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The Garden : an illustrated weekly journal of gardening in all its branches.

London :[s.n., http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/34135

v.55 1899: http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/79340

Page(s): Page 423, Page 424, Page 425, Page 426, Page 427

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June 17, 1899.]

THE GAEDEX.

423

Rose Garden.

THE WILD ROSES. In dealing with Roses as a whole one is impressed chiefly with the vastness uf the subject. In all the range of cultivated plants there is no genus more confusing in its species, its varieties, and even its nomenclature. Many of the species have been cultivated for centuries by civilised nations and have broken into endless variations ; even in a wild state they hybridise freely. Mr. W. Paul,

best worth growing for their beauty, grace and fragrance.

In writing about most hardy trees and shrubs one is continually wondering and expressing one's wonder how it is that such

and such plants are "not more grown." I really think that in no department of the garden is so little advantage taken of the splendid material at hand as among the hardy trees and shrubs. The wild types of Rosa are no exception. I am afraid, indeed, they are held rather in scorn by some. At any rate, they have been to a great extent overlooked and ne-

Bosa repens {syn,, B. arvensis).

in the last edition of his " Rose Garden," describes upwards of one thousand Hybrid Perpetual and Tea Roses alone. An ordinary lifetime would not be too long to devote to the thorough monographing of the genus Rosa. In approaching the subject in a short paper, one has either to confine one's self to some small branch of it, or merely skim over the whole. The former appears tu be the more useful course, and I propose now to devote a few notes to drawing attention to what I consider the best of the wild species and varieties looked upon as purely garden plants in other words.

glected. This, no doubt, is partly because the best sorts are not well known many of them do not lend themselves to exhibition but more

perhaps because the wonderful beauty of the Tea Roses, Hybrid Perpetuals, and others of that stamp have eclipsed their more modest attractions. Probably the commonest criticism respecting them is that they ilower for a comparatively short time and only once a year. There is no gainsaying this, but if we are going to exclude all plants from our gardens that flower but once a year we shall not have many ; left. What we have to do is to consider them

on their own merits and not in comparison with other Roses, and I am certain there are few hardy shrubs whose grace, beauty and fragrance surpass those of the best species of Rose. To the beauty of the flowers of many species that of the fruits also has to be added.

It is probable that in no well-known genus does the estimate of the number of species vary so much as in this. By some authorities it is placed as low as thirty ; one author, however, estimated the number of species at 250. As species are reckoned now-a-days, there are probably not many more than seventy of them. In a wild state they are confined to the northern hemisphere. They are most abundant in cool temperate latitudes or altitudes, but some occur in warm temperate regions. The great majority

of the species are hardy in Britain, and the greater part of those that need greenhouse treatment are not of great value, chiefly because they do not flower well. It is with the hardy ones only that I am going to concern myself now.

Clltivation. As a whole these plants are of the simplest cultivation. A loamy soil such as suits the garden types suits them, although, of course, it need not be quite so rich. The Scotch or Burnet Rose (Rosa spinosissima) is to some extent an exception in not requiring a soil of more than moderate richness. Such pruning as is necessary is of quite a difi'erent kind to that practised on the Hybrid Perpetuals. It is chiefly a matter of thinning. Little or no shortening of the I growths should be done, but the older, worn-out stems may be removed with a view to letting light and air into the bushes and giving them possibly a lighter and more graceful aspect. These wild Roses are of two types of growth the one rambling or climbing, the other bushy and more or less erect and sturdy. The climbing species, like the Ayrshire and American Prairie Roses, can be used for the same purposes to which most hardy climbers are put. In the open ground

(away, that is, from walls, pergolas, etc.) a good plan is to train them up three stakes put up pyramid fashion. These stakes should be, it possible, rough, crooked branches of Oak, up which the shoots may be loosely tied at first, but afterwards allowed to grow as freely as they like. The positions in which the more free-growing of these Roses (either climbing or bushy) are seen to best advantage are those where the plants can be allowed pretty much their own way. They appeal to us most when we see them as they are in Nature, growing without restraint, and rambling over banks or mounds, or even other shrubs. The strongergrowing ones, therefore, are good for the wilder parts of the garden. They are not suitable for small, trimly-kept beds or restricted borders, and may indeed be said very often to appear to best advantage in those positions worst adapted for the purely garden types. With regard to

Propagation, layering is the surest method. I do not remember that it has failed with any species or variety on which I have tried it. For such Roses as R. lutea (the Austrian Brier group) it is the only way to readily get them on their own roots, for this and some other of the Roses mentioned below are not easy to

raise from cuttings. Still, on the other hand, a good number can be increased by cuttings. The best time to put them in is during July or early August, using the better ripened portions of the current season's shoots. They like a veiy gentle bottom-heat. Seeds, of course, are produced by many species and can be used, but where several species are grown together they are very liable to hybridise, and some of the

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424

THE GARDEN.

[June 17, 1899

best do not ripen seed here. There are some species, as, for example, the Scotch Rose and its varieties, R. lucida, R. Carolina, &c., which can, by merely dividing the plants, be increased quickly enough to meet the needs of most gardens.

Of the sixty or so species of Rosa in cultivation, there are naturally a good many that have

no particularly distinctive qualities. Half a dozen American Roses could be mentioned which are so much alike in their general aspect, that for ordinary gardens one species might well represent the lot. In the following notes I propose only to mention such species as possess an individuality of their own, and which collectively may be taken to represent the genus in all its leading forms, so far, that is, as we are concerned from a purely horticultural standpoint. Some of these species have been cultivated for so long a period, and have varied and cross-bred so much, that they may now be considered as constituting each a group of the genus rather than as a single species. I. Bush Roses.

R. ALBA is a Rose that is not known to be truly indigenous anywhere, but which, although now growing wild in Central Europe, is considered to have been originally an escape from gardens. It is in all probability a hybrid between R. gallica and R. canina. The typical R. alba is a robust Rose of free growth with large white flowersone of the prettiest of single Roses.

R. ALPiNA. This, the type of the 'Boursault Rose, is chiefly remarkable for its smooth, shin-

ing stems, very often entirely without spines except when young. It grows 4 feet to 5 feet high, and has rosy pink flowers followed by orange-red, pendent, often curiously elongated fruits. It is a native of the mountainous parts of Central Europe.

R. CAROLINA (Swamp Rose). For forming low, dense thickets this is one of the best of wild Roses. It grows 4 feet to feet high, its erect stems being armed with curved prickles. The flowers are of a deep purplish rose and very fragrant. It is a North American species, and spreads rapidly in cultivated ground by its underground rhizomes. The variety Nuttalliana is an improvement on the type, the flowers being larger and produced later in the year up to September.

R. LUCIDA is another American species of a very similar type to the preceding. Like R. Carolina, it forms a dense mass of erect stems, but they diSer in being dwarfer and in being armed with bristles rather than spines. The leaves are also more glossy. There is a doubleflowered variety (flore-pleno) whose flowers arc very pretty, especially in the bud state.

R. FERRUGINEA (or rubrifolia) is nearly allied

to the common Dog Rose, but is distinguished by its reddish purple stems and leaves. It is pretty at this season of the year, and is useful for planting in a mass for colour effect.

R. iiisi'iDA. Closely allied to the Scotch Rose is R. hispida. There is a mystery as to the origin of this plant. It has been described as a native of North America, but none of the later North American " Floras " include it. It has also been described as Siberian, whilst Mr. Nicholson puts it down as of garden origin. I think the probability is that it is a wild plant, because it has come true from seed, a rare thing with hybrids. Its habit is that of a strong Scotch Rose and its flowers are of a lovely soft yellow. It gets to be .5 feet or feet high.

R. INDICA and its varieties are the source, or partly the source, whence many of the best and loveliest of garden Roses have been derived. Most important of these are the Tea Roses, whose delightful fragrance, delicate colours and habit, of flowering late in the season are giving them a greater popularity every year. Thev originate from R. indica var. odorata. The China Roses come from R. indica also. Crossed with R. mos-

chata it has produced the Noisette Roses, and crossed with R. damascena or R. gallica the Bourbon Roses. As we get back to the pure R. indica we find the plants rather tender, as, for instance, many of the 'pure Teas, R. indica var. sanguinea, &c. But with a light covering most of them are only cut back to the ground even in bad winters. Some of the semi-double or single varieties, such as sanguinea and diversifolia, are among the deepest and richest coloured of all Roses. Botanically interesting, although of no decorative value, is the green-flowered Rose, a variety of K. indica we call monstrosa.

R. LUTE A. The Austrian Briers, which are all forms of Rosa lutea, make a very charming group, the colours of their flowers being some of the very rarest among Roses. They are either of a rich yellow or of a very distinct coppery colour. Two varieties, the Persian Yellow and Harrisoni, are double flowered. Unfortunately, the Austrian Briers do not succeed to perfection near London, more especially the copper-coloured ones. The species is a native of Asia Minor, Persia, &c., and has been known in this country for more than 300 years. It is said never to bear seed in a wild state, and I have noticed that in trying to cross it with other Roses it is very difficult to get pollen. Lord Penzance,

however, succeeded in fertilising the Sweet Brier with it, and thus obtained the most beautiful and striking of the Penzance Briers.

R. MiCRopHYLLA is a Chinese species allied to R. rugosa. It is a sturdy bush, noteworthy for its large yellowish, very prickly fruits. Its stems, on the other hand, have very few prickles, and they are also distinguished by the peeling, loose bark. The flowers are delicate rose, not very large, but extremely fragrant. When it is in bloom, the bees and flies swarm more to this Rose than any other. I have never raised this species true from seed although I have tried several times. It was rarely that even a seed germinated, and those that did have all produced plants that have proved to be crosses. It can be increased by layers. There is a variety with double flowers (flore pleno) in cultivation. There is at Kew a singularly fine hybrid Rose sent by M. de Vilmorin. It is this species crossed with R. rugosa, and the flowers, which are of a lively rose, are larger than those of any single Rose I have seen, being about ."5 inches across.

R. roMiFERA (the Apple Rose). Among the Roses which claim our notice for the beauty of the fruits, none surpasses this old but neglected

species. It is worth growing for their sake alone. Each fruit is 1 inch to IJ inches long, apple or sometimes pear-shaped, covered with bristles and surmounted by a crown of large glandular sepals. The colour is a bright red. This species is European, but does not appear to be British, as it was at one time thought to be. Nearly allied to R. pomiferais

R. MOLLIS, which has somewhat similar and very handsome fruits, but not so large.

R. RUBiGiNOSA is the Sweet Brier or Eglantine, one of the most precious of English wildings. Of the plant itself I need say nothing ; many a hedgerow is now fragrant with its young shoots. But in quite recent years a new group of Roses has been put into commerce called Penzance Briers. They were raised by Lord Penzance by crossing the Sweet. Brier with other varieties and species of Rose, using it as the seed-bearer. Some of them are very pretty and distinct, more especially those that have the various Austrian Briers as pollen parent. Some, on the other hand, are but little different from and no better than the Sweet Brier itself. Still, a selection of the best makes a very charming addition to the Rose garden.

R. RUGOSA is now getting to be a well-known plant. It comes from the coolest parts of .lapan, and is one of the hardiest and most robust of all Roses. It is even being used for covert planting. Typically, its flowers are rosy crimson, but there is also a white flowered variety. The flowers are among the most fragrant in the genus. It is valuable also for the beauty of its fruits, which

are large and bright red. A good deal of notice is being given to this species now because of its great value as a subject for cross-fertilisation. In parts of Europe where the climate is too severe in winter for Tea Roses or even Hybrid Perpetuals, it is found that when these are crossed with R. rugosa the hybrids obtained are not only hardy enough to thrive, but also retain much of the beauty of their more showy parents. I suppose we have now about a score hybrids and varieties of R. rugosa, amongst them Mme. Georges Bruant, Blanche Double de Coubert (two beautiful white Roses), and Mrs. Anthony Waterer, with very fragrant red flowers.

R. SERicEA. This is one of the early-flowering species, and is frequently in bloom by "the end of May. It is a very pretty Rose both as regards flower and leaf. It can be distinguished when in

bloom from all other Roses by the corolla consisting very frequently of four petals, five being, of course, the normal number in this family. The leaflets are small and numerous, not unlike those of the Scotch Rose. In one variety at Kew the young stems are quite red. The species comes from North India. The flowers are white. Among the new plants discovered in Yunnan by the Abbe Delavay is a remarkable variety of this Rose, which has been called pteracantha. It is distinguished by the winged spines, which are quite thin, but are sometimes lA inches wide at the base.

R. spiNosissiMA (R. pimpinellifolia). The main features of this the Scotch Rose are its dwarf habit, its very spiny, bristly stems, its small leaves, and cup-shaped flowers. Typically, its flowers are white and single, but cultivated varieties range in colour from a delicate pink to red, crimson, and yellow. Other varieties are double. From a botanical point of view the variety altaica (or grandiflora) is the most distinct. Whilst the type is 1 foot to 2 feet high, this grows 6 feet or even more in height. Its flowers are single and of a beautiful creamy white. This species is one of the first to flower generally in the first days of June. It has been crossed with the Damask Boseand a perpetual-flowering variety obtained

which blossoms from May till autumn. It is called Stanwell Perpetual. R. rubella is supposed to be a cross between the Scotch Rose and R. alpina. lb is a dwarf bush with very pretty pink flowers.

R. XANTHiNA (R. Ecfe). Although too rare as yet to obtain a wide circulation, this species may be mentioned as a charming plant for the rock garden. Its flowers are small (only about 1 inch across), but of a beautiful golden yellow. The stems are dwarf, slender, and very prickly. It was originally given the above name by Lindley in his "Monograph of Roses," but was introduced by Dr. Aitchison from Afghanistan about twenty years ago and re-named R. Ecrt. It flowers annually on the rockery at Kew.

Finally, among the bush Roses brief mention may be made of the beautiful group known as the

R. OENTiFOLi.B. They are R. damascena, or the Damask Rose : R. gallica, or the French Rose ; R. centifolia, i.he Provence Rose : and centifolia var. muscosa, the Moss Rose. Some of these have been grown in this country for hundreds of years, and would, I suppose, include the only

double Roses in early English g-ardens. More than any do they represent the Roses of poetry and romance. It is from the Damask Rose that the Hybrid Perpetnals the largest of the purely garden groups have been mainly derived, but R. gallica, R. centifolia, and in some degree R. indica also share in their origin. The books give the date of the introduction of the Damask Rose as 1573, yet, according to tradition, the York and Lancaster Rose, which is a form of R. damascena, was growing in the Temple Gardens when the Wars of the Roses commenced 1'20 years before. Mr. Baker thinks that this group consists probably of forms of one variable species. There is at any rate a strong resemblance among them all, and although certain botanical characters are

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June 17, 1899.]

THE GARDEN.

425

allotted to each of the three reputed species, it is often not easy to tell to which of them some of

the garden forms belong.

II. Climeixg or Ramblixg SrECIES.

R. MOSCHATA (the Musk Rose). There is a very

old specimen of this Ros^ growing in a shrub-

Rosa spinosissima.

bery near the Cactus house at Kew. Being about 1.") feet high, it is the finest specimen I know. The musky scent, to which the name refers, is not very perceptible, except after rain or when the atmosphere is fresh and moist. But without this the beauty of its great clusters of flowers, with white petals and striking clusters of yellow stamens, gives it a place among the very finest of wild Roses. According to my experience, it is a plant that requires a sheltered position when young ; the long succulent shoots it makes in summer are very apt to be cut back during the winter if exposed. In the case of old plants the shoots are not so coarse and appear to ripen up better. It is an excellent Rose for a mixed shrubbery given a position where it can scramble over neighbours that can give it at once support and shelter. It is a native of the countries between South Europe and India.

R. MrLTiFLOKA (R. polyantha). For certain purposes this is one of the most useful of the wild Roses. It is a wide-spreading bush of very graceful and luxuriant growth, its stems arching out in every direction from the centre, and the whole ultimately forming a great mass S feet or so high and much more through. The flowers are amongst the smallest of all Roses, but are produced very numerously in abundant clusters. When well in flower a plant becomes simply a fountain of white blossom. It is a quick and luxuriant grower and is admirable for clothing steep banks. If these are not very high the plants may be placed at the top, whence the shoots will hang down and soon hide the bank with a charming curtain, which is especially beautiful in June when this Rose is white with flower. There are numerous varieties and hybrids that belong to the multifiora group. They show their relationship to the type in the dense clusters of small flowers, but more particularly in the more or less fringed stipules. One of the most noteworthy of these varieties or hybrids is Crimson Rambler. Everyone, I suppose, knows this Rose now, no plant of recent introduction having more quickly reached so prominent a place. It was introduced from Japan (of which

country, as well as China, the type also is a native) and was at first known as " Engineer Rose," but it was not until it came into the hands of Mr. Turner, of Slough, and was given the pleasanter name it now bears, that it obtained more than very local notice. The Dawson Rose is a beautiful cross between R. multifiora and the H.P. General Jacqueminot. Its flowers are a soft rose colour and semi-double, so much like

those of Crimson Rambler in size and form as to suggest that the latter may be a cross between R. multiflora and some fine deep crimson H.P.

R. REi'ENS (or R. arvensis) is the type of the Ayrshire Roses. It is a free growing plant, but requires some support to get it oft' the ground at first. We train it up stout Oak branches and get it a few feet high, then let it ramble at will. There are several double forms of it offered by nurserymen which are an improvement on the type, licingof sturdier habit and lasting longer in flower. i"or covering roots, banks, mounds, pillars, &c., these Ayrshire Roses are excel-

lent, forming ultimately huge tangled masses of the greatest beauty and elegance when in bloom. The flowers are white or pale pink.

R. SETiGERA (the Prairie Rose). There is no doubt, I think, that of the species native of North America this is the best and most useful in English gardens. It is a climbing plant of vigorous growth, the leaflets, of which there are three to each leaf, being among the largest in the genus. It blooms in July and August, and is thus one of the latest of all the wild Roses to flower, a character which enhances its value. The flowers are large and showy and of a deep rose, but have little or no fragrance. This Rose is probably seen to best advantage planted in a large mass, and, given a few rough posts to climb over, it will eventually form a large impenetrable thicket.

R. WionuuAiANA is a new species from Japan. Closely allied to R. multiflora, it is still one of the

most distinct of Roses, being a perfectly prostrate plant, sending out each year thick succulent shoots which branch freely the following season

so profusely as to resemble drifts of snow at a distance. As a close, dwarf covering for sunny banks

j it promises to be useful.

I There are, of course, many other beautiful species I have not yet mentioned. No Rose, for instance, is more beautiful than the Cherokee Rose (R. hevigata or sinica) in the far south-western counties, whence correspondents occasionally send it. But it is not hardy enough to thrive well even as far south as London. Then there are R. sulphurea, one of the loveliest of yellow Roses, and R. simplicifolia (or

j berberidifolia), another yellow-flowered spe-

! cies ; but both are so difficult to cultivate and so rare that they are practically non-existent in gardens. It seems to be the rule throughout the genus that the yellow-flowered species are the most difficult, indeed, the only difficult ones to accommodate.

In conclusion, it may be useful to mention

that, although few of the trade establishments pay much attention to these wild species and varieties of Rose, Mr. G. Paul, of the Cheshunt Nurseries, takes a special interest in them. Most, or all of those I have alluded to are cultivated in his nursery. W. J. Bean.

Arhoretum, Keiv.

SOME GOOD ROSES FOR MASSING That garden Roses are gaining the ascendancy over the strictly speaking show varieties cannot be doubted, and the continuous-flowering kinds, even if the blooms are in themselves transient, become more numerous and more popular each season. There may be such a thing as fashion in flowers, but, after all, what is natural, graceful, and refined has far more influence with the patrons of gardening than mere fashion. There seems a danger that continental raisers will give us varieties that meet the demand for artistic tints, but with the loss of vigour that alone can permanently retain any Rose in our collections. M. Guillot achieved a great success when he obtained Mme. Laurette Messimy and Mme.

Biosa luiea {the Audrian Brier),

and make a dense carpet over the ground. Eugene Resal, two of the loveliest for massing, It is one of the latest flowering of all the but some of his later introductions among Teas, species of Rosa and likes the sunniest possible although beautiful in colour, appear to lack the position. The flowers are white and borne , vigour that one would like to see them possessin clusters, and the foliage is the glossiest at least, that is the impression I have obtained of among Roses, the surface shining as if varnished, i Mme. Rine Gerard and Souvenir de J. B. Guillot. In the United States it is described as flowering ! It is true there has hardlv been time to suffi-

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THE GARDEK

[June 17, 1899.

ciently test them, and I hope I may be mistaken. Of course much depends upon the treatment accorded. I have seen Mme. Eugfene Resal, when planted in good prepared beds of fresh loam, make most extraordinary growths some 3 feet in height in one season. If Roses are expected to grow well they must be provided with good soil. It would be difficult for anyone to define the distinction between China Roses of the type of Mme. E. Resal, Mme. L. Messimy, &c., and a Teascented variety. The point, however, is not so

very important, excepting that one is liable to look upon these recent introductions among China Roses as being as free and hardy as the common Blush, and this they are not ; indeed, I do not think any of the China Roses, save Hermosa, are equal to the Old Blush in vigour and hardiness. This latter variety is really the type of massing Rose we want in a good variety of colours. M. Nabonnand has been peculiarly fortunate in obtaining good free growers, and unquestionably some of his introductions will remain great favourites for many years to come. After a lapse of nearly fifteen years, the Rose-growing public are only now becoming alive to the merits of that free-growing and lovely Rose, Marie d'Orleans. Other good garden Roses of M. Nabonnand's raising are General Schablikime, of a beautiful coppery red colour ; Comtesse Festetics Hamilton, a gem of somewhat similar habit to the last named, but with more carmine colour in its blossoms ; and of course G. Nabonnand, a Rose that should be found in every garden in the land. Another kind that appears promising is Am^lie Polonnais ; it has a beautiful bud of a soft salmon-ross colour. Mme. P. Perny is not nearly so much grown as it deserves to be ; its saffron-yellow buds and almost white, semi-double flowers are produced on good vigorous growths and always furnish a supply of useful Roses. Francisca Kruger, another

variety from the same source, remains to this day one of the hardiest of yellow Roses for our climate. When one speaks of Roses for massing, those kinds that produce a showy effect when planted in a group are of course intended. The list of such varieties is not a large one if we confine ourselves only to those that are as beautiful in autumn as they are in summer. The exquisite refreshing softness of a large plantation of Camoens is to me far more enjoyable than a gorgeous display of Crimson Rambler. But this of course is a matter of taste. Those individuals who prefer a showy mass of colour would find Cramoisi Superieur and Fabvier among the Chinas, Marquise de Salisbury and Gruss au Teplitz among the Hybrid Teas, Prineesse de Sagan from the Tea-scented, and Gloire de Margottin and Victor Hugo from the Hybrid Perpetuals to be the best for brilliancy. These Roses flower well no matter how hard they are pruned. I think many growers spare the knife too much with these garden Roses. There can be no question that those shoots that spring from the lower part of the plant produce the showiest clusters. I have sesn Marquise de Salisbury when sparsely pruned a most unattractive Rose, but what a difference when it sends up from the base its young, prickly hedge

hog-like shoots. Then we obtain the true character of this brilliant kind. Another point to remember is that Roses like transplanting now and then even if returned to the same position. Take the work in hand early in October, and a marvellous change will be effected if the ground be trenched and some bonemeal mixed in at the same time, for Roses are exceptionally fond of phosphates.

Of the lighter red shades. Captain Hayward, Ulrich Brunner, General Jacqueminot, and Dr. Andry are good, and Longworth Rambler and Fellenberg, although inclined to ramble, afford quite a brilliant display. Of the rich pink Roses we have a beauty in Mrs. W. J. Grant, but its wonderful freshness in the early summer is not maintained in autumn. Mme. Lambard, always good, and one of the hardiest Teas ; Mme. Abel Chatenay, one of the loveliest of modern Roses, and as fragrant as beautiful ; Grace Darling,

Grand Due de Luxembourg, a splendid variety ; Helen Keller, Caroline Testout, Mme. Eugl-ne Resal, already mentioned ; Gloire des Polyanthas, the showiest very dwarf Rose we have, and Camoens, one of the grandest decorative varieties in existence, are worth growing if room can be found for them. Supposing the space cannot be

afforded for beds of a kind, I would suggest clumps or groups of each, say five or six plants jjlanted together. This, to my mind, is better than planting large mixed beds of various Roses of one shade of colour. The diversity of habit is so great that there is sure to be an incongruous grouping. I remember when the late Mr. Bennett's Roses first became known, a gentleman procured five or six of each kind the fin-t season. 36 Darling and Lady iMary Fitzwilliam were of the number, and he planted these in small separate beds upon a lawn. Whether they were treated extra carefully, being new ones, I know not, but they were a wonderful sight, the huge blossoms of Lady Mary Fitzwilliam being really marvellous. Of the lighter pink colours good for massing, Captain Christy, Viscountess Folkestone, La France, Mrs. Sharman Crawford, Sylph and Mme. L. Messimy are splendid. We have also some good white, or nearly white, Roses that must not be overlooked. Perhaps the best are Augustine Guinoisseau, Hon. Edith Gifford, Mrs. Bosanquet, Souvenir de la Malmaison, White Lady, Gloire Lyonnaise, Baronne de Maynard, Zephyr, Souvenir de S. A. Prince, White Pet, Anna Marie de Montravel, and Mme. E. A. Nolte. There are many other good kinds, but in endeavouring to distinguish

between them I have kept in mind the salient feature of a massing or bedding Rose and that is continuous flowering as near as it is possible in Roses. But there are still some light Roses to mention of cream, buff', and yellow shades. I have said yellow, but I should like to be able to mention a really good pure yellow bedding Rose. First in this list comes Mme. Hoste, perhaps the best in its colour. Enchantress will run this kind rather close, but its colour is more inclined to buff in the centre. Marie van H jutte, Safrano, Queen Mab, Mme. Pernet-Ducher, Perle d'Or, and Anna OUivier are also uood. We still require a good yellow with a bloom as large as Mme. Hoste or even White Lady and the growth of Viscountess Folkestone. Philomel.

Pruning Roses. Do we prune our oldfashioned Roses too much ? Generally speaking, I believe this is the case. I came across some plants the other day that had not been pruned in any way this season, and the fine growths emanating from the ends of the one-year old wood were wonderful. The foliage was the picture of health, and the flowers equally so. These grand old-fashioned kinds should be well oared for and every endeavour made to discard the old wornout growths and encourage the plants to produce sound young wood that will give the most satis-

factory results. Instead of pruning year after year in the old orthodox style, cut the plants back very hard now and then, even if a season's blossom is sacrificed. The young vigorous shoots resulting from this drastic treatment may be left, as I said before, entirely unpruned the following year, or if pruned at all, let it be very moderately done. Such growths will flower freely. P.

Rose Mrs. Robert Garrett. We now and then obtain a good novelty in Roses from the United States, although some kinds do not c up to their lavish descriptions. I believe the above Rose will become very useful. It has been described as a sport from Caroline Testout. Certainly it bears out this statement in its vigorous growth and free flowering, but the blossoms are quite different in form. The buds of Mrs. R. Garrett resemble those of a Tea Rose, and the half open flowers are of the most exquisite shape. The centre is hollow, which condemns it as an exhibitor's variety, but this would most likely enhance its value as a garden Rose. The colour as seen under glass is much paler than in Caroline Testout. It looks as though we should f

have a numerous race of Roses emanating from the latter kind. Of course, this was to be ex-

pected, for unquestionably it is one of the grandest Roses of its colour ever raised, although one could wish it had more fragrance.

Rose Hermosa. This Rose is far superior to the common blush China in its individual flowers, although similar in habit. The flowers are double, but not so much so as to be difficult to open, and in consequence are much more lasting than those of the semi-double blush. The colour is silverypink. Many gardeners find this old Rose very useful to furnish large quantities of blooms of one colour for cutting. A hedge of this kind would be excellent feature in any garden, and, like the common blush, it is one of the best for grouping or to plant in lines by carriage drives. A quantity of this variety together with a good crimson kind like Cramoisi Superieur and a white such as Little Pet potted up into .5 inch or 6 inch pots would come in extremely useful for many purposes during winter and early spring. This Rose has many synonyms, being known as Armosa, Melanie Lemaire, and Mme. Newman.

EARLY GARDEN ROSES. Some very pretty garden Roses were put up at the Epping show on June 9. Doubtless the few hot days during the first week of June were responsible for even these kinds appearing thus

early. Two or three very lovely bunches were seen of that little-known hybrid rugosa Fimbriata. It looks perhaps prettier when cut and bunched than it does on the plant ; the fimbriated pale pink flowers are more like Dianthus blooms than Roses. Another little beauty named Mme. E. A. Nolte was there, its charming apricot-colou red buds being most interesting. H. B. Hayes, another name for the well-known Reine Olga de Wurtemburg, was noticed as bright as usual and served to show how useful a Rose it is as an earlyflowering climber. Unlike some of the double climbers, such as Gloire de Dijon and Cheshunt Hybrid, which are being forced out before their time, this Rose seems to revel in heat. I also noticed growing on houses in the neighbourhood a very pretty red climbing kind, which I took to be Fellenberg. Cooling's Single Crimson has a bold petal, and will doubtless prove useful on account of its dwarf habit. Of course the Copper Austrian R. lutea was shown. How effective the double white Scotch Rose can be was well exemplified in the long sprays exhibited, and other double kinds as well as the beautiful singles of this tribe were shown in baskets. The beautiful little miniature Provence de Meaux was well represented. It appears to be a day or two earlier than Spong, another variety of this tribe. Car-

mine Pillar is effective during the early days of the month. The newer variety Dawn will doubtless be useful and perhaps the forerunner of a good strain of Roses.

I certainly think with Mr. Girdlestone that a valuable race of Roses might be evolved from the single varieties that have good vigorous mildewproof constitutions, and the last-named kind appears to be such an one. It does not follow that the progeny will all be single. Princess Bonnie was represented by a good handful. It is an attractive fragrant variety, with large semidouble flowers of a rich crimson colour, the buds being especially long and handsome. Gustave Regis is sure to be one of this early group, for when fully blown it is almost a single Rose. Marquise de Salisbury was well to the front. A Rose very seldom seen, but very pretty is Papillon. Its buds are wonderfully pretty, being rose, shaded with copper and yellow, and, as its name suggests, the open flowers appear like numerous butterflies. Sbanwell Perpetual is sure to be represented, and even two weeks ago I could have cut some of its fragrant blossoms, which resemble in perfume the Cabbage Roses. Rugosa Roses, such as Belle Poitevine and Blanc Double de Courbet, are becoming now well established favourites, and Mrs. Anthony Waterer is more

effective on the plant than when cut. Visitors to

[Begin Page: Page 427]

Jdxe 17, 1899.]

THE GAEDEX.

427

Kew should not fail to look out for a grand mas3 of the first-distributed plants of this variety ; they provide a marvellous eflfect with their rich crimson blossoms^ Visitor.

XOTES AND QUESTIONS. ROSES.

Bose 111 Sylphide. Your correspondent asks where he can nrocure the above old Eose, which was introduced by M. Vibert abont sixty years ago. I do not think he would find it for sale in this country, but Messrs. Ketten Freres, of Luxemburg, have it in their Ust. X.

Eosa gallica, a pretty. Few varieties of these iuteiesting, though flat garden Roses are more lovely than the one named Sarpasse Tout. Perhaps in its

bud the chief beauty lies, and for providing some early button-holes the buds ate most valuable. Toe colour is a rich rose, something the shade of John ily rather deeper in tint.

Books.

oue gardens.*

Whoever brought home the finest plants or discovered the best ways of culture, or made the most conspicuous improvements in flowers, there is no doubt whatever that the man who has cheered us most by his writings for many years past is the author of this book. It is a very pretty book as regards piinting and binding and pictures, and it will be welcomed by all who enjoy the Dean of Eochester's good humour and inimitable ways of saying things, while it makes for tbe true art of gaTdeniD;4. It is one of a series known as the Haddon Hall Library, edited by the Marquess of Granby and Mr. George A. B. l)ewar. It is divided int') chapters, but in the main the enjoyments of a garden and ihe formation of a garden are described. Xo one has felt the enjoyments of a garden more than Dean Hole, no one knows

better how to make a garden, and those who might disagree with him on some minor points will not fail to be ciptivated by his witty and uncontroversial way of setting forth his ideas. The book abounds with sprightly jest and humorous instances. How clergymen might help td spread the humanising influence of gardening is told in the following reminiscence of the Dean's own eaily efforts in that direction :

Clergymen may co-operate by their sympathy, their commendations of successful culture, and their intercessions with those who can give material help. I have lived to see good results from a custom, which I observed some fifty years ago, of taking the boys of my Sunday school for walks by the brooks, and in the fields, to gather wild flowers in the summer-tide, and to arrange them in posies. I took with me the small volumes by Anne Pratt, with coloured illustrations, and from these we learned the names and habits, with other information, of the specimens we collected. In the interval between that time and this I 1 been much gratified to meet with those associate the love of flowers, which has never left them, with our Sunday evening walks. In cities and towns, far from the meadow and the wood, they have cherished in small gardens, window-

sills, and flower-pots the old affection. Not long ago, after responding to a toast at a city banquet, with some allusion to this floral fidelity, I noticed, as I sat down, that the toast master, a stately and august personage, with much dignity of manner and power of voice, silently placed a little card on the table before me, on which was written,

" As a boy, I captured first prizs for wild flowers in my native county Devon." In a moment my thoughts sped away from the brilliant lights, the gay costumes, the exotics, and the strife cf tongues to the merry faces of the lads with the Campion, and the Meadow-sweet, and the Honeysuckles, and the Roses in their hands.

A chapter describes the Rose garden. The Dean's devotion to Eoses is well known. He once told Sir John Millais, '-with the impudence of a fiiend," that he could not paint a Rose. He replied, " I can reproduce that which I see " ; and then hs added, " but you know too much about Roses.'' In another cflapter the Dean describes the rock garden as it ought to be. " Eeware," he write.?, " of sham and counterfeits ; do not , daub with uutempered mortar ; do not cover bricks with cement in the hope

that your friends will believe them to be rocks ; have nothing to do with tricks or

with trash The stones must be stones,

and they must be placed, not on their sides, nor on their ends, like acrobats standing on their heads, but in their natural form, sunk

few inches in the ground, and with an abundance of congenial soil, loam intermixed with sand and grit, around, within, and wherever they are situated, higli or low. It is a fatal mistake to suppose that these small (alpine) plants will flourish in a shallow Many of them will make roots more

which a brief sketch of old and modern methods of gardening is given. The doings of the Romans and Saxons, the development of ornamental culture during the three centuries after the coming of the Normans, and later when " The most deplorable feature of these ancient gardens wai the hewing and the hacking, the lopping and the clipping of evergreen trees and shrubs. The mistakes of the Creator were to be rectified by the gardener's shears," are all mentioned, as well as the opinions of various men of letters

of the period upon the results of the method of horticulture then obtaining.

On the " Formation of a Garden " the Dean has wise words to utter as to where the architect and gardener should part, the necessity for a natural congruity and variety. He says : " It might be inferred, from an inspection of the majority of our gardens, that no novelty had been introduced into this country for the last sixty or seventy years, and that straight walks through huge clumps of evergreens (chiefly Laurels) and their boundless continuity of shade left nothing to be desired."

Orchids.

ORCHIDS AT THE TEMPLE.

than a foot in length, as tourists have dis- Axyose interested in Orchids who went to the covered to their surprise, and to the trial of , Temple show thinking to see new and striking thtir patience in their first efforts to trans- , spe=f^,^>^das"'-^dly have gone away disap, ^ Ki , ii. i- V tv 'pointed. But, none the less, the display was

plant them_ from their native homes on ^^^^ l^ ^^^^ix^^t or^e, ?.n^i m?.ny very fine varieties mountains." oi^ and well-known kinds were shown. As

There are also chapters on tlie water usual, our continental friends showed grandly garden, the wild garden, the cottage garden, the superb forms of Odontoglossum crispum, the children's garden, the town garden, and | and there have been few finer exhibits of O. " other gardens." The last chapter is headed (Miltonia) vexiUarium than tjiat put up by the

"Farewell," but as the Dean, like the gardener he mentions, is not yet quite an " octogeranium," we shall hope to see his name on the cover of many more delightful books to come. The fun comes in often, as in this : In every garden there must be, wherever there

Messrs. Linden. M. Jules Hye always shows well, and the lovely form of Lailio-Cattleya Aphrodite in this case was one of the finest coloured varieties ever seen. Looking round our own amateurs' groups, I could not help thinking that as a whole they compared very favourably with those of former years, espeUy in the way of arrangement, but I should

By S. l!eynolds-Hole. London :

may be, seclusion quiet retreats for rest and j J^ suggest that it would be' a great deal retirement, for contemplation made. Our garden K^l ? r i j- ;oto^

should be our Jerusalem, "the vision and posses- I bf ter if some of our leadmg growers, instead sion of peace." I must have a place to flee unto I of falhng up valuable space year after year with when I know that the great landau of the plants that have been exhibited agam and

Wopperton-Wickses is on mv avenue, because again, would try and get a httle more one of their gigantic horses, a little touched in ! variety. It would, of course, be invidious the wind, is loudly expressing his disappros-al to name any one plant, but there are of a sudden rise in the ground, and because 1 1 several specimens that grace the Temple show catch a glimpse through the trees of the gorgeous year after year in one grower's group in parliveries, the cockades, and the calves, and the ticular. Remarkably fine specimens they are, elaborate armorial bearings of the Woppertons y^^^ j.gj^ii g jg ^ little tired of seeing them and the Wickses mixed. 1 am fond of my fellow- 1 ^j j^ ^j^^ ^^^^ j^^^ The pretty little

men. I am a gregarious and not a solitary snipe. ^jj ; ^ ^ yj^ rp^.g^or

Jf'^-ceraif c3V; ^I^tXT^^t^ Lawrence .Le f ulf of inferest^ for lovers of shrubberies like rabbits by the covert-side on the these very quaint and delightful plants, sorne approach of visitors : but there are a few persons, of the tiny Masdevallias, for instance, and the querulous tattlers, accusers of the brethren with ! fiery -looking Habenaria rhodochila being harsh voices, which startle one with a sudden ! exquisite. This last I did not consider so well horror, like the trombone player in the village ' grown as usual. Among the trade groups band who spoiled their chief performance at the crowding was the order of the day, but even "penny reading'' by a sudden note of terrible ' },ere I thought there was a slight improvement, discord, which made the whole audience jump. I rpj^g well-known Bush Hill firm, for instance, Asked for an explanation by his indignant leader, I ^^^ ^ crroup teeming with good things, but so he replied, " I came all at once on a note as Id jjg^^^^ ; ^.g^g so^g of these that it was

never met afore, and I hadn't time to see as wor only a fly-mark, and so I played un."

Two very interesting chapters are III. and IV. "The Pioneers" and "Progress" in

hedged

difficult to discover them. The first-clas certificate awarded to the fine Cattleya Mossiie Beauty of Bush Hill was well deserved. Sprinkled here and there were many tine forms