, mottled rosy-pink.

Juno, pale rose, blush edges, very large and full.

Lady Stuart, silvery-blush, fine form, medium and full.

Madeline (Emmeline), pale flesh, edged with crimson, beautiful, large,
and very double.

Nathalie Daniel, pink, fine.

Perfection, delicate pink, fine form.

Stadtholder, shaded pink, very good.

Triomphe en Beauté, deep-shaded rose, globular and beautiful.

Triomphe de Laqueue, purplish-rose, large and splendid.

William Jesse, purplish-crimson, tinged with lilac, superb, very large
and very double.


AUTUMNAL ROSES.


CHINA ROSES.

Abbé Midland, fine crimson-red, good. Antheros, creamy-white, large and
full.

Belle de Florence, light carmine, blooms in large clusters.

Élise Fleury, fine rose, large and full.

Henry the Fifth, vivid scarlet, very good.

La Fraîcheur, rosy-white, centre yellowish.

Madame Desprez, white, centre lemon.

Marjolin de Luxembourg, dark crimson, superb, very large and full.

Miellez, lemon-white, good.

Prince Charles, bright cherry, very double.

Tancrede, fine rosy-purple, distinct, large and full.


VIRIDIFLORA, GREEN, CURIOUS.


TEA-SCENTED ROSES.

Abricotée, fawn, apricot centre, large and double.

Adam, blush-rose, very sweet, very large and full.

Alba Rosa, white, centre rose, large, full, and very sweet.

Amabilis, flesh-color, large and full.

Archimede, rosy-fawn, darker centre, large and full.

Auguste Oger, rose, centre copper.

Auguste Vacher, yellow, shaded with copper-color, large and full.

Belle Chartronnaise, red, changing to crimson, large and full.

Belle de Bordeaux, pink, large and full, habit and growth of Gloire de
Dijon.

Bride of Abydos, white, shaded with pink, large.

Buret, bright rosy-purple, distinct, large and full.

Caroline, blush-pink, centre delicate rose, large and full.

Clara Sylvain, pure white, centre cream, large and full.

Climbing Devoniensis, identical with the old Devoniensis flower, but of
a rapid running growth, and hence valuable as a clumber.

Comte de Paris, flesh colored rose, superb, very large and full.

Comtesse de Brossard, bright yellow, large and full.

Comtesse de Labaethk, salmon-pink.

Comtesse Ouvaroff, rose-shaded, large and full.

David Pradel, rose, large and full.

Delmink Gaudot, white, large and double.

Duc de Magenta, salmon, very large and full.

Élise Sauvage, yellow, centre orange, beautiful, large and full.

Enfant de Lyon, pale yellow, large and full.

Eugène Desgaches, clear rose, beautiful, large and full, vert sweet.

General Tartas, dark rose, large and full.

Gerard; esbois, bright red, large and full, very showy.

Gloire de Bordeaux, silvery-rose, the back of the petals rosy, very
large and full.

Goubault, bright rose, centre buff, very large and double.

Grandiflora, shaded rose, very large and double.

Homer, rose, centre salmon, variable, large, full, and good.

Jaune d'Or, fine golden-yellow, of medium size, full, form globular.

Jaune of Smith (Yellow Noisette), straw-color, large and full.

Julie Mansais, pure white, large and full.

La Boule d'Or, deep golden-yellow, large and full.

Lais, pale yellow, full, of fine form, blooms freely.

L'Enfant Trouvé, fine, large, pale yellow.

Le Pactole, pale yellow.

Louise de Savoie, fine yellow, large and full.

Madame Blachet, pale rose, medium and double.

Madame Bravy, creamy-white, large and full, perfect shape.

Madame Charles, sulphur-yellow, salmon centre, large, full, and of good
form, free bloomer.

Madame de Sertot, cream, good.

Madame de St. Joseph, salmon-pink, beautiful, very large and double,
very sweet.

Madame de Tartas, bright rose, large and full, free bloomer.

Madame de Vatry, deep rose, large and full.

Madame Falcot, yellow, in the way of Safrano, but of a deeper shade, and
more double.

Madame Halphin, salmon-pink, centre yellowish, large and full.

Madame Lartay, yellow, shaded with salmon, large and full.

Madame Villermoz, white, centre salmon, large, full, and good.
Mademoiselie Adèle Jougant, clear yellow, medium size.

Madame Maurin, white, shaded with salmon, large and full.

Madame Pauline Labonté, salmon, large and full.

Maréchal Bugeaud, bright rose, large and full.

Maréchal Niel, beautiful deep yellow, large, full, and of globular form,
very sweet, the shoots well clothed with large shining leaves.

Marquise de Foucault, white, fawn, and yellow, variable, large and
double, one of the best.

Mirabile, pale yellow, edges dark rose, pretty, distinct.

Narcisse, fine pale yellow, large and full.

Nina, blush rose, fine, large and double.

Nisida, rose and yellow shaded, large and double.

Odorata, blush, centre rose, large and full.

President, rose, shaded with salmon, very large, and of good form.

Princess Adelaide, yellow, large and full.

Princesse Marie, rosy-pink, large and full, form globular.

Regulus, bright rose, shaded with copper, large and full.

Reine des Pays Bas, pale sulphur, free bloomer.

Rubens, white, shaded with rose, yellowish centre, large, full, and fine
form.

Socrates, deep rose, centre apricot, large, full.

Sombreuil, white, tinged with rose, very large and full.

Souvenir de David, bright cherry-color, distinct and good.

Souvenir d'Élise Vardon, creamy-white, centre yellowish, very large and
full; a splendid rose.

Souvenir de Mademoiselle Eugénie Pernet, white, tinged with flesh-color,
and shaded 'with rose-salmon, large, full, and of good, hardy habit.

Triomphe de Guillot fils, white, shaded with rose and salmon, very
large, full, and sweet; one of the best.

Triomphe du Luxembourg, coppery-rose, superb, very large and full.

Vicomtesse de Cazes, yellow, centre deeper yellow, tinted with
copper-color, large and very double.

Victoria, yellow, changing to white, large and full.


NOISETTE ROSES.

Adèle pavie, white, rose centre.

Aimée Vibert Scandens, pure white, large clusters.

Baronne de Maynard, French white, beautifully cupped.

Blanche De Solville, creamy-white, tinged pink, strong grower.

Cerise, rosy-purple, very good.

Claudie Augustin, white, with yellowish centre.

Cornelia Koch, pale yellow, very full and fine form.

Desprez a Fleur Jaune, red, buff, and sulphur, variable, very sweet,
large and full.

Du Luxembourg, lilac-rose, centre deep red, large.

Éclair de Jupiter, bright crimson-scarlet, large and double.

Euphrosine, creamy-buff, very sweet and good.

Fallenberg, rosy-crimson, very free bloomer.

Jane Hardy, golden-yellow, large and full.

Jacques Ormyott, deep rose, fine.

La Biche, flesh-white, large and full.

Lady Emily Peel, shaded French white.

Lais, French white, large and good.

Madame Deslongchamps, creamy-white, deeper centre, beautiful.

Madame Gustave Bonnet, white, tinged with salmon, first class.

Madame Schultz, primrose, shaded with carmine, very sweet.

Mademoiselle Aristide, pale yellow, centre salmon, large and full.

Narcisse, fine pale yellow.

Octavie, crimson, large, strong grower.

Ophirie, nankeen and copper, distinct, full.

Phaloë, rosy-buff, very good.

Pumila Alba, white, small and double.

Triomphe de la Duchere, rosy-blush, large and full.

Triomphe de Rennes, canary, large, full, and fine.

Vicomtesse d'Avesne, light salmon-rose, large, full, and distinct.


BOURBON ROSES.

Appoline, light pink, large and full.

Aurore du Guide, purplish-violet, sometimes crimson-scarlet large and
full.

Baronne de Noirmont, pale, shaded rose, compact and good.

Bouquet de Flore, bright rosy-carmine.

Catherine Guillot, bright rosy-pink, compact, and first-rate.

Celine Gonod.

Charles Robin, flesh-color, small, full, and produced abundantly.

Comice de Tarne et Garonne, cherry-color.

Comte de Montijo, rich reddish-purple, velvety, fine shape.

Comtesse de Babbantannes, flesh-color, large, full, and of fine Form.

Docteur Berthet, brilliant cherry red, large, full, and good.

Docteur Lepreste, bright purplish-red, shaded.

Duc de Crillon, brilliant red, changing to bright rose, large and full.

Edith de Murat, flesh-color, changing to white, of fine form.

Emotion, delicate shaded blush, compact and good.

Empress Eugénie, pale rose, purple edges, large and full, good.

Ferdinand Dieppe, reddish-violet, bright and good.

George Cuvier, bright rose, fine form, large and full.

Gloire de Rosomènes, bright crimson, semi-double, but effective.

Glorietta, deep red, or crimson.

Gourdault, rich purple, fine form, full.

Josephine Clermont, pink, full.

Julie de Fontenelle, crimson-purple, fine form, full,

Justine, rosy-carmine, good, very double.

L'Avenir, bright rose, large, full, and of good form.

La Quintinie, bright crimson, shaded, or changing to blackish-violet,
full.

Le Florifère, rose, with a lilac and crimson tint, large and full.

Leon Oursel, light red, large, full, and good.

Louise Makgottin, beautiful bright rosy-pink, cupped and good.

Madame Angelina, rich cream, fawn centre, medium size, distinct.

Madame Cousin, flesh-colored rose, large and full.

Madame de Stella, delicate pink, very double, fine shape, first class.

Madame Desprez, lilac-rose, large and full.

Madame Élise de Chenier, bright rose, blooms freely.

Madame Helfenbein, pale rose, very good.

Madame Josephine Guyet, deep red.

Madame la Comtesse, bright pink, fine shape.

Madame Manoel, light-shaded pink, very large.

Madame Maréchal, flesh, white edges, distinct and good.

Madame Nerard, silvery-blush, centre pink.

Mademoiselle C. Riguet, pure white, very abundant bloomer.

Mademoiselle Félicité Truillot, bright rose, abundant bloomer.

Marguerite Bonnet, fleshy-white, large and good.

Marquis Balbiano, rose, tinged with silver, full, fine form, distinct.

Marquis d'Ivry, lilac-rose, forms a large and showy head.

Marquis de Moyra, rose, shaded with vermilion, fine form, large.

Marquis de Murat, pink, pale edges.

Menoux, bright red, approaching to scarlet, full.

Michel Bonnet, bright rosy-pink, fine.

Modèle de Perfection, delicate pink, compact, and most beautiful.

Monsieur Jard, cherry-red, large and full.

Octavie Fontaine, white, tinted with flesh-color, good shape.

Omar Pacha, brilliant red, large, full, and good form.

Phénix, purplish-red, large and fine.

Pierre St. Cyr, pink, large and full.

Prince de Chimay, purplish-crimson, large and fine, flowers freely.

Queen, buff-rose, free bloomer, large and double.

Heine de Castille, light rose, good.

Rev. H. Dombrain, brilliant carmine, fine shape.

Reveil, cherry, richly shaded with violet.

Souchkt, deep crimson-purple, vivid, superb.

Souvenir de Louis Gaudin, reddish-purple, shaded with black, fine form,
full, abundant bloomer.

Vicomte de Cussy, lively red, large, and very double.

Victor Emanuel, purple and purplish-maroon, large and double, good and
distinct.


HYBRID PERPETUAL ROSES.

Abbé Reynaud, clear dark violet, large, full, distinct, and fine; good
habit.

Abd-el-Kader, deep velvety-crimson, good.

Admiral Nelson, crimson, color beautiful.

Adolphe Noblet, rosy-carmine, very beautiful.

Agatoide, lively rose, shaded with deep rose, full.

Alcide Vigneron, bright rose, large and full.

Alexandre Dumas, velvety-maroon, highly scented.

Alexandre Fontaine, reddish-cerise, fine form.

Alexandrine Rachmeteff, bright red, large, full, and showy.

Alexandrine Belfroy, peach-color, large and full.

Alfred de Rougemont, crimson-purple, shaded with fiery red, very bright,
large and full.

Alpaide de Rotalier, fine transparent rose-color, glossy, large, full,
and of good form.

Alphonse Belin, clear brilliant red, the reverse of the petals whitish,
large, full, and of fine form.

Alphonse Damaizin, brilliant-shaded crimson, good form.

Alphonse de Lamartine, light rosy-pink.

Alphonse Karr, bright rose, full.

Amiral Gravina, blackish-purple, changing to amaranth, large and full.

Amiral la Peyrouse, brilliant crimson, sometimes dark crimson, shaded
with violet, large, full, and very fine.

André Leroy, purplish-crimson, fine color, large and full.

Anna Alexieff, pretty rose-color, large, full, and of good habit;
flowers freely.

Anna de Diesbach, clear rose, fine color, very large and showy.

Archevêque de Paris, shaded velvety-maroon.

Arles Dufour, deep purple, with violet centre, large, and deep
imbricated form, beautiful new rose.

Armide, rosy-salmon, distinct, imbricated, and full form.

Auguste Guinoisseau, shaded dark crimson, very large.

Aurore, salmon-rose, large and full, distinct.

Barlow, bright rosy-crimson.

Baron Adolphe de Rothschild, fiery red, petals often edged with white,
large, full, and very effective.

Baron Gonella, pink and lilac shaded, large, full, and fine.

Baronne Daumesnil, beautiful bright rose, large, full, and of good form.

Baronne de Heckeren, rosy-pink, very large and double. Baronne Hallez,
dark red, full, and of fine form.

Baronne Noirmont, deep rose, large, and of good form.

Baronne Pelletan de Kinkelin, crimson and purple shaded, colors
brilliant, large, full, and of fine form.

Beauté Française, velvety violet-red, reverse of petals fiery red,
large, full, and well formed.

Belle Anglaise, beautiful bright pink, fine shape.

Belle de Bourg la Reine, satin-rose, large and full, fine form. Belle
des Massifs, beautiful rosy-pink.

Belle du Printemps, beautiful pale, mottled rose.

Berceau Impérial, flesh-color, large and full.

Bernard Palissy, bright carmine, large, full, and very fine; good habit.

Buffon, light rosy-crimson.

Burke, rosy-lilac, or violet, full.

Catherine Guillot, deep pink, perfect form; one of the best.

Centifolia Rosea, bright pink, large, of beautiful cupped form.

Christian Puttner, purple, shaded with crimson, large and full.

Claude Million, scarlet-crimson, dashed with rose and violet, velvety,
large, full, and of excellent form, habit good.

Clement Marot, clear rosy-lilac, large and very double.

Cleostine, large rose, large, fine globular form.

Colonel de Rougemont, pale rose, shaded with carmine, very large and
full.

Colonel Soufflot, beautiful rosy-pink.

Comte Cavour, pale-shaded rose, fine.

Comte de Nanteuil, bright rose, darker edges, large and full.

Comtesse Barbantanne, flesh-color, large, full, and of fine form, free
and good.

Comtesse de Courcy, rose, shaded with brilliant red, flowers very
freely.

Comtesse de Kergorlay, bright glossy purple, large and full.

Comtesse de Séguier, velvety-red, shaded with violet, large and full.

Darzens, salmon-rose, large and double, very sweet.

Deuil de Prince Albert, blackish-crimson, shaded, centre fiery red,
large, full, and good.

Dominique Daran, dark crimson-purple, large and very double.

Dr. Juillard, rosy-purple, shaded with carmine, large and double.

Dr. Spitzer, bright red, large, fine globular form.

Duc D'Anjou, crimson, shaded with dark red, very large, full, and well
formed.

Duc De Bassano, dark velvety-crimson, cupped, large and full; one of the
best.

Due D'llarcourt, bright reddish-carmine, blooming freely and in
clusters, large and full.

Duc De Ruschpler, deep rose, full.

Duc D'Ossuna, rich crimson.

Duchesse de Magenta, flesh, changing to white, distinct and beautiful.

Duchesse d'Orléans, fine lavender-blush, large, full, and good.

Duchess of Norfolk, rich purple-crimson, medium, double.

Duchess of Sutherland, pale rose, large, and very double.

Duke of Cambridge, cherry-red, fine form.

Éclair de Jupiter, rosy-crimson, large and showy.

Émile Dulac, bright rose, large, full, and deeply cupped; the best of
the color.

Emotion, white, tinted with rose, of medium size, full, form perfect,
flowers abundantly.

Eugène Appert, scarlet and crimson shaded, splendid colors, fine
foliage, free bloomer.

Eugène Verdier, dark violet, large, full, and of perfect form; one of
the best.

Eugénie Ledkun, dark crimson, large and full.

Evoque de Nismes, scarlet and crimson, full, flat form.

Fernando, fiery red, tinted with white, large, full, and very sweet.

Francois Bacharme, bright carmine, changing to red, full and globular; a
superb rose.

Francois Louvat, lilac-red, large, full, globular, good, and distinct.

François Premier, cherry-red, shaded, fine form.

Gabriel de Peyronney, fiery red, shaded with violet towards the centre,
large, full, and of fine form.

Général Castellane, bright crimson, large and full.

General Simpson, bright carmine, full and free.

George Paul, bright red, velvety, blooming in clusters, large and full.

George Prince, fine brilliant red, shaded with dark rose, reverse of
petals whitish, large, full, form globular.

Gloire de Chatillon, brilliant red, shaded with violet, large and full.

Gloire de Vitry, bright rose, large and full.

Gloire du Sacré Coeur, flesh-colored rose, tipped with bright red, and
shaded with purple; good habit.

Gustave Coraux, bright purple, free in autumn.

Gustave Rousseau, purple, shaded with violet-red, large, and full.

Henri IV., shaded vermilion, very good.

Héroïne Vaucluse, clear rose, beautiful form, free bloomer.

H. Laurentius, fine reddish-crimson, shaded with black, velvety, large,
and full; form cupped.

Hortense Blachette, white, with rosy centre, medium size, full.

Impératrice Eugénie, white, tinted with rose, full and good.

Impératrice Maria Alexandria, white, tinged with blush, good form,
medium size, full.

James Dickson, velvety-lake, semi-double.

Jean-Baptiste Guillot, velvety-carmine.

Jean Bart, red and violet shaded, brilliant, very effective.

Jean Goujon, beautiful clear red, very large, full, and good.

Jean Touvais, beautiful reddish-purple, shaded with crimson, very large,
full, and of excellent form; blooms freely.

John Hopper, rose, crimson centre, reverse of the petals purplish-lilac,
large and full.

John Standish, very dark crimson, fine globular form.

Joseph Flala, bright dark-red, with whitish edging, large and full, form
cupped.

Kate Hausburg, fine bright rose, large, full, and of excellent shape and
substance.

L'Abbé Laury, bright red.

L'Avenir, glossy pink, large, full, and of good form.

La Brillante, transparent carmine, very bright and beautiful, large, and
of fine form.

La Duchesse de Morny, bright but delicate rose-color, the reverse of the
petals silvery, large and full, form globular.

L'Éblouissante, brilliant red, large, full, and of good habit.

L'Éclatante, bright red, changing to violet-red, large, full, and of
good form.

L'Élégante, blush-white, full, free, flat form.

Lælia, shaded rose, very large, full, and very fine.

La Esmeralda, bright cherry-color, large, full, and of good form.

Lafontaine, purplish-rose, very large and full.

La Phocéenne, blackish-crimson, fine shell-shaped, cupped form.

La Pivoine, shaded rosy-carmine, peculiar foliage.

La Reine de la Pape, fine rosy-pink, large and beautiful.

La Tour de Courcy, rosy-pink, very good.

Laurent Descourt, deep purplish-crimson, rich and velvety, large and
full.

La Ville de St. Denis, rosy-carmine, fine form, large and full.

Le Baron de Rothschild, dark reddish-carmine, sometimes shaded with
violet, very large and full.

Le Géant, clear bright rose, tinted with violet, very large and full,
blooms freely; the largest rose yet introduced.

Le Mont d'Oe, pale rose, cupped and double.

Léopold Hausbuug, bright carmine, shaded with purple, large and double,
of fine form.

Léopold Premier, bright dark-red, very large and full, fine form.

Léon des Combats, reddish-violet, often shaded with scarlet, large and
full.

Lord Clyde, crimson and purple, deeply shaded, large and full.

Lord Herbert, rosy-carmine, the petals reflexing at the summits; large,
full, finely formed.

Lord Palmerston, cherry-red, full, fine form; flowers freely.

Louis Van Houtte, bright rosy-carmine, very large, full, and of fine,
globular form.

Louis XIV., rich blood-color, large and full, form globular; a distinct
and beautiful variety.

Louise Damaizin, white, with peach centre, good size and form.

Louise Darzens, pure white, not large, but full, and of fine form; one
of the best for massing.

Louise d'Autriche, rose, large and full.

Louise Gulino, velvety-maroon, fine.

Louise Odier, fine bright rose, full, very free bloomer.

Madame Alfred de Rougemont, pure white, lightly and delicately shaded
with rose and carmine, large and full, shape of the Cabbage Rose; one of
the best.

Madame Van Geert, rosy-pink, striped white, very beautiful.

Madame Boutin, cherry-crimson, large and full.

Madame Brianson, reddish-carmine, shaded with light red, very large and
full.

Madame Bruni, delicate peach, large and full.

Madame Caillat, bright cerise, large, full, and of good habit.

Madame C. Crapelet, rosy-red, large, full, and very fine.

Madame Celine Touvais, shaded carmine.

Madame Charles Boy, shaded rosy-crimson, good shape.

Madame Charles Wood, vinous-crimson, very large, full, and effective.

Madame Crespin, rose, shaded with dark violet, medium size, full, form
good.

Madame de Cambacérès, rosy-carmine, large and full, fine form.

Madame de Canrobert, white, slightly tinged with peach, large and full,
nicely cupped.

Madame Derreux Douville, delicate glossy rose, bordered with white,
large, full, and of fine form; good habit.

Madame de Stella, bright rose, large, full, and of fine form.

Madame Domage, bright rose, very large and double.

Madame Duchère, rosy-white, delicate tint, full.

Madame Emain, fine purplish-red, globular, large and full.

Madame Ernest Dréol, dark rose, shaded with lilac, large, full, and of
good form, foliage fine.

Madame Eugène Verdier, deep pink, large, full, and finely cupped.

Madame Freeman, creamy-white, medium size, globular and full, thoroughly
perpetual.

Madame Hector Jacquin, clear rose, shaded with lilac, large and full.

Madame Helye, carmine, shaded-lilac, medium, distinct.

Madame Julie Daran, purplish-vermilion, glossy, very large and full; one
of the best.

Madame Laffay, rosy-crimson, large and double.

Madame Louise Carique, fine rose and carmine, full.

Madame Masson, reddish-crimson, changing to violet, velvety, large and
full.

Madame Melaine, shaded vermilion.

Madame Pauline Villot, crimson-purple, fine form; blooms freely.

Madame Phelip, silvery-rose, beautifully shaded with crimson, small and
pretty.

Madame Pierson, bright red, silvery edges, large and globular.

Madame Place, beautiful light rose, small, but pretty form.

Madame Schmidt, shaded rosy-pink, large and beautiful.

Madame Souppert, beautiful pale flesh-color, fine form.

Madame Standish, clear pale pink, delicate color, large and full

Madame Sylvain Caubert, bright rose, delicately edged with white; very
distinct.

Madame Thérèse Levet, pale pink, globular and good.

Madame Valembourg, bright purplish-red, shaded, large, full, and of good
form.

Madame Victor Verdier, rich bright rosy-cherry color, large, full, and
fine formed, cupped; blooms in clusters.

Madame Vigneron, pale rose, large and full, very sweet and good.

Mademoiselle Alice Leroy, delicate rose, shaded, fine form full.

Mademoiselle Betsy Hainman, brilliant cerise; a most effective climber.

Mademoiselle Bonnaire, white, rosy-centre, large, full, and of exquisite
form; one of the best.

Mademoiselle Emain, white, rosy centre, full, and of good form.

Mademoiselle Gabrielle de peyronney, bright red, with shaded centre,
large, full.

Mademoiselle Goddard, rosy-pink, light margin, good.

Thérèse Appert, peach-color, large and full, cupped, good shape, free
bloomer.

Maréchal Canrobert, fine bright rose, sometimes shaded with purple, very
large, habit good.

Maréchal Forey, velvety-crimson, reverse of petals violet, large and
full.

Maréchal Souchet, beautiful reddish-crimson, shaded with dark maroon,
very large and full, petals also large, habit good, one of the best.

Maréchal Souchet (Damaizin), fine rosy-carmine, large, full, and of
exquisite form.

Maréchal Vaillant, purplish-red, very large, full, and of good form.

Marguerite Appert, lavender-blush, large and full, form cupped, pretty
and distinct.

Marie Portemer, purplish-red, full, and fine form.

Mathurin Regnier, beautiful pale rose, large and full.

Maxime, violet-rose, large and full.

Mexico, velvety reddish-purple, shaded with blackish-violet, large and
full, blooms freely, habit good.

Modèle de Perfection, lively pink, very pretty, blooms freely; one of
the best.

Monsieur de Montigny, rosy-carmine, large and full.

Monsieur Joigneaux, shaded maroon, strong grower.

Monsieur Moreau, shaded crimson.

Monte Christo, blackish-purple, often dashed with scarlet, very rich
color, large and good in form.

Mrs. Charles Wood, bright red, large, full, and superb form. Mrs.
Elliot, purple, large and double.

Murillo, rich purplish-red, shaded with carmine and violet, large,
double, and of good form.

Noemi, blush, pink centre, full.

Notre Dame de Fourvières, pale satin-rose, large and full.

Oderic Vital, silvery-rose, large and full, good form.

Olivier Delhomme, brilliant purplish-red, large, and perfect shape,
foliage handsome.

Panachée d'Orléans, flesh, striped with rose and purple, distinct.
parmentier, rosy-pink, blooms freely, very brilliant.

Paul de la Meilleray, fine purplish-cerise, very large, full, and of
excellent form.

Paul Desgrand, fine bright-red, large and full, form globular.

Paul Dupuy, velvety-crimson, shaded, large and full.

Paul Feval, cherry-color, large and full, form cupped.

Pauline Lansézeur, bright crimson, changing to violet, full.

Pauline Villot, shaded rosy-carmine, compact and good.

Pavillon de Pregny, white and red, medium size, full, most abundant
bloomer.

Peter Lawson, brilliant red, shaded with carmine, large and double.

Pierre Notting, blackish-red, shaded with violet, very large and full,
form globular, habit good; one of the best.

Prairie de Terre Noire, velvety-purple, large and full.

Prince Henri des Pays Bas, bright crimson, shaded with velvety-purple,
of medium size, full, fine.

Prince Impérial, rosy-carmine, large and full.

Prince Leon, fine bright crimson, large, and very double.

Prince Noir, very dark maroon, good climber.

Princess Alice, bright rose, the reverse of the petals whitish, large.
full, and sweet; a distinct and desirable variety.

Princesse Impériale Clotilde, glossy-white, pink centre.

Princesse Mathilde, crimson, maroon, and purple shaded, colors
exquisite, medium size, double, form expanded; a good hardy variety.

Professor Koch, bright rosy-cerise, shaded with carmine, beautifully
cupped; one of the best.

Queen, rose, very large and beautiful.

Red Rover, fiery red, growth more than usually vigorous, flowering up to
Christmas. Not double, enough for a Show Rose, but the finest and most
effective of Pillar Roses.

Reine de Castille, whitish-rose, large and full, of good habit, and
blooms freely.

Reine de la Cité, blush, pink centre, large, full, and of good habit.

Reynolds Hole, lively pink, increasing in brilliancy as the flowers
advance in age, large, not very full.

Richard Smith, velvety-maroon, very dark.

Robert Fortune, bright red, large, full, and good.

Sénateur Reveil, brilliant reddish-crimson, shaded with dark purple,
large and full, form fine, blooms freely, habit good.

Simon Oppenheim, maroon, shaded vermilion, very fine.

Souvenir de Béranger, light rose, very large and double.

Souvenir de Charles Montault, brilliant red, cupped, large and full,
free bloomer.

Souvenir de Comte Cavour, crimson and black shaded, of good size and
form.

Souvenir de Lady Eardley, reddish-scarlet, richly shaded, large, very
light, and effective.

Souvenir de Leveson gower, fine dark red, changing to ruby, very large
and full.

Souvenir de M. Rousseau, scarlet, changing to crimson, shaded with
maroon, very rich and velvety, large and very double.

Toujours Fleuri, violet-purple, full and good.

Triomphe d'Alencon, bright red, very large, full, and fine.

Triomphe d'Amiens, vivid crimson, sometimes striped with lake, large and
double.

Triomphe-d'Angers, crimson-scarlet, large, full, free.

Triomphe de Bagatelle, bright cherry-carmine, large, full, and free.

Triomphe de Caen, deep velvety-purple, shaded with scarlet-crimson,
large and full.

Triomphe de Lyon, shaded maroon, beautiful.

Triomphe de Villecresnes, clear red, more brilliant at the centre, large
and full, blooms freely.

Turenne, brilliant red, large, handsome petals, very effective.

Vainqueur de Goliath, brilliant crimson-scarlet, very large and double.

Vainqueur de Solferino, dark red, brighter centre, large, full, blooms
abundantly.

Vase d'élection, bright rose.

Veloutée d'Orléans, brilliant velvety-red, almost scarlet, large and
full.

Vicomte Vigier, bright violet-red, large, full, and good.

Vicomtesse Belleval, beautiful blush, large and full, fine form, blooms
freely, habit good.

Vicomtesse de Montesquieu, double white, useful as a bedder.

Vicomtesse Douglas, beautiful rose, the reverse of the petals whitish,
very large and full, form cupped.

Victor Trouillard, brilliant crimson and purple shaded, large and full.

Vulcan, bright purplish-violet, shaded with black, good and distinct.

Wilhelm Pfitzer, brilliant red, color often superb, large and full.

William Jesse, crimson, tinged with lilac, superb, very large and
double.

William Paul, brilliant reddish-crimson, large and full; a free, hardy,
late-blooming rose, excellent for bedding.


PERPETUAL MOSS ROSES.

Alfred de Dalmas, rose, edges rosy-white, blooming in clusters, full.

Eugène de Savoie, bright red, large and full.

Eugénie Guinoiseau, bright cherry, changing to violet, large, full, and
well mossed.

Hortense Vernet, white, tinged with light rose, fine, large, and full.

James Veitch, deep violet, shaded with crimson, large and double.

Madame la Rivière, rosy-pink, distinct and good.

Pompone, mottled rose, abundant bloomer.

Raphael, flesh-color, flowering in corymbs, large, full.




NEW ROSES OF 1866

The following are the most promising of the latest new roses. The
descriptions are those of the raisers; and as the varieties have not
yet bloomed in this country, and very few of them in England, it is
impossible to speak of them definitely. Most of them are results of the
skill and perseverance of French cultivators.

The letters immediately succeeding the name refer to the class,--H. P.,
Hybrid Perpetual; B., Bourbon; T., Tea-scented,

ABBÉ BERLÈZE, H. P.; flowers varying from bright-reddish cerise to
rosy-carmine, large, full, and of fine form; growth vigorous.

ACHILLE GONOD, H. P.; flowers bright-reddish carmine; a seedling from
Jules Margottin; very large and full; extra fine foliage, dark green;
growth vigorous.

ADRIENNE DE CARDOVILLE, B.; flowers delicate rose, of medium size; full,
perfect form.

AUGUSTE RIVIÈRE, H. P.; flowers beautiful bright-reddish carmine, the
reverse of the petals of a paler hue, distinctly edged with white;
large, and of regular globular form; growth vigorous.

BAPTISTE DESPORTES, H. P.; flowers bright scarlet, very abundant, of
medium size, full; growth vigorous.

BARONNE DE MAYNARD, B.; flowers beautiful pure white, of medium size,
fine form; growth vigorous.

BEAUTY OF WESTERHAM, H. P. (Cattell); flowers brilliant scarlet; foliage
bright green; habit free and vigorous; fragrance powerful.

BELLE NORMANDE, H. P.; flowers pale rose, shaded with silvery white;
very large and Bill; form globular; growth vigorous; of the race of La
Reine.

BELLE ROSE, H. P.; flowers bright rose, very large, full, and of fine
globular form; very sweet; habit good; growth vigorous.

CAPITAINE ROGNAT, H. P.; flowers brilliant red; cupped, large and full;
growth vigorous.

CHARLES MARGOTTIN, H. P.; flowers brilliant carmine, their centre fiery
red, very large, full, and sweet; form fine; outer petals large and
round; growth vigorous; of the race of Jules Margottin.

CHARLES WOOD, H. P.; flowers deep red, shaded with blackish-crimson,
very large, full, and of tine form; growth vigorous.

CLIMBING DEVONIENSIS, T.; identical with the old Devoniensis in flower,
but of a rapid running growth, and hence valuable as a climber.

COMTESSE DE PARIS, H. P.; beautiful, distinct lively rose, with lighter
edges; flowers very large and double; habit vigorous; a very beautiful
variety.

DENIS HELYE, H. P.; flowers brilliant rosy-carmine; lovely color; very
large and full; very effective; growth vigorous.

DR. ANDRY, H. P.; flowers dark bright-red; very large, full, and
perfectly imbricated; growth vigorous.

DUCHESSE DE CAYLUS, H. P.; flowers brilliant carmine; large, full, and
of perfect form; growth vigorous; foliage very rich and fine.

DUCHESSE DE MEDINA COLI, H. P.; flowers dark blood-purple; large, full,
good, and distinct; growth vigorous.

DUKE OF WELLINGTON, II. P.; flowers bright velvety-red, shaded with
blackish-maroon; their centre fiery red; large and full; growth
vigorous.

ELIZABETH VIGNERON, II. P.; flowers fine rosy-pink, very large and full;
in the style of Laelia, but fuller, fresher, and brighter in color;
constitution hardy; growth vigorous.

GÉNÉRAL D'HAUTPOULT, H. P.; flowers brilliant reddish-scarlet; the
centre petals sometimes striped with white; large, full, and of globular
form.

GLORY OF WALTHAM, H. P.(Paul)-, flowers rich crimson, very large and
full; a seedling from Leveson Gower; larger, brighter, darker, and of
better form, than the parent; a superb rose, of hardy, vigorous growth.

JEAN ROSENKRANTZ, H. P.; flowers brilliant coral-red; large, full, and
of perfect form; growth vigorous.

JOHN KEYNES, H. P.; flowers bright reddish-scarlet, shaded with maroon;
large and full; growth vigorous. .

KING'S ACRE, H. (Cranston); flowers bright vermilion-rose; reverse of
petals satiny; large, and of fine cupped form; foliage, rich dark-green;
growth vigorous.

MADAME VERSCHAFFELT, H. P.; flowers beautiful delicate rose; large,
full, and of fine form; growth vigorous; shoots almost thornless.

MADAME ANDRÉ LEROY, H. P.; flowers salmon-rose; large, very double, form
fine; growth vigorous.

MADAME CHARLES, T.; flowers sulphur or yellow, their centre salmon;
large, full, of good form, and very abundant; growth vigorous; of the
race of Madame Damaizin.

MADAME CHARLES VERDIER, H. F.; flowers fine vermeil-rose; very large,
full, and of fine form; growth vigorous.

MADAME ÉLISE VILMORIN, H. P.; flowers dark vermilion, shaded with
blackish-crimson; large, full, of good form, and very abundant; growth
vigorous.

MADAME ÉMILE BOYAU, H. P.; flowers soft, rosy flesh-color, changing to
blush; sufficiently large, perfect in form, moderate in growth, hardy in
constitution; good and distinct.

MADAME GUSTAVE BONNET, B.; flowers white, shaded with rose and carmine;
of medium size, full, very abundant, form globular; growth vigorous.

MADAME HERMAN STENGER, H. P.; flowers rose, suffused with lilac; their
centre shaded with sulphur; large and full; the outer petals large, form
cupped; growth vigorous.

MADAME MOREAU, H. P.; flowers brilliant red, shaded with violet; very
large, full; outer petals large; very sweet; growth vigorous.

MADAME ROUSSET, II. P.; flowers beautiful pale rose; the reverse of
the petals silvery, large, full, finely cupped, and good habit; growth
vigorous.

MADEMOISELLE AMELIE HALPHEN, H. P.; flowers fine rosy-carmine; large,
full, of fine form, bright and beautiful; habit good; growth vigorous. .

MADEMOISELLE LOIDE DE FALLOUX, H. P.; white, suffused or veined with
rose; flowers large, double, and of good form; habit vigorous.

MARÉCHAL NIEL, T.; flowers beautiful deep-yellow; large, full, and of
globular form, very sweet; growth vigorous; the shoots well clothed with
large shining leaves.

MARGUERITE BONNET, B.; flowers white, shaded with flesh-color; large,
full, and of fine form; growth vigorous; of the race of Louise Odier.

MARGUERITE DE ST. AMAND, H. P.; flowers rosy flesh-color; large, full,
of fine form, and abundant; habit fine; growth vigorous; of the race of
Jules Margottin.

MARIE BOISSÉE, H. P.; blush-white in opening, passing to pure white
when expanded; flowers double and cup-shaped; habit vigorous; very
free-flowering.

MICHEL BONNET, B.; flowers beautiful bright rose; large and full; growth
vigorous.

MONSIEUR DE PONTBRIANT, H. P.; flowers dark blackish-crimson, shaded
with carmine; very large, full, of good form; growth vigorous.

MONSIEUR ÉDOUARD ORY, H. P.; flowers beautiful vermilion; large, full,
and of globular form; fine habit; growth vigorous.

PRINCE DE JOINVILLE, H. P.; flowers light crimson; a fine, large, showy
rose, of vigorous and hardy habit.

PRINCE EUGENE BEAUHARNAIS, H. P.; flowers brilliant reddish-scarlet,
shaded with purple; large and full; form cupped; growth vigorous.

PRINCE NAPOLÉON, H. P.; flowers bright rose; very large and very double;
growth vigorous; very effective.

PRINCESS LICHTENSTEIN, H. P.; flowers white, globular, large and full; a
good hardy, white rose, of compact growth, flowering abundantly.

ROSA MUNDI, H. P.; pure rose, flowers large, double, globular, and
well-shaped; habit vigorous.

RUSHTON RADCLYFFE, H. P.; flowers beautiful clear bright red; large,
full, and of perfect form; growth vigorous.

SEMIRAMIS, H. P.; flowers clear pink; large, full, and of fine globular
form; growth vigorous.

SOUVENIR DE BERNARDIN DE ST. PIERRE, II. P.; flowers varying from
crimson to violet; their centre fiery red; large, full, and of fine
form; habit good; growth vigorous.

SOUVENIR DE LOUIS GAUDIN, B.; flowers fine reddish-purple, shaded with
black; of medium size, full; very abundant; form fine.

SOUVENIR DE WILLIAM WOOD, H. P.; flowers dark blackish-purp e, shaded
with scarlet; darker than Prince Camille de Rohan; large, full, and very
effective; growth vigorous.

TRIOMPHE DE LA TERRE DES ROSES, H. P.; flowers fine violet-rose, very
large and full; very sweet; blooms freely.

TRIOMPHE DES FRANÇAIS, H. P.; flowers brilliant crimson; large, very
double; growth vigorous; fine habit; very free.

WILLIAM BULL, H. P.; flowers brilliant cherry-red; large, full, and of
fine globular form; growth vigorous.

XAVIER OLIBO, H. P.; flowers velvety-black, shaded with fiery amarant,
colors exceedingly rich; large; well formed; growth vigorous.


THE END.







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