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PARSOIS ON THE EOSE, 
 
 A TREATISE OH THE 
 
 Propagation, Culture, and History of the Eose. 
 
 BY 
 
 SAMUEL B. PAESONS. 
 
 NEW REVISED AND ENLARGED EDITION, 
 
 ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 i\ 
 
 'hGV 6 18S2; 
 
 NEW Y O R K^^^;;^ ^^ WASHg g^ ' 
 
 OEAISTGE JUDD COMPANY, 
 
 751 BROADWAY. 
 1883. 
 
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1882, by the 
 
 UEANGE JUDD COMPAJSTY, 
 
 In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 
 
 
PREFACE TO NEW EDITION. 
 
 In presenting a new edition of this work, we have 
 carefully revised the garden classification. With the 
 first edition was published a list of nineteen hundred 
 and sixty-six varieties, with their synonyms. The great 
 increase since then has doubtless doubled that number. 
 
 When the first edition was published, the growing 
 of roses for bouquets and other decorations was yet in its 
 infancy; now the sales of cut flowers in New York alone, 
 amount to millions of dollars, while among them all 
 Roses take the lead. During the past year, there has 
 been almost a rose mania. Single blooms of new roses 
 have been sold at twelve dollars per dozen, and, tempted 
 by these large prices, gentlemen of wealth are putting up 
 houses for the forcing of roses extensively for sale. 
 Thus our chosen flower is daily receiving new honors, 
 and continuing to be the favorite above all others. 
 
 We have stricken out much of the poetry, which to the 
 cultivator may have seemed irrelevant if not worthless, 
 and for the interest of the classical scholar, have retained 
 much of the early history of the Rose, and its connection 
 with the manners and customs of the two great nations 
 of a former age. 
 
 For many interesting facts in the History and Culture 
 (3) 
 
4 PEEEACE TO NEW EDITION. 
 
 of the Eose, we are indebted to Deslongcliamps, Vibert, 
 Laffay, and several anonymous writers. To the former 
 we wish most fully to express our obligations, both for 
 the plan of this work and for many interesting facts and 
 researches, to which we cannot conyeniently attach his 
 name in the body of the work. 
 
 Upon the classification we have bestowed much 
 thought, and although we do not feel quite satisfied with 
 the system we have adopted, it is the best that occurs to 
 us in the present condition of Eose Culture. The amateur 
 will, we think, find the labor of selection much dimin- 
 ished by the increased simplicity of the mode we have 
 adopted, while the commercial gardener will in nowise 
 be injured by the change. 
 
 In directions for culture, we give the results of our 
 own practice, and have not hesitated to avail ourselves 
 of any satisfactory results in the experience of others, 
 which might enhance the utility of the work. 
 
 For our labor we shall feel abundantly compensated, if 
 this work, in its enlarged form, shall in any way tend to 
 produce a more general admiration and increased culture 
 of the most beautiful flower known. S. B. P. 
 
 Flushing, New Yoric, Octoher, 1882. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Botanical Classification 7 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Garden Classification 27 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 General Culture of the Rose 69 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 Soil, Situation, and Planting 86 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Pruning, Training, and Bedding 93 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Potting and Forcing 102 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 Propagation , 113 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Multiplication by Seed and Hybridizing 130 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 Diseases and Insects Attacking the Rose 140 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Early History of the Rose, and Fables Respecting its Origin 153 
 
 5 
 
VI PARSONS ON THE KOSE. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 Luxurious Use of the Rose 161 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Rose in Ceremonies and Festivals, and in the Adornment of 
 
 Burial-places 167 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 The Rose in the Middle Ages 175 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Perfumes of the Rose 185 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 Medical Properties of the Rose 198 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 General Remarks 202 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 The Latest Lists of Roses 212 
 
PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 
 
 The Rose is a shrub or dwarf tree, with mostly decidu- 
 ous foliage, and large, beautiful, and fragrant flowers. Its 
 branches are slender, almost always armed with thorns, 
 thinly furnished with leaves, which are alternate upon the 
 stem. Its leaves are pinnate, and vary in color and char- 
 acter, from the rich, dark green, and somewhat rough leaf 
 of La Reine, to the glossy smoothness and rich purple 
 edge of Chromatella. The blossoms are variously ar- 
 ranged at the extremity of the newly formed branches. 
 The calyx is single and tubular, swelling at its lower part, 
 contracted at its opening, and divided at the edge into 
 five lance-pointed divisions, which are whole or pinnati- 
 fid. The corolla is inserted at the mouth of the tube of 
 the calyx, and is composed of five heart-shaped petals, 
 which constitute the Rose in its single or natural state. 
 The double blossoms are formed by the change of the 
 stamens and pistils into petals or flower leaves, shorter 
 than those of the corolla proper. The fruit or seed ves- 
 sel, or hip^ is formed by the tube of the calyx, which be- 
 comes plump and juicy, globular or oviform, having but 
 one ceU, and containing numerous small, one-seeded, dry 
 7 
 
8 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 fruits, which usually pass for seeds ; these are oval or 
 globular, and surrounded with a soft down. The wood 
 is very hard and compact, and of fine grain ; and if it 
 could be procured of sufficient size, would serve as a sub- 
 stitute for box in many kinds of manufacture. The lon- 
 gevity of the Rose is, perhaps, greater than that of any 
 other shrub. We recollect seeing a rose-tree near an old 
 castle in Stoke Newington, England, the stem of which 
 was of immense size, and indicated great age. " There is 
 a rose-bush flourishing at the residence of A. Murray 
 Mcllvaine, near Bristol, (Penn.,) known to be more than 
 a hundred years old. In the year 1742, there was a 
 kitchen built, which encroached on the corner of the gar- 
 den, and the masons laid the corner-stone with great care, 
 saying ' it was a pity to destroy so pretty a bush.' Since 
 then, it has never failed to produce a profusion of roses, 
 shedding around the most delicious of all perfumes. 
 Sometimes it has climbed for years over the second-story 
 windows, and then declined by degrees to the ordinary 
 height. The fifth generation is now regaled with its 
 sweets." 
 
 The number of species known to the ancients was small, 
 compared with the number now recognized by botanists. 
 Pliny, with whom we find the most detail on this point, 
 ■says that the most esteemed were those of Prgeneste and 
 Paestum, which were, perhaps, identical; those of Cam- 
 pania and Malta, of a bright red color, and having but 
 twelve petals ; the white roses of Heraclea, in Greece, 
 and those of Alabande, which seem to be identical with 
 H. centifoUa. According to the Roman naturalist and to 
 Theophrastus, they grew naturally on Mount Panga, and 
 produced there very small flowers ; yet the inhabitants of 
 Philippi went there to obtain them, and the bushes on be- 
 ing transplanted, produced much improved and beautiful 
 roses. Pliny speaks also of some other species, one whose 
 flowers were single, another which he terms Spinola, and 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 9 
 
 also that of Carthage, which bloomed in winter. Unfor- 
 tunately, all that we find in his works on this subject is, 
 generally, very obscure, and it is difficult to compare many 
 he has described with those known at the present day. 
 
 Although there are no double wild roses known at the 
 present day, either in Europe or in this country, yet, as 
 other flowers have been found double in a wild state, it is 
 not impossible that some of the ancient varieties bore 
 double flowers in their native condition in the fields. Such 
 may have been the Centifolias^ mentioned by Pliny and 
 Theophrastus, as growing upon Mount Panga, and those 
 which, at a still earlier period, according to Herodotus, 
 grew wild in Macedonia, near the ancient gardens of 
 Midas. 
 
 The poverty in description which we have observed in 
 ancient writings, and their comparatively small number 
 of species, extends also to a much later day. In a little 
 treatise published in France in 1536, and entitled De re 
 Sortensis Libellus^ there are but four species mentioned, 
 and scarcely anything concerning their culture. An 
 Italian work published in 1563 mentions only eight spe- 
 cies. In the Florilegium of Sweet, a folio volume printed 
 at Frankfort in 1612, are ten very coarse representations 
 of roses, but with no indication of their names. 
 
 In the Paradisus Terrestris of Parkinson, a folio volume 
 printed at London in 1629, some twenty-four kinds are 
 mentioned. Some of them are represented by figures in 
 wood, which are very coarse, and scarcely allow recogni- 
 tion of their species. In the Jardinier Mbllandois,iprmt' 
 ed at Amsterdam in 1669, are found but fourteen species 
 of roses, very vaguely described, with scarcely anything 
 on culture. 
 
 The first work which treated of roses with any degree 
 of method is that of La Quintyne, published at Paris in 
 1690, and yet its details of the diflerent species and varie- 
 ties do not occupy more than a page and a half, while 
 1* 
 
10 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 twenty-one pages are given to the culture of tulips, and 
 fifty to pinks. Though he describes two hundred and 
 twenty-five varieties of pinks, and four hundred and thir- 
 teen tulips, he mentions only fourteen species and varieties 
 of roses. For a century subsequent to the publication of 
 La Quintyne's work, the Rose is very little mentioned, 
 either in English or French works, and there is nothing 
 to indicate the existence at that time of many species, 
 two or three only being required for medicine and per- 
 fumery. Some of the English collections, however, num- 
 bered during that century some twenty-two distinct spe- 
 cies, and a number of varieties. In 1762, Linnaeus was 
 acquainted with only fourteen species. In 1799, Wilde- 
 now, in his Species Plantarum^ mentioned thirty-nine ; 
 and Persoon, a little later, reached forty-five species j De 
 Candolle, in his Prodromiis^ published in 1825, in- 
 creased the number to one hundred and forty-six ; and 
 Don, in 1832, makes two hundred and five species. If to 
 these are added those which have been within fifteen years 
 discovered in the Himalaya Mountains, and in other parts 
 of the globe, the number will be greatly increased. 
 
 Many of those enumerated by Don should not, in truth, 
 be considered distinct species, and quite a number are 
 nothing more than varieties. In fact, roses are so liable 
 to pass into each other, that botanists are now of the 
 opinion that limits between many of those called species 
 do not exist ; a fact which w^as strongly suspected by 
 Linnaeus, when he said, " Species limitibus difficillime cir- 
 cumscribuntur, et forte natura non eos posuit." 
 
 There is much confusion in the genus Rosa, and in the 
 best arrangement there may be many, which, on close 
 examination, would scarcely deserve the name of species. 
 The best scientific work on the Rose is the " Monographia 
 Rosarum," by Dr. Lindley. This author, and Loudon, we 
 shall follow entirely in our botanical classification. The 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 11 
 
 latter enumerates several other works on the Rose, which 
 are not within our reach. 
 
 The Rose is found in almost every part of the northern 
 hemisphere, between the 19th and 70th degrees of lati- 
 tude. 
 
 Captain Fremont, (now General Fremont) in his de- 
 scription of the prairies some five hundred miles west of 
 St. Louis, says, " Everywhere the Rose is met with, and 
 reminds us of cultivated gardens and civilization. It is 
 scattered over the prairies in small bouquets, and, when 
 glittering in the dews and waving in the pleasant breeze 
 of the early morning, is the most beautiful of the prairie 
 flowers." 
 
 It is found from the mountains of Mexico to Hudson's 
 Bay, from the coast of Barbary to Sweden, in Lapland 
 and Siberia, from Spain to the Indies, China, and Kam- 
 schatka. " In Asia, half the species have been found ; of 
 the thirty-nine which it produces, eighteen are natives of 
 the Russian dominions and the countries adjacent. Most 
 of these are very similar to the European portion of the 
 genus, and five are common to both Europe and Asia. 
 Of the remainder, one, which is, perhaps, a distinct genus, 
 has been discovered in Persia, fifteen in China, and two 
 of the latter, with four others, in the north of India. 
 
 We shall not here describe all the species mentioned by 
 Lindley and Loudon ; but only those which are the par- 
 ents of our garden sorts. A large part of the species 
 described by these authors cannot be found in any collec- 
 tion in this country ; and, in fact, very few possess any 
 interest except to the botanist. The descriptions here 
 given are mainly abbreviated from those of Loudon. 
 
 BRAGTEAT^. — Bracted Roses. 
 
 This section is readily distinguished by the woolliness 
 of branches and fruit. Leaves dense, usually shining; 
 
12 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 prickles placed under the stipules in pairs. Sepals simple, 
 or nearly so. 
 
 R. bracteata^ Wendl. — The Large-beacted Rose. — 
 Macartney Rose. Evergreen. Branches upright. Prick- 
 les stout, recurved, in many instances in pairs. Leaflets 
 5 — 9, obovate, subserrate, coriaceous, glossy, glabrous. 
 Stipules scarcely attached to the petiole, bristle-shaped, 
 but fringed. Peduncles and calyxes tomentose. Flowers 
 showy, pure white, solitary, nearly sessile. Fruit spheri- 
 cal, orange red. Native of China ; growing to the height 
 of five feet or six feet, and flowering from June to Octo- 
 ber. 
 
 A very ornamental shrub, evergreen, with large white 
 flowers, and numerous bright yellow stamens and styles. 
 It flowers abundantly, but is rather tender in England. It 
 succeeds best when trained against a wall. 
 
 R. microphylla^ Roxb. — The Small-leafleted Rose. 
 — Hoi-tong-hong, Chinese, Stem almost without prickles. 
 Leaflets glossy, sharply serrated, veiny beneath, with 
 densely netted, anastomosing veins. Stipules very nar- 
 row, unequal. Calyx densely invested with prickles. 
 Sepals short, broadly ovate, bristly, ending in a point. 
 Prickles having at the base two longitudinal furrows. 
 Flowers very large, double, and of a delicate blush color. 
 Native of China ; growing to the height of two feet or 
 three feet, and flowering from August to October. 
 
 PIMPINELLIFOLI-a:. Lindl. 
 
 Plants bearing crowded, nearly equal, prickles, or un- 
 armed. Bractless, rarely bracteate. Leaflets ovate or 
 oblong. Sepals connivent, permanent. Disk almost 
 wanting. 
 
 This section is essentially different from the last in 
 habit, but in artificial characters they approach very near- 
 ly. It, however, may be distinguished by the great num- 
 ber of leaflets, which vary from seven to thirteen, and 
 even to fifteen, instead of from five to seven. The flow- 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 13 
 
 ers are also without bracts, except in some species not 
 mentioned here. .These, having connivent permanent se- 
 pals, cannot be confounded with the preceding division ; 
 nor, on account of their disk, with the following. There 
 is no instance of stipular prickles in the present tribe. 
 The sepals are entire, or nearly so. 
 
 R. sulphurca^ Ait. — The Sulphitii-colored Rose. — 
 The Double Yellow Rose. Synonyms. R. hemispherica, 
 Herm. R. glaucophylla, Ehrh. Rosa lutea flore pleho, Red. 
 Mist. R. lutea, JBrot. Stipules linear, divaricate, dilated 
 at the apex. Leaflets glaucous, flattish. Tube hemispheri- 
 cal. Stem prickles unequal, scattered. Flowers large, of 
 a fine transparent yellow, always double. N'ative of the 
 Levant ; growing to the height of from four feet to ten 
 feet, and flowering in July. 
 
 This sort does not flower freely, except in open, airy 
 situations and trained against a wall, exposed to the 
 north or east, rather than to the south. Its flower buds 
 are apt to burst on one side before they expand, and, con- 
 sequently, to become deformed; to prevent this, the 
 blossom buds should be thinned, and care taken that they 
 have abundance of Hght and air. Watering it freely in 
 the flowering season is also found advantageous, and the 
 shoots in general ought not to be shortened. This beau- 
 tiful species is said to flower freely, if grafted on the musk 
 cluster at eight feet or ten feet from the ground ; or it 
 will do well on the China rose. It is grown in great 
 abundance in Italy, where its flowers produce a magnifi- 
 cent efiect, from their large size, doubleness, and brilliant 
 yellow color. It is one of the oldest inhabitants of our 
 gardens, though the exact year of its introduction is un- 
 known. " Ludovico Berthema tells us, in 1503, that he 
 saw great quantities of yellow roses at Calicut, whence it 
 appears probable that both the single and double-flow- 
 ered varieties were brought into. Europe by the Turks; as 
 Parkinson tells us, in a work which he dedicated to Hen- 
 rietta, the queen of our unfortunate Charles L, that the 
 
14 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 double yellow rose ' was first procured to be brought to 
 England by Master Mcholas Lete, a worthy merchant of 
 London, and a great lover of flowers, from Constantino- 
 ple, which (as we hear) was first brought thither from 
 Syria, but perished quickly, both with him, and with all 
 others to whom he imparted it ; yet afterward it was 
 sent to Master John de Frangueville, a merchant of Lon- 
 don, and a great lover of all rose plants, as well as flow- 
 ers, from which is sprung the greatest store that is now 
 flourishing in this kingdom.' " 
 
 R. spinosissima^X. — The Most Spiny, or Scotch Rose. 
 — Prickles unequal. Leaflets flat, glabrous, simply ser- 
 rated. A dwarf, compact bush, with creeping suckers. 
 Flowers small, solitary, white or blush-colored. Fruit 
 ovate, or nearly round, black or dark purple. Native of 
 Europe ; plentiful in Britain, Shrub, one foot to two feet 
 high ; flowering in May and June. 
 
 Varieties. A great many varieties of this rose have been 
 raised, with flowers double, semi-double^ white, purple, 
 red, and even yellow. The first double variety was found 
 in a wild state, in the neighborhood of Perth. 
 
 CENTirOLI^. — Hundred-leaved Robes. 
 
 Shrubs, all bearing bristles and prickles. Peduncles 
 bracteate. Leaflets oblong or ovate, wrinkled. Disk 
 thickened, closing the throat. Sepals compound. This 
 division comprises the portion of the genus Hosa which 
 has most particularly interested the lover of flowers. It 
 is probable that the earliest roses of which there are any 
 records of being cultivated, belonged to this section ; but 
 to which particular species those of Cyrene or Mount 
 Panga are to be referred, it is now too late to inquire. 
 The attar of Roses, which is an important article of com- 
 merce, is either obtained from roses belonging to this di- 
 vision indiscriminately, as in the manufactory at Florence, 
 conducted by a convent of friars ; or from some particu- 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 15 
 
 lar kind, as in India. It appears, from specimens brought 
 from Chizapore by Colonel Hardwicke, that R. Dcimascena 
 is there exclusively used for obtaining the essential oil. 
 The Persians also make use of a sort which Kserapfer 
 calls JR. Shirazensis^ (from its growing about Shiraz), in 
 preference to others ; this may be either It. Damascena 
 JR. Gallica^ or R. centifolia^ or, perhaps, R. moschata. 
 The species contained in the present section are all setig- 
 erous, by which they are distinguished from the follow- 
 ing divisions; their thickened disk and divided sepals 
 separate them from the preceding. To the section of 
 Rubiginosse the glanduliferous sorts approach ; but the 
 difference of their glands, the size of their flowers, and 
 their dissimilar habit, prevent their being confounded. 
 
 R. Damascena. — The Damascus, or Damask Rose. — 
 Rose a quatre Saisons. Synonyms. R. Belgica, Mill. 
 R. calendarum. Munch. R. bifera, Poir. Prickles une- 
 qual, the large ones falcate. Sepals reflexed. Fruit elon- 
 gated. ISTative of Syria. Flowers large, white or red, 
 single or double. The present species may be distinguish- 
 ed from R. centifoUa by the greater size of the prickles, 
 the greenness of the bark, the elongated fruit, and the 
 long, reflexed sepals. The petals of this species, and all 
 the varieties of R* centifoUa^ as well as those of other 
 species, are employed indiscriminately for the purpose of 
 making rose-water. A shrub, growing from two feet to 
 eight feet high, and flowering in June and July 
 
 This species is extremely beautiful, from the size and 
 brilliant color of its flowers. It is asserted by some 
 writers to have been brought from Damascus in Syria at 
 the time of the Crusades, but there is every probability 
 that it came from Italy, since it is the same as the Bifera^ 
 or the twice-bearing rose of the ancient Roman gardeners, 
 and is the original type of our Remontant Roses. The 
 Roman gardeners could have produced a certain autumnal 
 bloom only by a sort of retarding process ; for, although 
 the Damask Rose will, under peculiar circumstances, bloom 
 
16 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 in autumn of its own accord, yet it cannot always be re- 
 lied upon to do so. During the early period of the French 
 monarchy, when none of the Remontant Roses were 
 known, and this species was common, it was considered 
 quite a phenomenon to see them appear naturally in win- 
 ter. Gregory, of Tours, speaking of the year 584, says, 
 " This year many prodigies appeared, and many calami- 
 ties afflicted the people, for roses were seen blooming in 
 January, and a circle was formed around the sun." And 
 of the year 589 he says, " This year trees blossomed in 
 autumn, and bore fruit the second time, and roses ap- 
 peared in the ninth month.'* 
 
 R. centifolia^Xm. — The hundeed-petaled, Peovence, 
 OE Cabbage Rose. — Synonyms. R. provincialis. Mill, 
 R. polyanthos, Bossig. R. caryophyllea, Foir. R. ungui- 
 culata, Desf. R. varians, Pohl. Prickles unequal, the larger 
 ones falcate. Leaflets ciliated with glands. Flowers 
 drooping. Calyxes clammy. Fruit oblong. Native of 
 Eastern Caucasus, in groves. Flowers white or red ; sin- 
 gle, but most commonly double. 
 
 This species is distinguished from JR. Damascena by the 
 sepals not being reflexed, and the flowers having their 
 petals curved inwards, so as, in the double state, to give 
 the flower the appearance of the heart of a cabbage, 
 whence the name of the Cabbage Rose. Its fruit is either 
 oblong or roundish, but never elongated. From JR. Gal- 
 lica it is distinguished by the flowers being drooping, and 
 by the larger size of the prickles, with a more robust 
 habit. A shrub, growing from three feet to six feet high,^ 
 and flowering in June and July. When this rose becomes 
 unthrifty from age, it is renewed by cutting oflT the stems 
 close to the ground as soon as the flowers have fallen ; 
 shoots will then be produced, sufficiently vigorous to fur- 
 nish a beautiful and abundant bloom the following spring. 
 
 Varieties. Above one hundred varieties have been as- 
 signed to this species, and classed in three divisions: 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 17 
 
 Var. provincialis includes the Provence, or Cabbage 
 Roses. 
 
 Var. muscosa comprises the Moss Roses. 
 
 Var. pomponia, the Pompone Roses. According to 
 Loudon, we have made this a variety of JR. centifoUa, 
 although some authors assert it to have been found 
 growing wild in 1735, by a gardener of Dijon, in France, 
 who discovered it while cutting wood on a mount- 
 ain near that city. Many varieties of it have been ob- 
 tained, among which, the most singular is the little dwarf 
 given in the New Du Hamel as a distinct species. It 
 does not grow more than twelve or fifteen inches high, 
 and frequently perishes before blossoming. 
 
 Var. Mpinnata; Bed^ has bipinnate leaves. 
 
 R. Gallica, L. — The French, or Provence Rose. 
 Red Rose. — Synonyms. R. centifolia. Mill. R. sylva- 
 tica, Gater. R. rubra. Lam. R. holosericea, Hossig. R. 
 Belgica, Brot. R. blanda, Brot. Prickles unequal. Stip- 
 ules narrow, divaricate at the tip. Leaflets, 5 — 7, coria- 
 ceous, rigid, ovate or lanceolate, deflexed. Flower bud 
 ovate-globose ; Sepals spreading during the time of the 
 flowering. Fruit, subglobose, very coriaceous. Calyx 
 and peduncle more or less hispid with glanded hairs, 
 somewhat viscose. 
 
 A species allied to B. centifolia, X., but with round 
 fruit, and very coriaceous leaflets, with more numerous 
 nerves, that are a little prominent, and are anastomosing. 
 Native of middle Europe and Caucasus, in hedges. The 
 flowers vary from red to crimson, and from single to 
 double ; and there is one variety with the flowers double 
 white. The petals of some of the varieties of this rose 
 are used in medicine, which, though not so fragrant as 
 those of the Dutch hundred-leaved rose, also one of the 
 varieties of this species, are preferred for their beautiful 
 color and their pleasant astringency. The petals of B. 
 Gallica are those which are principally used for making 
 conserve of roses, and, when dried, for gargles : their odor 
 
18 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 is increased by drying. They are also used in common 
 with those of H. centifolia, for making rose-water and 
 attar of roses. This rose was called by old writers the 
 Red Rose, and is supposed to have been the one assumed 
 as the badge of the House of Lancaster. This, also, is 
 one of the roses mentioned by Pliny ; from which, he 
 says, all the others have been derived. It is often con- 
 founded with the Damask rose. 
 
 Varieties. The varieties of this species are very numer- 
 ous. One of the most distinct is Var. parvifolia. (R. 
 parvifolia, Ehr. R. Burgundiaca, Bossig. R. remensis, 
 Desf.) The Burgundy Rose. — ^A dwarf, compact shrub, 
 with stiff, ovate acute, and sharply serrated small leaflets, 
 and very double purple flowers, which are solitary, and 
 have some resemblance, in form and general appearance, 
 to the flower of a double-flowered Asiatic Ranunculus. 
 
 VILLOSiE.— Hairy Roses. 
 
 Suckers erect. Prickles straightish. Leaflets ovate or 
 oblong, with diverging serratures. Sepals connivent, per- 
 manent. Disk thickened, closing the throat. This divi- 
 sion borders equally close upon those of Caninse and Rubi- 
 ginosee. From both it is distinguished by its root-suckers 
 being erect and stout. The most absolute marks of dif- 
 ference, however, between this and Caninse, exist in the 
 prickles of the present section being straight, and the ser- 
 ratures of the leaves diverging. If, as is sometimes the 
 case, the prickles of this tribe are falcate, the serratures 
 become more diverging. The permanent sepals are an- 
 other character by which this tribe may be known from 
 Caninae. Rubiginosse cannot be confounded with the 
 present section, on account of the unequal hooked prick- 
 les and glandular leaves of the species. Roughness of 
 fruit and permanence of sepals are common to both. 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 19 
 
 Rt alba, Lin. — The Common White Rose. — Leaflets 
 oblong, glaucous, rather naked above, simply serrated. 
 Prickles straightish or falcate, slender or strong, without 
 bristles. Sepals pinnate, reflexed. Fruit unarmed. Na- 
 tive of Piedmont, Cochin China, Denmark, France, and 
 Saxony. Flowers large, either white, or of the most 
 delicate blush color, with a grateful fragrance. Fruit ob- 
 long, scarlet, or blood-colored. A shrub, growing from 
 four feet to ten feet in height, and flowering in June and 
 July. 
 
 RTIBIGIK'OSJS.— Brier Roses. 
 
 Prickles unequal, sometimes bristle-formed, rarely want- 
 ing. Leaflets ovate or oblong, glandular, with diverging 
 serratures. Sepals permanent. Disk thickened. Root- 
 shoots arched. The numerous glands on the lower surface 
 of the leaves will be sufficient to prevent anything else 
 being referred to this section ; and although R. tomentosa 
 has sometimes glandular leaves, the inequality of the 
 prickles of the species of Rubiginosae, and their red fruit, 
 will clearly distinguish them. This division includes all 
 the Eglantine, or Sweet-brier Roses. 
 
 R. rubiginosa Lin. — Rusty-leaved Rose, Sweet- 
 Beiee, oe Eglantine. — R. suavifolia, Lightf. R. Eglan- 
 teria, Mill. R. agrestis, Savi. R. rubiginosa parviflora, 
 Bau. Prickles hooked, compressed, with smaller straight- 
 er ones interspersed. Leaflets elliptical, doubly serrated, 
 hairy, clothed beneath with rust-colored glands. Sepals 
 pinnate, and bristly, as well as the peduncles. Fruit obo- 
 vate, bristly toward the base. Native throughout Europe, 
 and of Caucasus. In Britain, in bushy places, on a dry 
 gravelly or chalky soil. Leaves sweet-scented when 
 bruised, and resembling the fragrance of the Pippin Apple. 
 When dried in the shade, and prepared as a tea, they 
 make a healthful and pleasant beverage. 
 
 This species is extensively used in Europe for the for- 
 mation of Tea Roses, and it is estimated that two hund- 
 red thousand are budded annually in the vicinity of 
 
20 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 Paris alone. The species is very vigorous, but does not 
 seem to answer well in our hot sun. The change from 
 its native shaded thickets and hedges is too much for 
 its tall, exposed stem, and, although the stock may not 
 itself die, yet the variety budded upon it will fre- 
 quently perish in two or three years. This is doubt- 
 less partly owing to a want of analogy between the 
 stock and the variety given it for nourishment, but that 
 the former is the prominent evil is evident by the fact 
 that dwarfs of the same stock, where the stem is shaded 
 by the foliage, flourish much better. The Eglantine, in 
 favored situations, is very long-lived. A French writer 
 speaks of one in which he had counted one hundred 
 and twenty concentric layers, thus making its age the 
 same number of years. Another writer speaks of an 
 Eglantine in Lower Saxony, whose trunk separated into 
 two very strong branches, twenty-four feet high, and ex- 
 tending over a space of twenty feet. At the height of 
 seven feet, one of the branches is nearly six inches, and 
 the other four inches, in circumference. There is a tra- 
 dition that it existed in the time of Louis the Pious, 
 King of Germany in the ninth century. This, however, 
 must evidently be received with some allowance. Flow- 
 ers, pink. Fruit, scarlet, obovate or elliptic. A shrub, 
 growing from four feet to six feet in height, and flowering 
 in June and July. 
 
 CANIN^aE.— r>0G Roses. 
 
 Prickles equal, hooked. Leaflets ovate, glandless or 
 glandular, with the serratures conniving. Sepals decidu- 
 ous. Disk thickened, closing the throat. Larger suck- 
 ers arched. 
 
 Ra canma, Xm. — Dog Rose. — Synonyms. R. glauca, 
 Lois. R. arvensis, Schranh. R. glaucescens, Mer. R. 
 nitens, Mer. R. teneriffensis, Bonn. R. senticosa, Achar. 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 21 
 
 Prickles strong, hooked. Leaflets simply serrated, point- 
 ed, quite smooth. Sepals pinnate. Fruit ovate, smooth, 
 or rather bristly, like the aggregate flower stalks. Na- 
 tive throughout Europe, and the north of Africa ; plenti- 
 ful in Britain, in hedges, woods, and thickets. Flowers 
 rather large, pale red, seldom white. Fruit, ovate, bright 
 scarlet, of a peculiar and very grateful flavor, especially 
 if made into a conserve with sugar. The pulp of the 
 fruit, besides saccharine matter, contains citric acid, which 
 gives it an acid taste. The pulp, before it is used, should 
 be carefully cleared from the nuts or seeds. A shrub, 
 growing to the height of six feet or ten feet, and flower- 
 ing in June and July. 
 
 R* Indica^ L. — The India or China Rose. — Stem up- 
 right, whitish, or green, or purple. Prickles stout, falcate, 
 distant. Leaflets 3 to 5, ovate-acuminate, coriaceous, 
 shining, glabrous, serrulate, the surfaces of different col- 
 ors. Stipules very narrow, connate with the petiole, al- 
 most entire, or serrate. Flowers solitary, or in panicles. 
 Stamens bent inward. Peduncle sub-articulate, mostly 
 thickened upward, and with the calyx smooth, or wrinkled 
 and bristly." Native of China, near Canton. Flowers 
 red, usually semi-double. Petioles setigerous and prickly. 
 Petals obcordate. A shrub, growing to the height of 
 from 4 feet to 20 feet, and flowering throughout the year. 
 
 Varieties. — There are numerous varieties of this beauti- 
 ful rose in cultivation, some of which were regarded as 
 distinct species by the earlier authors. The following are 
 quite distinct, and may each be considered the type of a 
 long list of subvarieties. 
 
 Var. Moisettiana* — The Noisette Rose. — Stem firm, 
 and, as well as the branches, prickly. Stipules nearly en- 
 tire. Flowers panicled, very numerous, semi-double, pale 
 red. Styles exserted. 
 
 This well-known and very beautiful rose is almost in- 
 valuable in a shrubbery, from its free and vigorous growth, 
 and the profusion of its flowers, which are continually 
 being produced during the whole summer. 
 
 Var. odoratissima* — The Tea-scented China Rose. 
 
22 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 — R. odoratissima, Swt. ; R. Indica fragrans, Red. — Has 
 semi-double flowers, of a most delicious fragrance, strongly- 
 resembling the scent of the finest green tea. There are 
 numerous subvarieties. 
 
 a. Laurenciana is placed as a species by some authors, 
 but it is probably only a variety of B>, Indica. 
 
 SYSTYLiE. 
 
 (From swn, together, and stulos^ a style ; in reference to the styles be- 
 ing connected.) 
 
 Sect. Char. — Styles cohering together into an elongated 
 column. Stipules adnate. The habit of this section is 
 nearly the same as that of the last. The leaves are fre- 
 quently persistent. 
 
 E. semper vireilS, Lin. — Evergreen Rose. — Syn. 
 R. scandens, Mill. ; R. Balearica, Desf. ; R. atrovireus, 
 Viv.; R. sempervirens globosa. Red. — Evergreen. Shoots 
 climbing. Prickles pretty equal, falcate. Leaves of 5 to 
 7 leaflets, that are green on both sides, coriaceous. Flow- 
 ers almost solitary, or in corymbs. Sepals nearly entire, 
 longish. Styles cohering into an elongate pilose column. 
 Fruit ovate or ovate-globose, orange-colored. Peduncles 
 mostly hispid with glanded hairs. Closely allied to R. 
 arvejisis, but differing in its being evergreen, in its leaves 
 being coriaceous, and in its stipules being subfalcate, and 
 more acute at the tip. Native of France, Portugal, Italy, 
 Greece, and the Balearic Islands. A climbing shrub, 
 flowering from June to August. 
 
 Used for the same purposes as the Ayrshire Rose, from 
 which it differs in retaining its leaves the greater part of 
 the winter, and in its less vigorous shoots. This species is 
 well adapted for rose carpets made by pegging down its 
 long, flexile shoots. Its glossy, rich foliage forms, in this 
 way, a beautiful carpet of verdure enameled with flowers. 
 
 R. maltiflora, Thimh. — Many-floweree Rose. — Syn. 
 R. flava, Bonn, y R. florida, Poir. ; R. diflusa, Roxb. — 
 Branches, peduncles, and calyxes tomentose. Shoots very 
 long. Prickles slender, scattered. Leaflets 5 to 7, ovate- 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 23 
 
 lanceolate, soft, finely wrinkled. Stipules pectinate. Flow- 
 ers in corymbs, and, in many instances, very numerous. 
 Buds ovate globose. Sepals short. Styles protruded, in- 
 completely grown together into a long, hairy column. A 
 climbing shrub, a native of Japan and China ; and pro- 
 ducing a profusion of clustered heads of single, semi- 
 double, or double, white, pale red, or red flowers in June 
 and July. 
 
 This is one of the most ornamental of climbing 
 roses; but, to succeed, even in the climate of London, it 
 requires a wall. The flowers continue to expand one after 
 another during nearly two months. 
 
 ?ar. Grevillei.— R. Roxburghii, Sort.; R. platyphylla, 
 Med. — The Seven Sisters Rose. — A beautiful variety, 
 with much larger and more double flowers than the 
 species, of a purplish color. It is easily known from H. 
 multiflora by the fringed edge of the stipules ; while 
 those of the common M. multiflora have much less fringe, 
 and the leaves are smaller, with the leaflets much less 
 rugose. The form of the blossoms and corymbs is pretty 
 nearly the same in both. 
 
 A plant of this variety on the gable end of R. Don- 
 ald's house, in the Goldworth Nursery, in England, 
 in 1826, covered above 100 square feet, and had more 
 than 100 corymbs of bloom. Some of the corymbs had 
 more than 50 buds in a cluster, and the whole aver- 
 aged about 30 in each corymb, so that the amount of 
 flower buds was about 3,000. The variety of color pro- 
 duced by the buds at first opening was not less astonish- 
 ing than their number. White, light blush, deeper blush, 
 light red, darker red, scarlet, and purple flowers, all ap- 
 peared in the same corynib ; and the production of these 
 seven colors at once is said to be the reason why this 
 plant is called the Seven Sisters Rose. This tree produc- 
 ed a shoot the same year which grew 18 feet in length in 
 two or three weeks. This variety, when in a deep, free 
 soil, and an airy situation, is of very vigorous growth, and 
 a free flowerer ; but the shoots are of a bramble-like tex- 
 
24 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 ture, and the plant, in consequence, is of but temporary- 
 duration. R. Donald's R, Grevillei died in three or four 
 years. 
 
 Var. Eusselliana is a variety differing considerably, in 
 flowers and foliage, from the species, but retaining the 
 fringed footstalk ; and is, hence, quite distinct from R. 
 sempervirens Russellia7ia. 
 
 Var. Boursaulti, Boursault Rose, is placed, in Don's 
 Miller^ under this species ; though it differs more from the 
 preceding variety than many species do from each other. 
 It is comparatively a hard-wooded, durable rose, and valu- 
 able for flowering early and freely. This is a very re- 
 markable rose, from its petals having a reticulated appear- 
 ance. 
 
 R. moschata. Mill. — Musk Rose. — Syn. R. glandulifera, 
 Roxb. — Shoots ascending. Prickles upon the stem slen- 
 der, recurved. Leaflets 5 to 7, lanceolate, acuminate, 
 nearly glabrous, the two surfaces of different colors. Stip- 
 ules very narrow, acute. Flowers, in many instances, 
 very numerous, white, with the claws of the petals yel- 
 low, very fragrant. Lateral peduncles jointed, and, as 
 well as the calyx, pilose, and almost hispid. Sepals almost 
 pinnately cut, long. Fruit red, ? ovate. 
 
 The branches of the Musk Rose are generally too weak 
 to support, without props, its large bunches of flowers, 
 which are produced in an umbel-like manner at their ex- 
 tremities. The musky odor is very perceptible, even at 
 some distance from the plant, particularly in the evening, — 
 
 "When eacli inconstant breeze that blows 
 Steals essence from the musky rose." 
 
 It is said to be a native of Barbary ; but this has been 
 doubted. It is, however, found wild in Tunis, and is cul- 
 tivated there for the sake of an essential oil, which is ob- 
 tained from the petals by distillation. It has also been 
 found wild in Spain. The first record of the musk rose 
 having been cultivated in England is in Hakluyt^ in 1582, 
 who states that the musk rose was brought to England 
 from Italy. It was in common cultivation in the time of 
 
BOTANICAL CLASSIFICATION. 25 
 
 Gerard, and was formerly much valued for its musky 
 fragrance, when that scent was the fashionable perfume. 
 The Persian attar of roses is said to be obtained from this 
 species. The musk rose does best trained against a wall, 
 on account of the length and weakness of its branches ; 
 and Miller adds that it should always be pruned in spring, 
 as in winter it will not bear the knife. It requires very 
 little pruning, as the flowers are produced at the extremi- 
 ties of the shoots, which are often 10 feet or 12 feet in 
 length. It flowers freely, and is well worthy of cultiva- 
 tion. This rose is thought by some to be the same as that 
 of Cyrene, which Athenaeus has mentioned as afibrding a 
 delicious perfume, but of this there is no certain evidence. 
 It seems to have been rare in Europe in the time of Gess- 
 ner, the botanist, who, in a letter to Dr. Occon, dated 
 Zurich, 1565, says that it was growing in a garden at 
 Augsburg, and he was extremely anxious that the doctor 
 should procure some of its shoots for him. Rivers men- 
 tions that Olivier, a French traveler, speaks of a rose tree 
 at Ispahan, called the " Chinese Rose Tree," fifteen feet 
 high, formed by the union of several stems, each four or 
 five inches in diameter. Seeds of this tree were sent to 
 Paris and produced the common Musk Rose. 
 
 BANKSIANiE.— Banksia Roses. 
 
 (So called because all the species contained in this section agree in 
 character with R. Banksice, a rose named in honor of Lady Banks.) 
 
 Stipules nearly free, subulate, or very narrow, usually 
 deciduous. Leaflets usually ternate, shining. Stems 
 climbing, The species of this section are remarkable for 
 their long^ graceful, and often climbing, shoots, drooping 
 flowers, and trifoliate, shining leaves. They are particu- 
 larly distinguished by their deciduous, subulate, or very 
 narrow stipules. Their fruit is very variable. 
 
 R. Banksiae, H. Br. — Lady Banks' or Banksia Rose. 
 — Without prickles, glabrous, smooth. Leaflets 3 to 5, 
 2 
 
26 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 lanceolate, sparingly serrated, approximate. Stipules 
 bristle-like, scarcely attached to the petiole, rather glossy, 
 deciduous. Flowers in umbel-like corymbs, numerous, 
 very double, sweet-scented, nodding. Tube of the calyx 
 a little dilated at the tip. Fruit globose, black. A native 
 of China. A climbing shrub, flowering in June and July. 
 
 Description^ etc. — This is an exceedingly beautiful and 
 very remarkable kind of rose ; the flowers being small, 
 round, and very double, on long peduncles, and resembling 
 in form the flowers of the double French cherry, or that of 
 a small ranunculus, more than those of the generality of 
 roses. The flowers of M. Banhsim alba are remarkably 
 fragrant, the scent strongly resembling that of violets. 
 
 Thunberg speaks of the JKosa rugosa as growing in 
 China and Japan, being extensively cultivated in the gar- 
 dens of those countries, and producing flowers of a pale 
 red or pure white. The original plant is of a deep pur- 
 ple color. Siebold, in his treatise on the flowers of Japan, 
 says that this rose had been already cultivated in China 
 about eleven hundred years, and that the ladies of the 
 Court, under the dynasty of Long, prepared a very choice 
 pot-pourri by mixing its petals with musk and camphor. 
 
 More than one hundred distinct species are mentioned 
 by botanists, in addition to those we have enumerated, 
 but none of very marked characters or much known. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 27 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 
 
 The varieties of a plant are, by Botanists, designated 
 by names intended to convey an idea of certain charac- 
 teristics, — the form and consistency of the leaves, the ar- 
 rangement, number, size, and color of the flowers, seed- 
 vessels, etc. The varieties of roses, however, have so few 
 distinct characteristics, that florists find it difficult to 
 give any name expressive of the very slight shades of dif- 
 ference in the color or form of the flower. Fanciful names 
 have therefore been chosen, indiscriminately, according to 
 the taste of the grower ; and we thus find classed, in 
 brotherly nearness, Napoleon and Wellington, Queen 
 Victoria and Louis Philippe, Othello and Wilberforce, 
 with many others. Any half-dozen English or French 
 rose growers may give the name of their favorite Welling- 
 ton or Napoleon to a rose raised by each of them, and en- 
 tirely different in form and color from the other five 
 bearing the same name. Thus has arisen the great confu- 
 sion in rose nomenclature. 
 
 A still greater difficulty and confusion, however, exists 
 in the classification adopted by the various English and 
 French rose growers. By these, classes are multiplied 
 and roses placed in them without sufficient attention to 
 their distinctive characters; these are subsequently 
 changed to other classes, to the utter confusion of those 
 who are really desirous of obtaining some knowledge of 
 the respective varieties. Even Rivers, the most correct 
 of them all, has in several catalogues the same rose in as 
 many different classes, and his book may perhaps place 
 it in another. He thus comments upon this constant 
 change : 
 
28 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 " Within the last ten years, how many plants have been 
 named and unnamed, classed and re-classed ! — Professor 
 A. placing it here, and Dr. B. placing it there ! I can 
 almost imagine Dame Nature laughing in her sleeve, when 
 our philosophers are thus puzzled. Well, so it is, in a 
 measure, with roses ; a variety has often equal claims to 
 two classes. First impressions have perhaps placed it in 
 one, and there rival amateurs should let it remain." 
 
 If there exists, then, this doubt of the proper class to 
 which many roses belong, we think it would be better to 
 drop entirely this sub-classification, and adopt some more 
 general heads, under one of which every rose can be 
 classed. It may often be difficult to ascertain whether a 
 rose is a Damask, a Provence, or a Hybrid China ; but 
 there can be no difficulty in ascertaining whether it is 
 dwarf or climbing, whether it blooms once or more in the 
 year, and whether the leaves are rough as in the Remont- 
 ants, or smooth as in the Bengals. We have therefore 
 endeavored to simplify the old classification, and have 
 placed all roses under three principal heads, viz ; 
 
 I. Those that make distinct and separate periods of 
 bloom throughout the season, as the Remontant Roses. 
 
 II. Those that bloom continually, without any tempo- 
 rary cessation, as the Bourbon, China, etc. 
 
 III. Those that bloom only once in the season, as the 
 French and others. 
 
 Remontants* — The first of these divisions includes only 
 the present Damask and Hybrid Perpetuals, and for these 
 we know no term so expressive as the French Hemontant. 
 " PerpetuaV does not express their true character. 
 
 EverWooming Roses is the name we give to those in- 
 cluded under the second general head. This is divided 
 into five classes : 
 
 1. The Bourbon, the varieties of which are easily known 
 by their luxuriant growth, and thick, large, leathery 
 leaves. These are, moreover, reasonably hardy. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 29 
 
 2. The China* — This includes the present China, Tea, 
 and Noisette Roses, which are now much confused, as 
 there are many among the Teas whicli are not tea-scented, 
 and among the Noisettes are those which do not bloom in 
 clusters; they are, moreover, so much alike in their 
 growth and habit, that it is better each should stand upon 
 its own merits, and not on the characteristics of an im- 
 aginary class. 
 
 3. Musk* — Roses of this class are known by their rather 
 rougher foliage. 
 
 4. Macartney* — The varieties of this are distinguished 
 by their very rich, glossy, almost evergreen foliage. 
 
 5. Microphylla* — A class easily distinguished by tlieir 
 peculiar foliage and straggling habit. 
 
 The third general head we divide again into five classes : 
 
 1. Garden Roses* — This includes all the present French, 
 Provence, Hybrid Provence, Hybrid China, Hybrid 
 Bourbon, White, and Damask Roses, niany of which, un- 
 der the old arrangement, difier more from others in their 
 own class than from many in another class. 
 
 2. Moss Roses, all of which are easily distinguished. 
 
 3. Brier Roses, which will include the Sweet-Brier, 
 Hybrid Sweet-Brier, and Austrian Brier. 
 
 4. Scotch Roses. 
 
 5. Climbing Roses ; which are again divided into all the 
 distinctive subdivisions. 
 
 In describing colors, we have given those which pre- 
 vail. It is well known that many roses are very variable 
 in this respect, and that the same flower will frequently 
 be white or yellow, crimson or blush, at different periods 
 of its bloom. We have seen a plant produce several 
 flowers totally unlike each other ; ono being dark crimson, 
 and the other pale blush. Wo therefore describe the pre- 
 vailing color, and the cultivator should not be disap- 
 pointed if his rose, tiie first season, should not correspond 
 
30 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 with the description ; neither should he be disappointed 
 if a rose which we describe as very double should with 
 him prove very single. Transplanting will often tempo- 
 rarily change the character of roses, and they often refuse 
 to develop themselves perfectly under our hot sun, or in a 
 poor soiL A second season is thus often required to test 
 them fairly. We have seen the fine rose, La Heine, 
 semi-double, and worthless at midsummer, while at other 
 seasons, and perhaps in a different location, it is fully 
 equal to its reputation. It is frequently the case, that 
 roses imported from Europe, under glowing descriptions, 
 prove worthless the first season, but fully sustain their 
 character the second. We mention these things here, in 
 order that the amateur may be prepared for any tempo- 
 rary disappointment that may occur. In describing over 
 two hundred choice varieties, we have endeavored to se- 
 lect those whose character is well established for superior 
 and distinct qualities, and above all, for vigorous growth. 
 Any variety whose growth is uniformly weak has been 
 at once rejected, notwithstanding its great beauty of 
 flower. Thus many fine roses, like Gloire de Santenay, are 
 thrown aside. There are many equally good that have 
 been necessarily omitted, and there are also new varieties 
 we have recently received from Europe, which may prove 
 superior to many we have named. 
 
 From this list, the rose amateur may feel safe in select- 
 ing, without incurring the risk of obtaining inferior va- 
 rieties. 
 
 ROSES THAT BLOOM DURING THE WHOLE SEASON. 
 
 REMONTANT ROSES. , 
 
 The term Remontant — signifying, literally, to grow 
 again — we have chosen to designate this class of roses, 
 there being no word in our own language equally ex- 
 pressive. They were formerly called Damask and Hybrid 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 
 
 
 Fig. 1.— KEMONTANT ROSE. 
 
32 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Perpetuals, but are distinguished from the true Perpetual 
 or Everblooming Roses by their peculiarity of distinct 
 and separate periods of bloom. They bloom with the 
 other roses in early summer, then cease for a while, then 
 make a fresh season of bloom, and thus through the sum- 
 mer and autumn, differing entirely from the Bourbon and 
 Bengal Roses, which grow and bloom continually through 
 the summer. In order, therefore, to avoid confusion, we 
 have deemed it best to adopt the French term. Remontant. 
 
 These roses have generally been obtained by hybridiza- 
 tion between the Hybrid China and Damask, and the 
 Bourbon and China Roses, uniting the luxuriant growth 
 and hardy character of the former two with the ever- 
 blooming qualities of the latter. They are generally 
 large, double, very fragrant, and bloom, some of them, 
 freely throughout the season. They are also perfectly 
 hardy, and grow well in any climate without protection. 
 These qualities render them very desirable, and they are 
 fast driving out of cultivation the Garden Roses, which 
 bloom but once, and during the rest of the season cumber 
 the ground. There are, it is true, among the latter, some 
 varieties, like Madame Plantier, Chenedole, Persian Yellow, 
 and others, that are not equaled by any varieties existing 
 among the Remontants. Such, however, is the skill now 
 exerted by rose growers, that this will not long be the 
 case, and we may hope soon to have among the Remont- 
 ants, roses of every shade of color, with the snow-like 
 whiteness of Madame Plantier, the golden richness of 
 Persian Yellow, or the peculiar brilliancy of Chenedole. 
 
 Adam Paul. — A fine grower. Its flower is double, and 
 its color rose, tinged with violet. 
 
 AugUSte Mie. — A seedling of the well-known La Reine, 
 a vigorous grower. Its color is a light pink, not so dark 
 as La Reine, which it resembles in form. 
 
 Ardoise de Lyon. — One of the best of the dark roses j 
 its color is a violet purple. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 33 
 
 Achille Oondot* — A striking rose ; the upper side of 
 its petals being crimson, and the under side a bright rose 
 color. 
 
 Ad^le Mauz^. — Of medium size, double, mth a light 
 rose color. 
 
 Anna Alexieff. — Large and full, with a pink color. Its 
 habit is good, and it is a good variety for forcing. It is 
 one of the most profuse bloomers. 
 
 Baronne Prevost. — One of the very best of its class, 
 blooming freely in autumn, and producing fragrant flow- 
 ers of a bright rose color. It is also of luxuriant growth 
 and large, rich foliage. 
 
 Baronne de Maynard. — A vigorous grower, with a 
 well-formed, medium-sized, pure white flower. 
 
 Belle IVormandet — A good grower, and its color a deli- 
 cate blush. 
 
 Caroline de Sansal.— A vigorous plant, with a large 
 and full flower, the color of which is clear flesh, with 
 blush edges. It is one of the best of its color. 
 
 Charles Lefebvre. — A strong grower, and one of the 
 finest of its class. Its color is a bright, changeable crim- 
 son, inclining to a purple shade in the centre. Its form is 
 cupped and regular. 
 
 Clementine Duval. — Has a dwarf habit, and a bright 
 rose color. 
 
 Duchesse de Caylus. — A superb rose, scarcely surpassed 
 by any. Its form is double, and cupped ; its color is a 
 rich scarlet crimson. 
 
 Duchess of Sutherland. — A plant of luxuriant growth 
 and foliage. Its form is beautifully cupped, and its color 
 a delicate rose. It is, however, not reliable for an au- 
 tumnal bloom. 
 
 Due de Cazes. — ^A good grower, and its color is a deep 
 purplish crimson. 
 2* 
 
34 PAESONS ON THE HOSE. 
 
 Enfant de Mt. Carmel* — A good grower and bloomer. 
 
 Its color is a dark rose, or crimson. 
 
 Elizabeth Vigneron. — A good grower, with rose-color- 
 ed flowers. 
 
 General Jacqueminot. — A strong grower, and when in 
 bud, one of the most beautiful of roses. Its open flower, 
 not being perfectly double, is surpassed by others. Its 
 color is a scarlet crimson, with a soft velvety sheen, and 
 a few thousand of them in full bloom is a sight to be re- 
 membered. A basket of buds freshly cut in the morning 
 is sure to be appreciated. 
 
 General Washington. — One of the finest of its class. 
 It is a good grower, very full bloomer, and a general fa- 
 vorite. Its color is a bright red. 
 
 Giant of Battles. — The most brilliant scarlet Remont- 
 ant. We describe it here because it is well known for its 
 dazzling color, and in this respect unequaled. It cannot, 
 however, be recommended to any but the most careful 
 grower. In ordinary hands, its growth is weak, and it 
 mildews badly. Under glass, where the mildew can be 
 controlled, it makes a strong and luxuriant growth. 
 
 Henry IV. — A well-known rose, of vigorous growth, 
 with a lilac and purplish pink color. 
 
 Jacques Lafitte. — A large, vigorous growing, double 
 rose, of a carmine or bright pink color. 
 
 Joasine Hanet. — Of medium size, and blooms in clus- 
 ters. Its color is reddish purple 
 
 John Hopper. — Large, and finely shaped. Its color is 
 rosy crimson. 
 
 Jules Margottin. — One of the finest Remontant Roses. 
 Its growth is vigorous, its bloom is abundant, and its 
 color is a clear pink crimson. It is particularly fine when 
 in bud. 
 
 Kate Haushurg, — One of the most thoroughly remont- 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 35 
 
 ant, blooming through the summer and autumn. It is 
 very large, and its color is a peculiar light cherry. No 
 collection should be without it. 
 
 La Reinee — ^An old and well-known rose, of the largest 
 size. It is finely cupped, almost globular, very double, 
 and very fragrant. Its color is a bright rose, slightly 
 tinged with lilac. Its foliage and habit are good, and it 
 may fairly rank as one of the best roses. It owes its 
 origin to Laffay, and was sent out in 1843. 
 
 Lion des Combats. — A large and full rose, of a reddish 
 violet color, often shaded with scarlet. 
 
 Le G^ant* — ^A large crimson-colored rose. 
 
 Lord Clyde. — One of the finest of the dark roses, with 
 a deep purplish crimson color. 
 
 Louis Van Houtte. — Has a large and double globular 
 flower. Its color is bright shaded rosy carmine. 
 
 Mathurin Regnier. — One of the best, with large and 
 full form, and a delicate pale rose color. 
 
 Madame Alfred de Rougemont. — A good grower, and 
 autumnal bloomer, and in color nearly white. 
 
 Madame Boll. — ^Yery vigorous and hardy, with a full 
 double form, and rose color. 
 
 Madame Gustave Bonnett. — One of the best white 
 roses, and blooms freely through the summer. 
 
 Madame Louise Carique. — One of the most valuable 
 Remontants. Its color is a fine rosy carmine, its form is 
 full, and it grows well and blooms abundantly through 
 the summer. For general purposes, it has scarcely a 
 superior. 
 
 Madame Morand. — Rosy lilac in color, and well cupped 
 in form. 
 
 Madame Trotter. — A very strong grower, a most 
 abundant bloomer, with flowers of a deep cherry red. It 
 
36 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 is shy of blooming in autumn, but the beautiful deep red 
 of its new shoots makes it desirable for every collection. 
 
 Maurice Bernardin. — ^A good grower, with full, fine 
 form, and bright cherry crimson color. It is one of the 
 best. 
 
 Peenee. — Has a unique flower. Its color is rose, veined 
 with scarlet. 
 
 Palais de Cristal. — Has a bright flesh color, with a 
 salmon tint. 
 
 Pius IX. — A vigorous grower, and abundant bloomer. 
 Its color is crimson, passing into violet. 
 
 Prince Camille de Rolian. — Large and full. Its color 
 is a velvety deep crimson maroon, clouded with red. One 
 of the finest. 
 
 Reine des Violettes.— A full and distinct flower. Its 
 color is violet purple, with red centre. It is one of the 
 best dark roses. 
 
 Reynolds Hole. — One of the finest new Remontants, 
 and is scarcely surpassed by any. It is a good grower, 
 and its color is cherry rose, shaded to white at the base 
 of the petals. 
 
 Souvenir de Lady Eardley. — An abundant blooming 
 rose, of a brilliant crimson color. 
 
 Souvenir de la Reine d'Ang^leterre. — One of the larg- 
 est roses, but requires good culture to open fully. Its 
 color is a clear bright rose. 
 
 Sydonie. — Has a fine form, with a clear, light pink 
 color, and is one of the best old roses. 
 
 Triomphe d' Amiens. — A fragrant rose, and its color a 
 fine velvety lake, striped with reddish brown. 
 
 Victor Trouillard. — ^Large and full. Its color a bril- 
 liant crimson and purple, shaded. 
 
 Yolande d'Arragon. — A vigorous grower, with distinct 
 foliage. Its flower is large, and rose-colored. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 37 
 
 REMONTANT SCOTCH. 
 
 Stanwell* — Of Scotch parentage, and has the peculiar 
 foliage and habit of the Scotch roses. Its flowers are 
 large, blush-colored, and rather flat. It is an abundant 
 and constant bloomer throughout the season, and its pe- 
 culiar, delightful fragrance renders it very desirable. 
 
 REMONTANT MOSS, 
 
 These few roses have been separated from the summer- 
 blooming moss roses, because they show a disposition to 
 bloom in the autumn. 
 
 Eugene de Savoie. — Of vigorous growth, with a large 
 and full flower. It is an abundant bloomer, and very fra- 
 grant. Its color is a bright red. 
 
 Madame Edouard Ory. — A good autumn bloomer. 
 It is globular, finely formed, and of a rich rose color. 
 
 Perpetual White. — ^A vigorous grower, double, and 
 blooms in clusters. One of the most desirable. 
 
 Raphael* — Of medium size, double, and has a delicate 
 rosy flesh color. 
 
 Salet* — A good autumnal bloomer, and a good grower. 
 Its color is bright pink, changing to rose. 
 
 BOURBON ROSES. 
 
 This class does not possess the hardiness of the Re- 
 montants, nor the free blooming properties of the Ben- 
 gals, Teas, and Noisettes, and therefore can never compete 
 with the former for the North, nor with the latter for the 
 South. In it, however, are varieties like Hermosa, Sou- 
 venir de Malmaison, and others, which are scarcely sur- 
 passed in any class. The Bourbon Rose has also qualities 
 which make many varieties favorites. These qualities are 
 its greater hardiness than the Tea Rose, its very thick, 
 
38 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 leathery foliage, its luxuriant growth, its more constant 
 bloom than the Kemontants, and its thick, velvety petals, 
 of a consistency to endure the summer's sun. 
 
 It was introduced into France by Jacques, head garden- 
 
 BOURBON ROSE. 
 
 er of the Duke of Orleans, at Neuilly, who received it in 
 1819 from Breon, director of the Royal gardens in the Isle 
 of Bourbon. The following account of its origin is given 
 by Breon, and is also mentioned by Rivers : 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 39 
 
 " At the Isle of Bourbon, the inhabitants generally in- 
 close their land with hedges made of two rows of roses ; 
 one row of the common China Rose, the other of the Red 
 Four Seasons. M. Perichon, a planter in the island, found 
 in one of these hedges a young plant, differing very much 
 from the others in its shoots and foliage. This he trans- 
 planted into his garden. It flowered the following year, 
 and proved to be of a new race, and very different from 
 the above two roses, which at that time were the only 
 varieties known in the island." 
 
 Its resemblance to the Bengal Rose was, however, so 
 strong, that it was soon considered a variety of that spe- 
 cies. Its characteristics are, however, so entirely different 
 from the Bengal, that we give it a separate place in our 
 garden classification. To the French we owe nearly all 
 the varieties of this class which have been produced from 
 the original semi-double rose, or Bourbon Jacques, as it 
 was called. Of these varieties, the following are distinct, 
 and possess many charming qualities that cannot fail to 
 gratify the amateur. 
 
 Acidalie* — One of the best light roses, being sometimes 
 light blush, and at others white. Its autumnal bloom is 
 its best. 
 
 Appoline. — A vigorous grower; its color is rose and 
 pink. 
 
 Comte Bobrinsky. — A moderate grower, with a large 
 and full crimson scarlet flower. 
 
 Duchesse de Thuringe. — Of moderate growth; its 
 color is white, inclining to lilac. 
 
 Enfant d'Ajaccio. — A robust growing rose. As a 
 pillar rose, or even a climber, it is perhaps the best of this 
 group. Its flower is double, cupped, fragrant, and of a 
 bright scarlet crimson. 
 
 Crloire de Rosam^ne. — A rose of very luxuriant growth, 
 and large foliage. It will make longer shoots in the same 
 
40 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 period than any other rose in this group, and will form a 
 good pillar rose or climber. It is an abundant bloomer, 
 and its flowers are cupped, large, semi-double, and of a 
 brilliant deep scarlet. 
 
 Hermosa. — An old variety, but still one of the very 
 best of this group. Its form is cupped, very double and 
 perfect, and no rose blooms more abundantly, either forced 
 or in the open ground. Its color is delicate rose. The 
 plant is of medium growth, and well adapted for group- 
 ing or for planting in beds with Mrs. Bosanquet and 
 Agrippina. 
 
 Imperatrice Josephine t — A very beautiful variety, 
 blooming in immense clusters of a delicate pink. Its form 
 is cupped, and the very robust habit of the plant makes 
 it a good pillar rose. 
 
 Joseph Gourdon. — A moderate grower and of a red- 
 dish flesh color. One of the best. 
 
 Madame Lacharme. — A new variety, of the same habit 
 as the preceding. Its flowers are of a rich blush, inclin- 
 ing to white. It blooms in clusters of beautifully formed 
 and double flowers. 
 
 Pierre de Sti Cyr. — One of the best of its color, which 
 is rosy pink. 
 
 Queen of the Bourbons • — A very beautiful and delicate 
 rose-colored variety, slightly tinged with buft*. It is 
 cupped, very fragrant, large, and double, and its petals 
 are arranged with a beautiful regularity. 
 
 Sir Joseph Paxton* — A strong grower, and one of the 
 
 tardiest. Its color is bright rose, tinged with crimson. 
 
 Souvenir de la Malmaison. — Altogether the most per- 
 fect and superb rose of this or any other class. It was 
 originated by Beluze, a Frenchman. Its flowers are 
 cupped, and of very perfect form, very double, with thick, 
 velvety petals ; they are of the largest size, often four to 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 41 
 
 five inches in diameter, and their color delicate blush, with 
 a rich tint of cream. Its large and very luxuriant foliage, 
 compact habit, and flowers of exceeding beauty, render 
 this one of the very finest roses known. 
 
 / CHINA EOSES. 
 
 Agrippina* — Though an old rose, this is still one of the 
 best and most popular of its class. As a forcing rose, 
 and for an abundance of bloom, it is largely cultivated by 
 bouquet venders. It is cupped, beautifully formed, and 
 of a rich, brilliant crimson, with a delicate white stripe 
 in the centre of each petal. It is one of the most hardy 
 and desirable of the old China Roses. 
 
 Archduke Charles. — A fine cupped and hardy rose (in 
 this class we always use hardy comparatively). Its color 
 is rose, changing to crimson during expansion, and having 
 frequently a beautiful carnation-like appearance. 
 
 Cels multiflora. — ^An abundant bloomer; its color 
 is white, shaded with pink. 
 
 Daily Blush. — One of the oldest China Roses, but one 
 of the very best. There can be nothing more perfect 
 than its half-expanded bud, of a light crimson, inclining 
 to blush. It commences blooming among the earliest, 
 and, if the old seed-vessels are picked ofi", will continue to 
 bloom abundantly through the summer and autumn, even 
 after severe frosts. It is one of the hardiest of the class, 
 and if left in this latitude unprotected during the winter, 
 will lose no more wood than it will be necessary to cut 
 out in the spring. It grows freely, and making a stiff*, 
 upright bush, would be well adapted for a hedge — the 
 winter performing the oflSce of the shears. We recollect 
 seeing at Genoa, in Italy, a beautiful hedge of this rose, 
 which, even at that time, in midwinter, had not lost all 
 its foliage. We can imagine few things more beautiful 
 than a Avell-cultivated hedge of this rose, with its smooth, 
 
42 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 glossy foliage, well sprinkled with the beautiful ruby- 
 tinted buds. 
 
 Daily White. — Very similar to the preceding, in every- 
 thing but the color of its flowers, which are pure white. 
 Like the other, its fully expanded flowers are inferior to 
 many other varieties, but its half-blown bads are very 
 perfect, and make it a desirable plant for the bouquet- 
 maker. 
 
 Eugene BeauharnaiSt — Large and double ; its color is 
 bright, a deep scarlet crimson. 
 
 General Lamoriciere. — Bright scarlet crimson, and a 
 free bloomer. 
 
 Le Pheenix. — ^Distinct, fragrant, and of a deep rose 
 color. 
 
 Louis Philippe. — A strong grower, large, double and 
 globular. Its color is dark crimson, with blush centre. 
 
 Madame Br^on. — One of the very best. Its flowers 
 are very large and double, beautifully cupped, and of a 
 brilliant rose color. Few of the old China Roses can 
 surpass it. 
 
 Mrs. Bosanquet. — One of the most desirable of the 
 old China Roses, and there are few in any other class that 
 are superior to it. Its growth is luxuriant, and its superb 
 cupped, wax-like flowers are of a delicate flesh-color, and 
 are produced in the greatest abundance. 
 
 Queen of Lomhardy. — Of good size, and its color is 
 red, passing into purple. 
 
 Sanguinea. — Rich crimson flowers, glowing like rubies. 
 It is a free bloonier, of dwarf habit, and makes the best 
 bedding rose known. 
 
 NOISETTE ROSES. 
 
 Aim^e Vibert. — One of the most beautiful of the IsToi- 
 sette or cluster-flowering roses. It blooms freely through 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 43 
 
 the season, is tolerably hardy, and produces an abundance 
 of small, snow-white flowers, in fine clusters. 
 
 America* — This has large and full flowers. Its color is 
 creamy yellow. 
 
 Chromatella* — A truly magnificent and splendid rose, 
 raised at Angers (France), from Lamarque. It is of ro- 
 bust habit, and its luxuriant shoots would make it a fine 
 pillar rose. Its leaves are large and glossy, with a beau- 
 tiful, rich purple edge when young. The bud is of a rich 
 cream color, but when the large, globular flower is fully 
 expanded, its color is a brilliant and beautiful yellow, 
 with petals whose thickness will endure the hottest sun 
 without fading. When the plant is young, it is rather a 
 shy bloomer, but when of some age, and in a good soil 
 and location, nothing can exceed the magnificence of its 
 superb flowers. In our grounds, it has endured our cold- 
 est winters, but it would be safer to protect it. 
 
 Caroline de Marniesse. — One of the hardiest. Its 
 color is white, with a tinge of pink in the centre. 
 
 Celine Forestier. — A vigorous growing rose. One of 
 the hardiest, and with a large, full flower. Its color is 
 rich yellow. 
 
 Cornelia Koch. — This has a full and fine form. Its 
 color is pale yellow. 
 
 Isabella Gray. — A large and full seedling of Chroma- 
 tella, of a rich yellow. 
 
 Jeanne d'Arc. — A pure white rose, with a very fine 
 form, and vigorous habit. 
 
 Lamarque. — A well-known and superb variety, whose 
 very vigorous growth adapts it well for a pillar, or even 
 for a climber, as in rich soils and favorable locations it 
 will make shoots of fifteen feet in a season. When bud- 
 ded on a strong stock, few roses can surpass its large 
 cupped and nearly white flowers, weighing down the 
 
44 PARSOXS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 stems with their weight. It is a fragrant and most de- 
 sirable variety. 
 
 Madame JouYain. — Bright rose, with a buff centre. It 
 is very fragrant, and has a vigorous growth, adapting it 
 for pillars. 
 
 OphirCt — A medium-sized rose, of a very singular color, 
 entirely different from any other rose known, being a 
 bright salmon, almost saffron. It blooms in clusters, and 
 its luxuriant habit would make it a good pillar rose. 
 
 Solfaterre. — Another superb rose, of very much the 
 same character. Its flowers are large and globular, in- 
 clining to flat, and their color bright lemon. When half 
 opened, the buds are superb. Like Chromatella, (and 
 Lamarque, the parent of both), its growth is very luxu- 
 riant. Rivers mentions a plant which threw out a shoot 
 from a single bud eighteen feet in one season, and the 
 next season was covered with flower-buds. 
 
 Triomphe de Rennes. — A fine rose, of large, full form, 
 and canary color. 
 
 TEA ROSES. 
 
 Adam* — One of the finest tea-scented roses. Its flowers 
 are cupped, very double and large, and of perfect form. 
 It is very fragrant, and its color is a rich, glossy rose. 
 
 Abricot^. — Large and double ; its color a pale fawn, 
 with apricot centre. 
 
 AugUSte Vacher. — Yellow, shaded with copper. Its 
 form is large and full. 
 
 Barbot. — A very large, cupped rose, tea-scented, and 
 of a beautiful fawn color. 
 
 Boilgere* — A very large, superb rose, one of the very 
 best of the tea-scented varieties. Its form is cupped, and 
 its color a rich, glossy, bronzed rose. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 45 
 
 Caroline* — A fine variety, with very double and perfect 
 flowers, of a bright rose color. 
 
 Comte de Paris. — This is a superb cupped and tea- 
 scented rose, whose magnificent size and hardy, robust 
 nature fully compensate for its deficiency of petals, when 
 fully expanded. Its foliage is large, its growth is very 
 luxuriant, and its flowers of a pale rose color. 
 
 Clara Sylvain. — One of the best white roses. It grows 
 very freely, and gives its globular, pure white, and fragrant 
 flowers in the greatest abundance. 
 
 Devoniensis. — A very beautiful rose, of immense size. 
 Like Chromatella, it is sometimes a shy bloomer when 
 young, but is well adapted for forcing. Its form is cupped, 
 and its color a fine creamy white, tinted with rose. 
 
 Duchesse d'Orleans.— Well cupped, and of a blush 
 color. 
 
 Delphine Gaudot* — Of medium size, double and white. 
 
 Dremont. — This has a delicately tinged bufi" color. 
 
 David PradeL — This variety is unique. Its color is 
 rose, tinted with lavender, and its flowers are often of 
 very large size. 
 
 Due de Magenta. — ^Has a large and fine form. Its color 
 is rosy salmon, shading to pink. 
 
 Eliza Sauvage. — One of the finest of the tea-scented 
 roses. Its habit is good, its bloom is free and abundant, 
 and its very large and double globular flowers are of a 
 fine, pale yellow, with orange centre. 
 
 Enfant de Lyon. — Large and full, with yellow color. 
 
 Eugene Desgaches.— One of the finest Tea Roses. It 
 is very large and full, and its bud is unsurpassed. Its 
 color is a clear, bright rose. 
 
 Eugenie Jovin. — One of the best roses. Its flowers 
 are large, abundant, and of a flesh-colored white, slightly 
 tinted with fawn. 
 
46 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Gigantesque.— A very large and full rose, flesh-colored, 
 and darker in the centre. 
 
 Grandiflora* — One of the most luxuriant and robust 
 roses, and a distinct, excellent variety. Its flowers are 
 crimson, globular, and of the largest size. 
 
 General Tartas. — This is of a dark rose color, and has 
 a large and full form. 
 
 Gloire de Dijon. — One of the finest and hardiest of the 
 whole group. It is a strong grower, and makes a good 
 climber. Its foliage is luxuriant, and its flowers are large 
 and double. Their color is pale salmon, buff", and yellow. 
 This variety will always give satisfaction. 
 
 Homer* — A peculiar and beautiful rose when in bud. 
 Its color is rose, tipped with red, and with a salmon 
 centre. 
 
 Isabella Sprnnt. — A new, yellow rose, of great merit. 
 Its remarkably free blooming qualities make it a valuable 
 acquisition for forcing and for cut flowers. 
 
 Jaune d'Or, — A golden yellow rose, of good form. 
 
 Julie Mansais* — A large and superb tea-scented rose, 
 globular, and very fragrant. Its color is white, with lemon 
 centre. 
 
 Lyonnais* — A large rose, and one of the hardiest of its 
 class. It blooms freely, with a pale flesh color. Its half- 
 opened buds are beautiful. 
 
 Louis de Savoy. — Fine yellow, with large and full form. 
 
 Madame de Vatry. — A very fine variety, with large 
 and full form. Its color is deep rose. 
 
 Madame Bravy.— Finely formed, and of a creamy 
 white color. 
 
 Madame Falcot. — BuflT yellow, something deeper than 
 Safrano, and more double in form. One of the best. 
 
 Madame Halphin. — Large and full, and its color is 
 salmon pink, with a lemon centre. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION, 
 
 47 
 
 Fig. 3.— MAKECHAL NIEL. 
 
48 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 Madame de Tartas* — Large, and free bloomingj of a 
 bright rose color. 
 
 Madame Villermoz. — A very fine, large variety. Its 
 color is creamy white, tinted with fawn, with a salmon 
 centre. 
 
 Mar^chal IVicl. — ^A vigorous growing rose, more free 
 blooming than Chromatella. Its color is yellow, deepen- 
 ing at the centre to a rich, golden yellow. It is, perhaps, 
 the largest and most beautiful yellow rose known, and 
 very fragrant. 
 
 Marquise de Foucault. — Has a large white flower, with 
 yellow centre. Its habit is vigorous. 
 
 JViphetOS. — Has long and pointed buds, of a pale straw 
 color. It blooms best in dry weather. 
 
 Pactole* — One of the very best of its class. Its form 
 is cupped, and its color pale sulphur, with a deep yellow 
 centre. It blooms very abundantly, and is robust and 
 hard. It is one of the best roses for forcing, and for 
 bouquets. 
 
 President. — ^A fine, large^ and well-formed rose. Its 
 color is rose, shaded with salmon. 
 
 Polonie Bordin. — Creamy salmon, with yellow centre, 
 and full form. 
 
 Rubens* — Color rose and white, with yellow centre. 
 Form large and double. 
 
 Safrano.— This is scarcely excelled by any rose. Its 
 half-opened bud is very beautiful, and of a rich, deep fawn 
 color. When open, its form is cupped, and its color a 
 much lighter fawn. These fawn-colored roses have pecu- 
 liar charms for us ; and of them all, there are none more 
 beautiful or richer than Safrano. 
 
 Silene.— A very beautiful tea-scented rose, cupped, very 
 double, and fragrant. Its color is rose, shaded with crim- 
 son, and the plant is hardy and of luxuriant growth- 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 49 
 
 Sombreuil. — A strong grower, with flowers of a pale 
 straw color. 
 
 Souvenir d'un Ami. — The queen of the tea-scented 
 roses, and will rank the very first among them. Its habit 
 is good, it blooms freely, and its large and beautifully im- 
 bricated flowers, when open, much resemble in form those 
 of Souvenir de Malmaison. Its color is a delicate salmon, 
 shaded with rose, and its general character highly recom- 
 mends it as first-rate in every respect. Hibberd claims to 
 liave produced flowers from this variety eleven to twelve 
 inches in -circumference when fully expanded. 
 
 Souvenir de Leveson Gower. — Of a salmon color. 
 
 Triomplie de Guillot filS. — A white rose, clouded with 
 flesh color, and shaded with yellowish salmon. 
 
 Vicomtesse de Cazes. — ^A fine yellow, and free bloom- 
 ing rose. 
 
 White Teai — A well-cupped, fragrant, pure white rose. 
 
 In the preceding list, we have given some of the best 
 varieties of the Tea Rose, and trust the amateur will find 
 no difficulty in making a selection. Many are pillar roses ; 
 and these, so trained, would be beautiful objects on a lawn, 
 either singly, or in groups of three to a dozen. Where 
 the height of the pillars can be gently graduated to the 
 highest in the centre, the efiect will be very fine. Many 
 of the luxuriant growing varieties can be trained upon a 
 common pale fence, and will cover it with flowers and 
 foliage the whole season. Straw can be easily thatched 
 over to protect them from the severity of winter, or bass 
 mats would be still better. There is another very beauti- 
 ful mode of cultivating the most delicate of these tea- 
 scented roses, which we have never seen adopted, but 
 which we are confident would produce a very fine effect. 
 A large three or four gallon pot should be procured, and 
 painted green on the outside ; a locust post should then 
 be obtained, some three or four inches in diameter, and 
 3 
 
50 PARSOXS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 five to twelve feet in height, according to the usual length 
 of the shoots of the variety of rose to be planted. Upon 
 the top of this post can be placed a circular or square 
 piece of board, the diameter of the bottom of the pot. 
 The post should then be planted firmly in the ground and 
 painted green. Fill the pot with rich soil, as directed in 
 a preceding chapter ; plant in it one or two roses of pillar 
 varieties, and place it on the top of the post. The surface 
 of the soil should then be covered with moss, and if the 
 sides can also be covered, the good efiect will be enhanced. 
 The plants, if strong, will soon throw out long, graceful 
 shoots, which, drooping to the ground, will hide the pot 
 and post, and present the appearance of an everblooming 
 weeping tree of great beauty. If a pyramid is desired, 
 wires can be carried from the top of the post to the 
 ground, some two or three feet from its base, and the 
 shoots trained down these. We can imagine few things 
 more beautiful than Chromatella and Solfaterre, growing 
 and blooming in this way. 
 
 MACARTNEY ROSES. 
 
 The Macartney rose was brought from China to Eng- 
 land by Lord Macartney, in 1793. Its habit is luxuriant, 
 ?ind its foliage is more beautiful than that of any other 
 rose, its leaves being thick, and of a rich, glossy green. 
 It commences blooming about midsummer, and its flow- 
 ers, with a fragrance like the perfume of an apricot, suc- 
 ceed each other without interruption till the first frosts, 
 while the leaves remain till the very latest. Although as 
 hardy as the hardiest of the China Roses, it would be bet- 
 ter in this latitude to give it the same protection as recom- 
 mended for the China. It is one of the most desirable 
 roses for beds or borders. When covering the whole 
 ground, and kept well pegged down, its rich, glossy foli- 
 age, gemmed with fragrant flowers, produces a beautiful 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 51 
 
 effect. The varieties of this rose are very few, but the 
 best two are the following : 
 
 Alba Odorata. — A vigorous growing rose, with very- 
 rich and beautiful foliage. Its fragrant flowers are cream- 
 colored, and, when in bud, are very beautiful. It has 
 stood the last three winters uninjured in our grounds, 
 without protection, and is a very beautiful and desirable 
 variety. It is classed by Rivers as a Microphylla, but it 
 so little resembles that rose, and is so decidedly Macart- 
 ney in its character, that we place it with the latter. 
 
 Maria Leonidai — A very beautiful, but not entirely 
 double variety, as its stamens can sometimes be seen, 
 which, however, give a graceful appearance. Its flowers 
 are finely cupped, and pure white, with a tinge of blush 
 at the base of the petals. 
 
 MICBOPHTIXA ROSES. 
 
 This species, originally from the Himalayan Mountains, 
 was first brought to Europe in 1823. Its foliage is small 
 and singular, and its growth is very robust. Its flowers 
 bloom from midsummer till frost, and have a striking ap- 
 pearance ; they are very double, with a calyx of which 
 the small, bristling sepals give the opening bud the ap- 
 pearance of a small chestnut. The plant is hardy, and 
 has endured the winter in our grounds for the past twenty 
 years without protection, losing only a portion of the tops 
 of its shoots. Of the several varieties, one of the best is 
 
 Rubra, which has very double and cupped flowers, of 
 a blush and often rose color, with a deep red centre. 
 
 MUSK ROSES. 
 
 The Musk Rose grows naturally in Persia and other 
 Eastern countries, where it attains the height of a small 
 tree, and is doubtless the rose which has been celebrated 
 
52 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 by Eastern poets. It is also found in India, where it is 
 probably the species used for making attar. In this lati- 
 tude it is quite hardy,, and we have a plant of the old 
 White Musk in our grounds, that has braved the severity 
 of more than twenty winters. It has made in one season 
 shoots more than six feet long, and in our Southern 
 States, more than double the growth would probably be 
 obtained. The blossoms appear in clusters, and comnienc- 
 ing later than any other rose, continue abundant through- 
 out the season. The Old White Cluster has been widely 
 distributed throughout the country, and is deservedly a 
 favorite. The best two varieties, however, are the fol- 
 lowing : 
 
 Eponine* — A cupped and very double variety, with the 
 peculiar musk fragrance. It is pure white, and a very 
 pretty rose. 
 
 Princess of Nassau* — A luxuriant growing and very 
 fragrant variety, and would make a good pillar rose. It 
 blooms in large clusters of cupped flowers, changing from 
 yeUow to cream color as they open. 
 
 EOSES THAT BLOOM ONLY ONCE IN THE SEASON. 
 
 GARDEN EOSES. 
 
 For want of a better, we use this term to designate all 
 those roses that bloom only once in the season, and that 
 strongly resemble each other in habit and flower. It in- 
 cludes those classes called, by rose-growers, French, Prov- 
 ence, Hybrid Provence, Hybrid China, Hybrid Bourbon, 
 White and Damask Roses. 
 
 On a preceding page, we have given our opinion re- 
 specting classification, but we wish it to be fully under- 
 stood, that we do not deny the existence of clearly dis- 
 tinctive characters in the true French, Provence, Damask, 
 etc., but simply assert that the lines of difference between 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 53 
 
 these so run into each other, and are so blended together, 
 
 Fig. 4.— GARDEN ROSE. 
 
 that it is abnost impossible to know where to place a new 
 rose, which may partake of the qualities of all. We have 
 
54 PAHSOXS ox THE ROSE. 
 
 mentioned Rivers as the most skillful and correct of rose- 
 growers ; and yet, in classing Lady Fitzgerald and Mad- 
 ame Hardy among the Damasks, he says that neither of 
 them are pure Damask ; and the Duke of Cambridge, 
 which at first he thought a Hybrid China, he now places 
 as a Damask ; other similar instances are frequent. Many 
 roses, moreover, are classed as hybrids which are not truly 
 such. We are quite inclined to think that a large number 
 of the varieties supposed to have been produced by hy- 
 bridizing are nothing more than the natural produce, and 
 that the pollen, in many cases, has not impregnated the 
 pistil to which it was applied. With this uncertainty, 
 therefore, as evinced by Rivers in his work, and Avith 
 doubts of the hybridity of supposed hybrids, we deem it 
 better to class them all together; and, for the benefit of 
 those who may prefer the old classification, to attach to 
 each name the class by which it has been hitherto known. 
 
 We write principally for the amateur, and we think he 
 will find it less embarrassing to make a selection from this 
 classification than from the old one. 
 
 A great number of Garden Roses exist, but we describe 
 here only a few distinct varieties, with colors which are 
 seldom found among the Remontants. 
 
 All the others have either their equals or their superiors 
 among the Remontants, and being certain to bloom only 
 once in the season, are scarcely worthy of cultivation, 
 compared with the Remontants. 
 
 Ch^n^dole^ H. C. — One of the most splendid varieties, 
 and is truly beautiful. Its foliage and habit are very 
 good, and its very luxuriant growth makes it a good pil- 
 lar rose. Its flower is cupped, large, double, and fragrant, 
 and its color is a rich, glowing crimson, of almost dazzling 
 brilliancy. It is altogether tlie most desirable rose of this 
 class. 
 
 Charles Lawson, H. B, — This has handsome foliage, 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 65 
 
 and vigorous habit of growth, with large, symmetrical, 
 and bright rose-colored flowers. 
 
 Coupe d'H^b^, H. B. — ^A gem of the family. It is large, 
 double, symmetrical, and finely cupped. Its color a deli- 
 cate, wax-like, rosy pink. Its growth is luxuriant, and 
 adapted for pillars. 
 
 Emerance, H. P. — A beautiful cupped rose, of a color 
 unusual in this class, being of a pale lemon or straw 
 color. Its form is very regular, and the habit of the plant 
 good. 
 
 George the Fourth, H. C. — An old rose, produced by 
 T. Rivers, but is still one of the most desirable of this 
 class. Its flowers are of a dark crimson, and its young 
 shoots have a purple tinge. Its very luxuriant habit 
 makes it suitable for a pillar. 
 
 Julie d'Etranges, F. — This has a large cupped flower, 
 of a delicate rose color. 
 
 Madame Hardy, F. — A vigorous habit, and finely shaped 
 flower. Its color is pure white, sometimes with a green 
 centre. 
 
 Madame Plantier, H. C. — A cupped and double pure 
 white rose. It is a luxuriant grower, a most abundant 
 bloomer, and one of the very best of the white summer 
 roses. Its foliage is so marked in its richness and beauty 
 that any one can readily distinguish it by that alone. 
 Were it Remontant, it would possess all the requisites of 
 a perfect white rose. 
 
 Obscurite, F. — One of the darkest roses known. 
 
 (Eillet Parfait, F. — A beautiful striped rose, resembling 
 a carnation. Its form is compact, and its color a very 
 light blush, nearly white, beautifully and distinctly striped 
 with rose and bright crimson. 
 
 Tricolor de Flandre, F. — A very double, distinct, and 
 compact flower. Its color is lilac, striped Avith red and 
 crimson. 
 
56 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 MOSS ROSES. 
 
 The Moss Rose was introduced into England from Hol- 
 land in the sixteenth century, and is first mentioned by- 
 Miller, in 1727, by whom it was supposed to be a sport of, 
 the Provence Rose, which opinion lias been confirmed by 
 modern botanists. Its peculiarities are the delicate prick- 
 les which crowd its stem, and the beautiful mossy cover- 
 ing of its calyx. This mossy appearance has been deemed 
 by some a mere lusiis naturae^ and by others the work of 
 an insect similar to that which produces the Bedeguar, or 
 Rose-gall. The former opinion, however, prevails ; and 
 this freak of nature cultivators have succeeded in fixing 
 and perpetuating in a great number of varieties. The 
 first Moss Rose known in France was said to have been 
 introduced there by Madame de Genlis, who brought it 
 with her on her return from England. In 1810, scarcely 
 more than one variety was known, and now there exist 
 more than a hundred. Of these, the best and most dis- 
 tinct are the following : 
 
 A Feuilles Pourpres. — A distinct rose. The flower is 
 bright red, and the young leaves are red. 
 
 Baronne de Wasseaaer. — This has a good form, bright 
 red color, and flowers in clusters. 
 
 Captain Ingram. — Flowers of a dark, velvety purple. 
 
 Comtesse de MurinaiS. — A vigorous habit. Its color is 
 pale flesh, changing to pure white, and it is one of the 
 best of the white Mosses. 
 
 Common. — This is the old Rose-colored Moss, which 
 has been generally cultivated in gardens. It grows well, 
 blooms freely, is well covered with moss, and is one of 
 the best of the old varieties. 
 
 Cristata. — A very singular and beautiful variety, said 
 to have been discovered in the crevice of a wall at Fri- 
 burg, in Switzerland. Rivers classes it with the Provence 
 
GABDEN CLASSIFICATION. 57 
 
 Roses, and when open, it is merely a variety of that rose ; 
 but when in bud, it is more properly a Moss, although its 
 calyx is not covered with a fine moss, but has more of a 
 crested appearance. In a rich soil this fringe-like crest 
 most beautifully clasps and surmounts the bud, and gives 
 the rich clusters a truly elegant appearance. Its form is 
 globular, and its color rose. It is one of the few that do 
 not grow well on their own roots, but require to be bud- 
 ded on some strong-growing stock. 
 
 Diane de Castre. — Of a liglit rose color. 
 
 Duchesse d'Istrie. — Of medium size, and with a bright 
 rose color. 
 
 Eugene de SaVOie. — This was described among the 
 Remontant Mosses. 
 
 Gloire des Mousseuses. — A large and handsome flower, 
 with a clear, pale rose color. 
 
 Hooker's Blush* — ^A cupped rose, blooming in large 
 clusters of a blush color. 
 
 Hortense Vernet. — Flowers of a dark rose color. 
 
 Jenny Lindi — A small or medium-sized rose-colored 
 flower. 
 
 Laneii* — A vigorous grower, and has large and thrifty 
 foliage. The buds are large and well mossed, and it is 
 beautiful both in bud and expanded. Its color is bright 
 rose. 
 
 Luxembourg* — Like the last, of vigorous growth. Its 
 flowers are a purplish crimson. 
 
 Madame de Rochelambert. — This has large and full 
 flowers, of an amaranth color. 
 
 Madame Edouard Ory* — ^This was described among 
 the Remontant Mosses. 
 
 Nuits de Young. — Plant of a dwarf habit. Its flowers 
 are small, with a deep, velvety purple color. 
 
 Princesse Adelaide. — A remarkably vigorous-growing 
 3* 
 
58 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 variety, with large and handsome foliage, and would 
 make a good pillar rose. Its regularly formed flowers, 
 of a bright pink or rose, are produced in clusters, and 
 open well. It does not bear close pruning. This is one 
 of the most desirable of its class, and owes its origin to 
 Laffay. 
 
 Princess Royal. — A very robust rose, almost equal to 
 the preceding in vigor. Its young leaves and branches 
 have a red tinge, and its cupped flowers are of a deep 
 crimson purple, marbled and spotted with red. Although 
 not quite double when fully open, they are very beautiful 
 when in bud. A moss rose, however double, is peculiar 
 only in bud, for, when fully expanded, the mossy calyx 
 must inevitably be hidden. 
 
 Perpetual White. — This was described among the Re- 
 montant Mosses, as also were 
 
 Raphael, and 
 
 Salet. 
 
 William Lohb. — A good growing plant, with double 
 flowers. Its color is carmine, shaded with violet. 
 
 Like all other roses, and even in a greater degree, the 
 Moss Rose requires a light and very rich soil, with a dry 
 bottom. Many of them make very beautiful beds and 
 patches, when planted in rich soil, and kept well pegged 
 down. A good supply of stable manure should be given 
 them in the autumn, to be washed down about their roots 
 by the winter rains. They do not generally require or 
 bear so much pruning as other roses, but their bloom 
 may sometimes be prolonged by shortening part of the 
 shoots close, and only the tips of the remainder. When 
 properly cultivated, few objects can be more beautiful 
 than these roses, either singly or in masses. Without 
 making so brilliant a show as some other classes, the moss 
 which envelops them imparts a touch of graceful beauty 
 belonging to no other flower. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 69 
 
 SCOTCH KOSES. 
 
 These roses are all derived from a dwarf rose found 
 growing wild in Scotland and in the north of England. 
 They are distinguished by their small leaves, abundant 
 bloom, and delicate habit. Being perfectly hardy, they 
 are desirable for beds or borders, in which, with proper 
 arrangement of colors, they show beautifully, sometimes 
 two weeks before other roses open, producing flowers 
 all along the stem. Rose growers describe, in their cata- 
 logues, two or three hundred varieties, but of them all, 
 scarcely forty or fifty are distinct; of these the best three 
 are the following : 
 
 Countess of Glasgow. — A very pretty and brilliant dark 
 rose, blooming abundantly. 
 
 Queen of May. — A fine and distinct variety, of a bright 
 2)ink color. 
 
 William the Fourth. — An excellent variety, of luxuri- 
 ant growth. Its flowers are pure white, and among the 
 largest of the class. 
 
 BRIER ROSES. 
 
 These roses are distinguished by their small, rough fo- 
 liage and brier habit. They include the Sweet-Brier, the 
 Hybrid Sweet-Brier, and the Austrian Brier. The Sweet- 
 Brier is found in various parts of this country and in Eu- 
 rope, and is distinguished by the peculiar delightful fra- 
 grance of its leaves. Its simple little flower, found among 
 the hedges, has been long a favorite, and, under the name 
 of Eglantine, has been often the theme of poets. 
 
 The Hybrid Sweet-Brier is allied to the preceding, but 
 has larger foliage, and is of more robust growth. Many 
 roses have been placed in this class and among the Sweet- 
 Briers that have none of the peculiar scent of the Sweet- 
 Briers ; and hence, again, the necessity of classing togeth- 
 
60 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 er these and the Austrian Briers, respecting which there 
 is much confusion. The true Austrian Rose is a native 
 of the South of Europe, and is a clearly distinct rose ; but 
 some have been called Austrian which have scarcely any 
 of the characters of the original rose. All three, how- 
 ever, are Briers, that is, they produce their flowers on 
 short joints all along the stem, and have the peculiar rough, 
 briery leaves. We therefore place them all together, at- 
 taching as before the name of the old class. The best are 
 the following : 
 
 Celestial) S. B. — ^A small cupped rose, very double and 
 fragrant, of a pale flesh-color and very pretty. 
 
 Copper Austrian) A. B. — A very singular looking rose, 
 blooming well in this climate. The inside of the flower 
 is of a coppery-red, and the outside inclining to pale yel- 
 low or sulphur. It is desirable for its peculiar color. 
 
 Double Margined Hip, H. S. B. — Of luxuriant growth, 
 almost adapted for a pillar. Its form is cupped, and its 
 color creamy-white, shaded with pink. 
 
 Double Yellow Provence is the best of the two vari- 
 eties which compose the species called Sulphurea. We 
 have never seen its flowers, and English writers all speak 
 of the great difficulty of making it bloom. Rivers rec- 
 ommends to bud it on strong stocks, and says that it 
 blooms most profusely in the warm, dry climate of Flor- 
 ence and Genoa. The plant grows with luxuriance and 
 produces plenty of flower-buds, which, with proper culture, 
 would probably open in our warm climate, which is very 
 similar to that of Florence and Genoa. Its small foliage 
 and slender, thorny wood, place it fairly among the Bri- 
 ers. Its flower is so fine that it is well worth the trouble 
 of repeated experiment to obtain a good bloom. It has 
 long been admired and exercised the skill of rose grow- 
 ers, as is proved by the following passages from some old 
 works, which give instructions for proper culture : 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 61 
 
 " 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 Francfort Rose, near the ground, put in tho 
 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 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, affordeth more nour- 
 ishment than any other, and the agreeable nature of the 
 single yellow rose, from whence it is immediately nourish- 
 ed, the shoots will be 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. The 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." That which follows is from a book 
 called Sy sterna Ilorticulturce, dated 1688 : — " There is no 
 flower-bearing tree that yields blossom so beautiful as the 
 rose, whereof the yellow Provence Rose is the most beau- 
 tiful where it brings forth fair and kindly flowers, which 
 hath been obtained by budding a single yellow rose on the 
 stock of a flourishing Francfort Rose near the ground : 
 when that single yellow is well grown, in that branch inoc- 
 ulate your double yellow rose ; then cut off all suckers and 
 shoots from the first and second, leaving only your last. 
 
62 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 which must be pruned very near, leaving but few buds, 
 which will have the more nourishment, and yield the 
 fairer and more entire blossoms. This tree, or a layer 
 from a rose of the same kind, delights most, and blows 
 fairest, in a cold, moist, and shady place, and not against 
 a hot wall." 
 
 Harrisonii* — ^A fine yellow Brier of American origin, 
 and is perhaps the best hardy yellow rose for general cul- 
 tivation. 
 
 Persian Yellow j A. B. — This is the deepest yellow rose 
 known, and is a highly improved edition of the Harris- 
 on. Its flowers are more double, and of a deeper yellow 
 than that rose. It grows freely, blooms abundantly, and 
 its small double flowers possess a richness of color un- 
 equaled by any other rose. No garden should be without 
 it. It should be added, however, that it is exceedingly 
 difficult to strike from cuttings, and is one of those few 
 varieties for which budding upon another stock is prefer- 
 able. 
 
 Rose Angle^ S. B. — An excellent variety, with very 
 fragrant foliage, and large double flowers of a bright rose 
 color. It is one of the best of the true Eglantines. 
 
 Like the Moss Roses, the Briers will not bear much 
 pruning, and require merely the tips of the shoots to be 
 cut off. 
 
 AYRSHIRE ROSES. 
 
 This class is very valuable for covering unsightly places, 
 old buildings, and decayed trees. They bloom some two 
 weeks earlier than other roses, and will grow in soil where 
 others would scarcely vegetate. Hence they are valuable 
 for covering naked sand-banks, or bare spots of earth, and 
 their roots would be of material assistance in keeping up 
 the soil of loose banks. Rivers gives an extract from the 
 Dundee Courier, showing the effect produced by some of 
 these roses. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 63 
 
 " 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 among 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." 
 
 The Ayrshire Roses are also valuable for weeping trees ; 
 when budded on a stock some ten or twelve feet high, the 
 branches quickly reach the ground, and protecting the 
 stem from the sun by their close foliage, present a weep- 
 ing tree of great beauty, loaded with flowers. 
 
 Dundee Rambler* — One of the best and most double 
 of the Ayrshire Roses. Its color is white, often edged 
 with pink, and blooming in large clusters. It is a very 
 desirable variety. 
 
 Double Blush Ayrshire.— A most vigorous climber, 
 with a pretty flower, and will grow in the poorest soil. 
 
 BANKSIAN KGSES. 
 
 Roses of this class have a very small flower closely re- 
 sembling that of the double Bpirma prunifolia, and 
 blooming in clusters of about the same size. In this 
 climate they require the protection of a green-house, and 
 are very striking for the great profusion of their corymbs 
 of pure white or deep yellow flowers. We recollect see- 
 ing, at the Botanic Garden at Naples, a very large plant 
 of the Banksian Rose, the main stem being six inches in 
 diameter, and branching off into a dozen others, fifty feet 
 or more long. In the Southern States they would grow 
 well in the open air, and being most vigorous climbers, 
 would soon cover a house or trellis, and, with their small 
 
64 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 but most abundant flowers interspersed among the smooth 
 glossy-green foliage, would form an object of great beauty. 
 
 Double White. — ^Introduced into England from China 
 in 1807, and named in honor of Lady Banks. It is a 
 beautiful little rose about half an inch in diameter, bloom- 
 ing abundantly in small and pure white clusters with a 
 slight perfume like that of the violet. 
 
 Double Yellow. — Introduced in 1827. It has bright 
 buff-yellow flowers ; these are produced in great abund- 
 ance, and give a pleasant perfume before the dew is off 
 early in the morning, or just at evening. 
 
 Fortuniana. — ^Introduced by Fortune in 1850. It has 
 white fragrant flowers of much larger size than the pre- 
 ceding varieties. Its want of the petite character of the 
 others makes it less beautiful and striking. 
 
 Jaune Serin. — ^A luxuriant growing variety, with yel- 
 low flowers of larger size than those of the old Yellow 
 Banksia. 
 
 The Banksian Roses do not bear much pruning. It 
 should be done immediately after the bloom is over, and 
 then only the heavier branches cut out, leaving those 
 which are full of flower-bearing twigs, which should not 
 be shortened. If the branches are all shortened, the 
 plants will produce an abundance of strong, new wood, 
 but no flowers. 
 
 BOITBSAFLT EOSES. 
 
 This class is marked by its long, flexible, reddish shoots, 
 which grow rapidly, and are perfectly hardy. Their 
 smooth bark renders them desirable for stocks to bud up- 
 on, and a fine rose of this class, covering a trellis and bud- 
 ded with roses of various colors, would present a beauti- 
 ful appearance. These, also, are impatient of much 
 pruning. 
 
GARDEN CLASSIFICATION. 65 
 
 AmadiSt — One of the best, with its pendulous clusters 
 of large purplish-crimson flowers. 
 
 Blusb. — This has large, double, blush flowers. 
 
 EVERGREEN ROSES. 
 
 The original of this class is the Rosa sernpervirens, a 
 wild rose of Italy. They are very beautiful and desirable, 
 and although not entirely evergreen in this climate, retain 
 their foliage very late in the season. They are very easy 
 of cultivation, and most luxuriant climbers over naked 
 trees, old houses, fences, and walls, or along the surface of 
 the ground, which they will soon cover to the exclusion 
 of all weeds, and present a large mass of rich, glossy foli- 
 age, and abundant bloom. When thus planted, the large 
 weeds should be pulled up until the plant fairly covers 
 the ground, when no more attention will be needed. They 
 are well adapted for training up columns, and we know 
 of few things more beautiful than a temple formed of 
 numerous columns, with Evergreen Roses growing lux- 
 uriantly upon them and festooned gracefully between. 
 Nothing, indeed, can be more gracefully beautiful than 
 festoons, wherever they can be made. They constitute 
 the chief beauty of the vine-clad fields of Italy, and there 
 would be no less beauty in occasional festooning of roses 
 trained between pillars or the trees of a lawn. They are 
 also very beautiful when budded on high standards, their 
 dark-green glossy foliage weeping to the ground, and 
 forming a fine dome or pyramid of leaf and bloom. When 
 pruned in the winter, the branches may be thinned out, 
 but not shortened; for if pruned close, they will make a 
 luxuriant growth the next season, but will produce no 
 flowers. 
 
 F^licit^ Perpetuelle. — A most beautiful rose, and one 
 of the very best of the class ; when properly cultivated, 
 
66 PAESONS ox THE ROSE. 
 
 it produces an abundance of very double creamy-white 
 flowers, shaped like a double ranunculus. 
 
 Melanie de MontjoiCt — A variety of much beauty. Its 
 abundant and glossy dark-green foliage contrasts beauti- 
 fully ^ith its large, pure white flowers. 
 
 Myrianthes. — One of the best of this class. Its flow- 
 ers are perfectly shaped, and of a very delicate rose color. 
 
 Triomphe de Bollwiller. — A very fine hybrid between 
 the Evergreen and Tea Roses. It is rather tender in this 
 climate, but valuable for its tendency to bloom in the au- 
 tumn. Its flowers are very large, double, fragrant, and 
 globular, and their color is a blush or creamy white. At 
 the South, where it would not be killed by the cold weath- 
 er, this would be one of the most desirable climbing roses. 
 
 HTBEID CLEWmrN^G ROSES. 
 
 "We include here some which do not belong to any of the 
 distinct classes. 
 
 Indica Major. — ^A hybrid climbing rose, of most lux- 
 uriant growth and nearly evergreen foliage. Its flowers 
 are very large, double, and of a delicate rose color. The 
 very rapid growth of this rose makes it excellent for cov- 
 ering old buildings. We recollect being shown, at the 
 Bartram garden of Philadelphia, a fine old plant which 
 had covered the whole side of the house, and presented a 
 beautiful appearance. Buist states it to be this variety. 
 
 Madame d'Arblay is a truly gigantic hybrid climber, 
 perfectly hardy, and with strong. Bourbon-like foliage. It 
 blooms in large clusters of pure white flowers, and is a 
 truly excellent variety. 
 
 Menoux. — This variety has ciimson flowers, a color 
 which is not common among climbing roses. 
 
 Sir Johu Sebright. — A hybrid Musk rose, grown by 
 
GAEDEN CLASSIFICATION. 67 
 
 Rivers. Its flowers are produced in large clusters, are 
 very fragrant, and their color is a bright crimson-scarlet. 
 
 The Crarland* — A most vigorous hybrid climber, bloom- 
 ing in immense clusters of fragrant, creamy- white flowers, 
 changing to blush after expansion. When in full bloom, 
 the contrast of the large white clusters with the bright 
 green foliage is very beautifuL 
 
 MULTIFLOBA KOSES. 
 
 The parent of this class is a native of China and Japan. 
 They are unfortunately somewhat tender in this climate. 
 We have known them to endure safely several winters 
 when unprotected, but they are unreliable in this respect. 
 One of the best is 
 
 Grevillei or Seven Sisters. — It has a remarkably vig- 
 orous growth, and blooms with unusual profusion. A 
 large plant will not unfrequently show more than a thou- 
 sand flowers, all blooming in clusters and of several shades 
 of color. This variety is impatient of much pruning. 
 
 De la Grifferaie. — This bears the knife better than the 
 preceding, and may be grown as a bush with proper 
 pruning. It is hardier than others of the class, and bears 
 a profusion of blush and rose-colored flowers. 
 
 Laure DaTOUSt. — One of the most beautiful of the 
 Multiflora Roses, and of most luxuriant growth. It has 
 larger flowers and handsomer foliage than any of the other 
 Multiflora Roses, and blooms in immense clusters of per- 
 fect flowers, changing from white to pink. For covering 
 houses or trellises it is very desirable. 
 
 Russelliana* — This is very vigorous, and yet bears 
 pruning so well that it may be grown as a bush. Its 
 clusters are large, and the flowers change as they open 
 from dark to light red lilac, giving it a singular appearance. 
 
68 PAESOK^S ON THE ROSE. 
 
 THE PKAIKIE EOSE. 
 
 The double varieties of the original Michigan Rose, or 
 Hosa ruhifolia, have nearly all been produced by Samuel 
 Feast, of Baltimore, while a few new varieties owe their 
 origin to Joshua Pierce, of Washington. They are re- 
 markable for their perfectly hardy nature, braving equally 
 well the frosts of Canada or the heat of Louisiana. The 
 leaves are large, rather rough, and of a rich dark-green. 
 They grow with unexampled rapidity, exceeding in this 
 respect any of the climbing roses, and would cover old 
 buildings or naked ground in a very short space of time. 
 They bloom after the other summer roses are mostly gone, 
 and produce their flowers abundantly in large clusters of 
 different shades, from the shaded white of Baltimore 
 Belle to the rich deep rose of 
 
 Queen of the Prairies. — This is the best, and of the 
 most luxuriant growth. Its large flowers are of a peculiar 
 cupped form, almost globular, when in bud, and altogether 
 of very perfect shape. They are of a deep rose color, with 
 a white stripe in the centre of each petal. This rose is 
 truly superb, and, for our cold winters and hot sun, an 
 unequaled climber. It would be a fine rose to cover a 
 trellis or building, and then bud into its branches a dozen 
 different Remontant or Bourbon Roses of various colors. 
 The tout ensemble would be superb. 
 
 Baltimore Belle. — This variety is thought by some to 
 have a strain of Noisette sap in it from the delicacy and 
 beauty of its flower and its tendency to bloom in the au- 
 tumn. It produces abundant clusters of white flowers 
 shaded with a slight cloud of pink. It is one of the finest 
 climbing roses known. 
 
 Gem of the Prairie. (Burgess'.) — A hybrid between 
 the Queen of the Prairies and the Remontant, Madame 
 Laffay. It is said to combine the vigorous growth of the 
 one with the rich color and delicate fragrance of the 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 69 
 
 other. We have not grown this variety, but take the 
 description from the Horticultural Annual for 1868. 
 
 Jane* — Yery double, of a deep rosy lilac. 
 
 Mrs. Hovey. — This has large white flowers, and all the 
 vigor of its class. 
 
 Pride of Washington. — A rosy lilac, and double. 
 
 There are several other varieties in this class, but the 
 preceding are the best. 
 
 CHAPTER HI. 
 GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 
 
 As before stated, the Rose was the theme of the earli- 
 est poets of antiquity ; and it was doubtless one of the 
 first plants selected to adorn the gardens which were laid 
 out around the new habitations constructed upon the ex- 
 chanore of the wanderins^ for a civilized mode of life. 
 
 The most ancient authors upon husbandry, whose works 
 are extant, have all treated of the culture of Roses : Theo- 
 phrastus among the Greeks ; and among the Romans, 
 Varro, Columella, Palladius, and Pliny. To Pliny are we 
 specially indebted for information on this subject, as the 
 entire fourth chapter of the twentieth book of his Natu- 
 ral History is devoted to Roses ; and they are also occa- 
 sionally mentioned in other parts of the work. But after 
 all the information thus obtained, much yet remains to be 
 desired; and although we find in other ancient authors 
 some curious facts bearing upon other points in the his- 
 tory of the Rose, they are mostly so general in their 
 character as to give us very little insight into the actual 
 culture of the Rose at those periods. 
 
70 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 The profuseness with which they were used among the 
 Greeks, the Romans, the Egyptians, and other ancient 
 nations in their religious solemnities, their public cere- 
 monies, and even in the ordinary customs of private life, 
 would lead us to suppose, and with some degree of cor- 
 rectness, that roses were very abundantly cultivated by 
 them all ; and we are inclined to think that their cultiva- 
 tion was then far more general than at the present time, 
 although the art of producing them was in its infancy. 
 However surprising in other respects may have been the 
 progress of the culture of roses within forty years, par- 
 ticularly in France, Holland, and Belgium, there can be 
 little doubt that, although the Romans were acquainted 
 with a much smaller number of varieties than the mod- 
 ems, yet flowers of tbose varieties were far more abund- 
 ant than the aggregate quantity of flowers of all the 
 varieties of roses cultivated at the present day. It can- 
 not be positively asserted that the Remontant Roses of 
 the present time were unknown at Rome, since the gar- 
 deners of that city practiced sowing the seeds of the Rose, 
 by which mode many of the most remarkable varieties of 
 that class have been obtained by modern cultivators. The 
 Romans, however, preferred to propagate by cuttings, 
 which produced flowering plants much sooner than those 
 from the seed. 
 
 But, though the Romans may have had roses of the 
 same species with some of those which we now cultivate, 
 it is scarcely probable that these species could have con- 
 tinued until this period, and escaped the devastation at- 
 tendant on the revolutions of empire, or the more deso- 
 lating invasions of the Huns and Goths. Thus it is, that 
 those roses of Psestum, to which allusion is so frequently 
 made by ancient writers, and which, according to Virgil 
 and Pliny, bloomed semi-annually, and were common in 
 the gardens of that city, are not now to be found. Jussieu 
 and Loudresse, two French gentlemen, successively visit- 
 
GENERAIi CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 71 
 
 ed Italy with the express object of finding this twice- 
 bearing Rose in Passtum or its environs, yet, notwith- 
 standing their carefully prosecuted researches, they could 
 find no traces of it whatever. 
 
 Although the number of varieties known to the Ro- 
 mans was very limited, they had discovered a method of 
 making the blooming season continue many months. Ac- 
 cording to Pliny, the roses of Carthage, in Spain, came 
 forward early and bloomed in winter ; those of Campania 
 bloomed next in order ; then those of Malta ; and lastly 
 those of Psestum, which flowered in the spring and au- 
 tumn. It was probably the blooming of this last species 
 which the gardeners of Rome discovered (in Seneca's 
 time) the secret of retarding by a certain process, or of 
 hastening by means of their warm green-houses. 
 
 In the first part of this work, we have cited many pas- 
 sages from ancient authors, which show to what an enor- 
 mous extent the use of roses was carried by the Romans 
 on certain occasions. It is difficult to credit, at this day, 
 the relation of Nero's extravagance (which is, however, 
 attested by Suetonius), when it is told that in one fete 
 alone he expended in roses only^ more than four millions 
 of sesterces, or one hundred thousand dollars. It would 
 be no easy matter, even at the present period of abund- 
 ant cultivation of Roses, to obtain from all the nurseries 
 of England, France, and America together, roses sufficient 
 to amount to so large a sum. 
 
 The Romans derived the use of this flower from the 
 Greeks. In Greece, and throughout the East, roses were 
 cultivated, not only for the various purposes we have 
 mentioned, but also for the extraction of their perfumes. 
 Among the many plans which they adopted for preserv- 
 ing the flower was that of cutting off the top of a reed, 
 splitting it down a short distance, and enclosing in it a 
 number of rose-buds, which, being bound around with 
 papyrus, prevented their fragrance from escaping. The 
 
72 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Greeks also deemed it a great addition to the fragrance 
 of the Rose to plant garlic near its roots. The island of 
 Rhodes, which has successively borne many names, was 
 particularly indebted to the culture of roses for that which 
 it bears at this day. It was the Isle of Roses, the Greek 
 for Rose being Fodov, — Rodon. 
 
 Medals of Rhodes, whose reverse impressions present a 
 rose in bloom on one side, and the sunflower on the other, 
 are to be found even now in cabinets of curiosities. 
 
 Extravagance in roses, among the Romans, kept pace 
 with the increase of their power, until they at length de- 
 sired them at all seasons. At first they procured their 
 winter's supply from Egypt, but subsequently attained 
 themselves such skill in their culture as to produce them 
 in abundance, even at the coldest season of the year; 
 and, according to Seneca, by means of green-houses, 
 heated by pipes filled with hot water. During the reign 
 of Domitian, the forcing of roses was carried to such per- 
 fection, and flowers produced in winter in so great abund- 
 ance, that those brought from Egypt, as before mention- 
 ed, excited only the contempt of the citizens of the 
 world's metropolis. 
 
 This fact, as also handed down to us by the epigram 
 of Martial, is of great assistance in estimating the import- 
 ance of rose-culture at that period, and in showing how 
 the art of cultivating this plant had spread, and how it 
 was already far advanced among the ancient Romans and 
 their contemporaries. 
 
 If the Egyptians cultivated roses for transportation to 
 Rome during the winter, they must have had very exten- 
 sive plantations for the purpose. The exportation could 
 not have been of loose flowers, for they would have been 
 withered long before the termination of the voyage ; nei- 
 ther could it have been of rooted plants in a dormant 
 state, as nurserymen now send them to every part of the 
 world, because the Romans had at that time no means of 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 73 
 
 causing them to vegetate and bloom in the winter. On 
 the contrary, the cultivators at Alexandria and Memphis 
 must, of necessity, have sent them away in the vases and 
 boxes in which they had planted them with that object, 
 and when they were just beginning to break from the 
 bud, in order that they might arrive at Rome at the mo- 
 ment they commenced expanding. 
 
 At that remote period, when navigation was far behind 
 its present state of perfection, the voyage from the mouth 
 of the Nile to the coast of Italy occupied more than 
 twenty days. When this long voyage is considered, and 
 also the quantity of roses required by tlie Romans to en- 
 wreath their crowns and garlands, to cover their tables 
 and couches, and the pavements of their festive halls, and 
 to surround the urns which contained the ashes of their 
 dead, it is evident tliat the Egyptians, who traded in 
 roses, in order to satisfy the prodigality of the Romans, 
 would be compelled to keep in readiness a certain number 
 of vessels to be laden with boxes or vases of rose-plants, 
 so prepared as not to bloom before their delivery at 
 Rome, The cost of roses thus delivered in Rome must 
 have been immense, but we do not find a single passage 
 in any of the ancient authors which can give any light on 
 this point ; they only tell us that nothing for the gratifi- 
 cation of luxury was considered too costly by the wealthy 
 Roman citizens. Nor do they afford more positive inform- 
 ation as to the species of Rose cultivated on the borders 
 of the Nile, to gratify this taste of the Romans. Ac- 
 cording to Delile, there were found in Egypt, at the time 
 of the French expedition into that country, only the 
 White Rose and the Centifolia, or hundred-leaved — two 
 species not very susceptible of either a forcing or retard- 
 ing culture. The only Rose known at that time, which 
 bloomed in the winter, was the Rose of Paestum, referred 
 to by Yirgil, as " biferique rosarla Pmsti^'' and which 
 was probably the same as our monthly Damask Rose, 
 4 
 
74 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 and which produced in Egypt and Rome flowers at all 
 seasons, as the Damask does now with us, under a proper 
 mode of culture. 
 
 The extent to which the culture and commerce of roses 
 was carried among the Romans is shown by the fact 
 that, although they had confounded the tree and its flow- 
 ers under one name — that of Hosa, — they nevertheless 
 gave particular appellations to the gardens or ground 
 planted with rose-bushes. The}' were termed a Hosarium, 
 or a Hosetum. Ovid says, " Quot amoena Rosariaflores.'''^ 
 The dealer in roses was also designated by the distinctive 
 appellation of Hosarius. 
 
 In the latter part of the decline of the Roman Empire, 
 when paganism still existed to a great degree, there arose 
 a people who formed, as it were, the connecting link be- 
 tween the ancient and modern world — a people who ac- 
 knowledged but one Supreme Ruler, and his sole vicege- 
 rent, Mahomet ; a people whose origin was among the 
 wildest tribes of Ishmael's descendants, who possessed in 
 a great degree the luxuries of civilized life, and among 
 whom the arts, sciences, and agriculture, were very flour- 
 ishing for many ages. Among the Moors of Spain, the 
 culture of the Rose was pursued with as much scientific 
 and practical method as at the present day, but with 
 somewhat less happy results. When in Paris, some years 
 since, we became acquainted Avith M. Hardy, the chief di- 
 rector of the Luxembourg gardens, and who is well 
 known to rose growers, by the many beautiful varieties 
 which he has originated. His interest in this subject was 
 very graat, and in 1828, he published in the Journal des 
 Jar dins some interesting observations Avhich he had ex- 
 tracted from a manuscript of M. de la Neuville. The 
 latter having been employed as military superintendent 
 in Spain during the war of 1823, translated from a 
 Spanish version some parts of an Arabian work upon cul- 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 75 
 
 ture ia general, in which that of the Rose was mentioned, 
 with some important particulars. It stated that the 
 Moors, who formerly conquered Spain, attached the high- 
 est value to this most beautiful of their flowers, and culti- 
 vated it with as much care as we do ourselves. " Accord- 
 ing to Abu-el-Jair," says the translation, " there are roses 
 of many colors — carnation white, fallow or yellow, 
 lapis-lazuli, or sky-blue. Some are of this last color on 
 the outside, and yellow within. In the East they are ac- 
 quainted with roses which are variegated with yellow and 
 sky-bluo, the inside of the corolla being of the one color, 
 and the outside the other. The yellow-heart is very com- 
 mon in Tripoli and Syria, and the blue-heart is found on 
 fhe coast of Alexandria." To us, at the present day, this 
 relation may with reason seem incredible, since amid the 
 numerous varieties now existing, and the skill of their 
 cultivators, we have in no instance • been able to obtain a 
 blue Rose. Abu-el-Jair may have ventured to state it as 
 a fact without proper authority, for, according to M. de 
 la Neuville, Abu-Abdallah-ebu-el-Fazel, another nearly 
 contemporaneous author, enumerated a variety of roses 
 without mentioning the blue. " There are," says this last 
 author, " four varieties of roses : the first is named the 
 Double White; it has an exquisite odor, and its cup 
 unites more than a hundred petals : the second is the Yel- 
 low, which is of a golden color, and bright as the jonquil ; 
 then the Purple ; and lastly the flesh-colored, which is the 
 most common of them all." Farther on the same author 
 adds : " The number of species is supposed to be large : 
 the Mountain or Wild ; the Double, which is variegated 
 with red and white shades ; and the Chinese. The Double, 
 however, is the niost beautiful, and is composed of forty 
 to fifty petals." 
 
 The Moors multiplied roses by all the various methods 
 which are employed at this day: by suckers from the 
 root, by cuttings, by budding, and by grafting. The 
 
76 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 pruning-knife was also freely used, in order to form regu- 
 lar heads. 
 
 There is a farther translation of De la Neuville from a 
 Spanish version of the " Book of Agriculture," written by 
 Ebu-Alwan, who lived in the twelfth century, and who, in 
 addition to his own experience, quoted largely from some 
 Chaldaic and Arabic writers. He states that the Moors 
 practiced two methods of sowing the seeds of the Rose. 
 The first was in earthen pans — a mode adapted to delicate 
 plants ; they were watered immediately after being sown, 
 and afterward twice a week until autumn, when such care 
 became unnecessary. The other method was sowing 
 broadcast as grain is sown, then covering the seed-beds 
 an inch deep with carefully sifted manure or fine mould, 
 and giving them the requisite watering. The plants from 
 these seed-beds did not produce flowers until the third 
 year after their being thus prepared, and until they had 
 been transplanted into squares or borders ; such is still the 
 case with nearly all our summer roses, the only kind the 
 Moors appear to have possessed. They also understood 
 the art of forcing roses. " If you wish," says Haj, an- 
 other author, " the Rose tree to bloom in autumn, you 
 must choose one that has been accustomed to periodical 
 waterings ; you must deprive it of water entirely during 
 the heat of summer until August, and then give it an 
 abundance of moisture ; this will hasten its growth, and 
 cause the expansion of its flowers in great profusion, 
 without impairing its ability to bloom the ensuing spring, 
 as usual." " Or else," adds the same author, " in the 
 month of October, bum the old branches to the level of 
 the earth, moisten the soil for eight consecutive days, and 
 then suspend the watering; alternate these periods of 
 moisture and drought as many as five times, and probably 
 in about sixty days, or before the end of autumn, the roots 
 will have thrown out vigorous branches, which will in due 
 time be loaded with flowers, without destroying the 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 77 
 
 ability of the plant to bloom again the following spring." 
 The climate in which the Moors lived— that of Cordova, 
 Grenada, and Seville, where the winter is very much like 
 our weather in mid-autumn — was very favorable to the 
 cultivation of the Rose. In this country the same re- 
 sults could doubtless be obtained in the Carolinas, and the 
 experiment would be well worth trying, even in the lati- 
 tude of New York. It would be no small triumph to 
 obtain an autumnal bloom of the many beautiful varieties 
 of French, Moss, or Provence Roses. Ilaj has also given 
 the method of keeping the Rose in bud, in order to pro- 
 long its period of blooming. His process, however, is of 
 so uncertain a character, as scarcely to merit an insertion 
 here. The manuscript of De la Neuville also contains 
 particular directions for propagating roses, and for plant- 
 ing hedges of the Eglantine, to protect the vineyards and 
 gardens, and at the same time to serve as stocks for graft- 
 ing. Nothing is omitted in the Arabian treatise which 
 pertains to the management of this shrub ; the manner of 
 cultivating, weeding, transplanting, watering, etc., are 
 all particularly explained. Among a variety of curious 
 matters, it contains the process by which, for the purpose 
 of embellishing their gardens, they produced the appear- 
 ance of trees whose tops are loaded with roses. A hollow 
 pipe, four feet long, or more, if the top was to be large, 
 was obtained, of a well-proportioned diameter, set up- 
 right, to resemble the trunk of a tree, and filled with earth 
 or sand in a suitable state of moisture. In the top of 
 this pipe were planted several varieties of roses, of differ- 
 ent colors, which, rooting freely in the earth around them, 
 soon formed a bushy head, and represented a third-class 
 tree, clothed with rich foliage and beautiful flowers. 
 
 This plan could now be practiced with success ; and 
 we can scarcely imagine more beautiful objects in a lawn 
 than a number of these pipes, of various heights, single, 
 and in groups, some low, with the small heads of the 
 
78 PARSONS 0]S- THE ROSE. 
 
 China of Tea Roses, others high, and with the large, ro- 
 bust branches of the La Heine, and other Perpetnals, and 
 others, again, planted with some delicate climbing roses, 
 whose branches, falling down, would form a weeping tree 
 of a most unique, graceful, and showy character. The 
 pipes could be made of earthenware, tiu, or wood, and bo 
 painted in imitation of the bark of a tree. Still better 
 would be the trunk of a small tree, holloAved out for the 
 purpose, which, with the bark on, would puzzle many a 
 close observer, and Y>^hich could show a luxuriant head of 
 leaves and flowers on the most sterile soil that ever formed 
 a lawn. 
 
 From what has been said on the culture of -roses among 
 the Moors in Spain, there can be no doubt that they had 
 made great progress therein ; and with the exception of a 
 few statements, evidently unfounded in fact, as the graft- 
 ing of the Rose on the almond, the apple, the jujube, and 
 other trees, the little treatise translated by De la Neuville 
 certainly contains most excellent remarks upon the culture 
 of roses, whether we compare them with what the an- 
 cients have left us, or even with those of the various 
 writers on Rose culture in Europe and America within 
 the last half century. 
 
 As roses were so frequently propagated from the seed 
 by the Moors, they must have known quite a number of 
 varieties, exclusive of all those they had brought or ob- 
 tained from the East. The Yellow Rose, unknown to us 
 until recently, Avas apparently familiar to them ; and the 
 Blue Rose, of which their manuscripts speak, is now ex- 
 tinct, if it indeed ever existed ; for amid the infinite 
 variety of roses, of every color and shade, produced from 
 seed in modern times, no one has yet obtained a purely 
 Blue Rose, and its former existence may well seem to us 
 incredible. 
 
 Besides the Moorish cultivation in Spain, the Rose has 
 been an object of culture to a great extent in other coun- 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OP THE ROSE. 79 
 
 tries. It has been cultivated principally for the beauty of 
 its flowers, but in many parts of Europe and Asia, and in 
 the north of Africa, its culture has been pursued for com- 
 mercial purposes. Of its abundance in Palestine, some 
 conception may be formed from the statement of travel- 
 ers, that they have not only seen them wild and in great 
 profusion in the vicinity of Jerusalem, but have found 
 them in hedges, intermingled with pomegranate trees. 
 Doubday states that, when the Eastern Christians made 
 one of their processions in the Church of the Holy Sepul- 
 chre at Jerusalem, which continued some two hours, many 
 persons were present with sacks full of rose petals, which 
 they threw by handfuls on the people, and in such im- 
 mense quantities, that many were covered with them, and 
 they were scattered all over the pavement. In Syria and 
 Persia it has been cultivated from a very early period, and 
 the ancient name of the former, Suristan, is said to signify 
 the land of roses. Damascus, Cashmere, Barbary, and 
 Fayoum in Egypt, all cultivated the Rose extensively for 
 its distilled oil or essence. Very little is extant respecting 
 the culture of the Rose in the middle ages, but that it was 
 cultivated and valued is known by its having been worn 
 by knights at the tournament, as an emblem of their de- 
 votion to grace and beauty. According to Loudon, 
 " Ludovico Verthema, who traveled in the East in 1503, 
 observed that Tsessa was particularly celebrated for roses, 
 and that he saw a great quantity of these flowers at Cali- 
 cut." The Rose is to this day also extensively cultivated 
 in India, and for commercial purposes perhaps in greater 
 abundance than is now known in any other country. 
 Bishop Heber states that " Ghazepoor is celebrated 
 throughout India for the wholesomeness of its air and the 
 beauty and extent of its rose gardens. The Rose-fields, 
 which occupy many hundred acres in the neighborhood, 
 are described as, at the proper season, extremely beauti- 
 ful. They are cultivated for distillation and for making 
 
80 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 * Attar of Roses.' " He states also, that " many roses 
 were growing in the garden of the palace of Delhi, and 
 the fountain pipes were carved with images of roses." 
 Another writer describes in glowing colors the beauty of 
 Ghazepoor, the Gul-istan (the rose beds,) of Bengal. " In 
 the spring of the year, an extent of miles around the 
 town presents to the eye a continual garden of roses, than 
 which nothing can be more beautiful and fragrant. The 
 sight is perfectly dazzling ; the plain, as far as the eye can 
 reach, extending in the same bespangled carpet of red and 
 green. The breezes, too, are loaded with the sweet odor 
 which is wafted far across the river Ganges." 
 
 These statements sufficiently evince that the Rose was 
 not only valued by the Hindoos as an article of commerce, 
 but was intimately associated with their ideas of pleasure 
 and enjoyment. 
 
 Persia, however, was, above all other countries, preemi- 
 nent for roses. " Sir John Chardin, in 1686, found the 
 gardens of the Persians without parterres, labyrinths, and 
 other ornaments of European gardens, but filled with 
 lilies, peach trees, and roses ; and all modern travelers 
 bear testimony to the esteem in which this flower is held 
 in the East." Sir Wm. Ousley tells us, in his travels in 
 Persia, in 1819, that when he entered the flower garden 
 belonging to the Governor of the Castle, near Farso, he 
 was overwhelmed with roses ; and Jackson, in his Journey^ 
 etc.^ says that the roses of the Sinan Nile, or Garden of 
 the Nile, are unequaled ; and mattresses are made of their 
 leaves, for men of rank to recline upon. Buckingham 
 speaks of the rose plantations of Damascus as occupying 
 an area of many acres, about three miles from that city. 
 Sir Robert Ker Porter, speaking of the garden of one of 
 the royal palaces of Persia, says : " I was struck with the 
 appearance of two rose trees, full fourteen feet high, laden 
 with thousands of flowers, in every degree of expansion, 
 and of a bloom and delicacy of scent that imbued the 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 81 
 
 whole atmosphere with exquisite perfume. Indeed, I be- 
 lieve that in no country in the world does the rose grow 
 in such perfection as in Persia ; in no country is it so cul- 
 tivated and prized by the natives. Their gardens and 
 courts are crowded by its plants, their rooms ornamented 
 with roses, filled with its gathered branches, and every 
 bath strewed with the full-blown flowers, plucked with 
 the ever-replenished stems. * * * But in this deli- 
 cious garden of Negaaristan, the eye and the smell are not 
 the only senses regaled by the presence of the Rose : the 
 ear is enchanted by the wild and beautiful notes of multi 
 tudes of nightingales, whose warblings seem to increase 
 in melody and softness, with the unfolding of their favor- 
 ite flowers. Here, indeed, the stranger is more power- 
 fully reminded, that he is in the genuine country of the 
 nightingale and the Rose." Rivers mentions that Sir 
 John Malcolm told him, that when in Persia he had once 
 breakfasted on an immense heap, or rather mount, of roses, 
 which the Persians had raised in honor of him. The rose 
 of Cashmere has been long celebrated in the East, for its 
 brilliancy and delicacy of odor — 
 
 " Who has not heard of the Vale of Cashmere, 
 With its Roses, the brightest that earth ever gave ? " 
 
 Throughout the whole season during which the roses 
 remained in bloom in this beautiful valley, the Feast of 
 Roses was kept with great rejoicing, and an entire aban- 
 donment to pleasure. At this time, a great number of 
 tents were pitched, and multitudes of men, women, boys, 
 and girls, were dancing and singing to the music of their 
 various instruments. 
 
 All that has been handed down to us, and all we know 
 at the present time of the climate and productions of 
 Persia, and the customs of its inhabitants, prove that it 
 was emphatically the land of roses ; and all that we can 
 gather from its history or tradition evinces, that to the 
 4* 
 
82 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 inhabitants of the East, including the Hindoos and the 
 Moors of Spain, is this beautiful flower indebted for the 
 most careful and abundant cultivation, and for a due ap- 
 preciation of its merits. 
 
 At the present time the Rose is cultivated throughout 
 the civilized world. Loudon speaks of hedges of mixed 
 Provence Roses, in the garden of Rosenstein, in Germany, 
 and also of their profusion in the public garden of Frank- 
 fort. They are found in the gardens of Valencia, in 
 Spain, and Sir John Carr, speaking of the seat of a Span- 
 ish gentleman near Tarragona, says, " The doors of the 
 dining room open into a small garden, the walls of which 
 are covered with myrtles, jasmines, and roses." In the 
 Botanic garden of Madrid, rose trees are used for divid- 
 ing hedges, and the flower is a favorite throughout Spain. 
 
 Among the Spanish ladies, the Rose is highly valued, 
 and, with the Orange flower, is a favorite ornament for the 
 hair. We have frequently been struck, while traveling in 
 the Spanish West Indies, and in some parts of South 
 America, with the careful nurture and attention bestowed 
 on a single rose bush, and the delight exhibited at its bloom, 
 while all around in natural luxuriance were the most beau- 
 tiful and gorgeous plants and flowers which the tropics 
 can produce. The brilliant cactus, the beautiful oleander, 
 the singular orchids, and the delicate and fragrant flowers 
 of the coflee and orange, seemed cast into the shade by 
 the ancient and well-known Rose. 
 
 I well recollect, that on returning one day from a ride into 
 the country, where I had been luxuriating in the gorgeous 
 splendor of a tropical forest, the fair daughter of my host- 
 ess wished to introduce me to a flower, which, in her 
 opinion, far surpassed all that I had seen ; she accompanied 
 me to the top of the flat-roofed house, used at the South 
 as a place of evening resort, and there, in one corner, I 
 found a thrifty plant of tlie Tea Rose, which to her infin- 
 ite delight, was just showing above its glossy and delicate 
 
GENERAL CULTURE OF THE ROSE. 83 
 
 young leaves, a little ruby-tipped bud. This little plant 
 had been the object of long and careful nursing, and her 
 attention was now about to be rewarded by a fine and 
 perfect bloom. 
 
 In France, however, is the Rose a preeminent object of 
 horticulture, both in commercial establishments and in 
 private gardens. The skill of the French has originated 
 many new and beautiful varieties, which are to be found 
 in several of the nurseries in the United States. The 
 French are constantly searching for improvements in hor- 
 ticultural science and practice, with an enthusiasm rarely 
 found in the more cold Englishman, whose skill seems to 
 consist less in the creation of new varieties, than in grow- 
 ing perfectly those already known. None, indeed, can 
 surpass the English in the art of growing fine plants, but 
 we are chiefly indebted to the French for the finest new 
 varieties of the Rose. 
 
 In Great Britain, although comparatively little attention 
 has been paid to the obtaining of new varieties, the culture 
 is more careful and the nomenclature more correct. The 
 competition excited by their numerous horticultural ex- 
 hibitions causes great attention to be given to correct 
 nomenclature and to symmetrical habit of growth. We 
 can imag^ine nothing? more beautiful than some of the 
 plants that we saw at the exhibitions of the London Hor- 
 ticultural Society at Chiswick; every plant was pruned, 
 trained and grown, after an ideal, but perfect model, with 
 its close and luxuriant foliage, its thrifty, symmetrical 
 habit, and the thick, leathery petals of its well-cupped 
 flower. This high standard should be introduced into 
 every Society, and if such were the case in this country 
 and the rule were carefully obeyed, the character of our ex- 
 hibitions would in a short time be very materially changed. 
 
 T. Rivers is one of the most extensive rose cultivators 
 in England, and is also known as the author of a very ex- 
 cellent descriptive work on the Rose. He has also been 
 
84 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 successful in hybridizing, and has originated some very fine 
 varieties. His attention was at one time directed almost 
 exclusively to the Rose, but it now includes many other 
 nursery articles, and on our visit to him, we found him 
 much interested with experiments in fruit culture. Lane, 
 Wood, and Paul, are esteemed very good cultivators, and 
 generally correct in their nomenclature. From these sev- 
 eral establishments in England and France have been im- 
 ported most of the varieties now existing in this country. 
 Their trade with the United States is, however, compara- 
 tively limited, from the great risk of loss by a sea voyage. 
 We have frequently lost in this way two-thirds or three- 
 quarters of an importation, to our great annoyance and 
 expense, and it is only by repeated and persevering im- 
 portations that we have been able to obtain all the desira- 
 ble varieties. 
 
 In the United States the culture of the Rose has been 
 very much neglected, until within a few years. Tulips 
 and dahlias have successively been the rage, and although 
 there has long existed a great variety of roses, compara- 
 tively few of them have been cultivated, even in the best 
 gardens of the United States. Now the tide is turning. 
 Dahlias are going out of repute, and the Rose is resuming 
 its ancient empire in the queendom of Flora. The advent 
 of the Bourbon and the Remontant, or Perpetual classes, 
 has no doubt materially aided this change, but it is in a 
 great part owing to the easy culture of the plant, and the 
 intrinsic merits and beauty of the flower. The taste of 
 the horticultural public being thus decidedly for the Rose, 
 a demand will exist for all the information respecting soil, 
 planting, cultivating, etc., and this information we shall 
 endeavor to supply in a simple and concise manner, avoid- 
 ing, as far as possible, all technicalities, and adapting it to 
 the use of the cultivator of a single plant in the crowded 
 border of a city garden, or to the more extended culture 
 of a commercial establishment. 
 
GENERAL CULTUEB OP THE KOBE. 85 
 
 Each cultivator has his peculiar mode of doing things, 
 and there may be those who deem the mode laid down 
 here inferior to their own. From, these we should be glad 
 to hear, and to make any corrections they may suggest, 
 where such corrections appear to be founded upon true 
 principles. In order to make our work as perfect as pos- 
 sible, we have not hesitated to add to our own experience 
 all the information derived from a personal inspection of 
 French and English nurseries, and to cull from foreign 
 works and periodicals all that may interest our readers. 
 Such information, as far as it coincides with our own ex- 
 perience, we shall gladly incorporate, with the hope that 
 we may be successful in presenting every fact of interest 
 which may exist respecting the cultivation of our favorite 
 flower. 
 
86 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 CHAPTER lY. 
 
 SOIL, SITUATION, AND PLANTING. 
 
 The most suitable soil is a strong, rich loam, or vegeta- 
 ble mould mixed with about one-quarter its bulk of well- 
 decomposed stable manure. If the soil of the garden 
 where the roses are to be planted differs materially from 
 this, it should be made to approach it as nearly as possible 
 by the addition of the requisite soil and manure. In a 
 good vegetable garden, the soil, with the addition of a 
 little manure, will grow the Rose well. When the soil, 
 however, is of an inferior character, holes should be dug 
 three or four times the size of the roots of a well-grown 
 rose bush and filled with compost of the above character. 
 
 Rivers recommends, as the best compost for roses, rot- 
 ten dung and pit-sand for cold, clayey soils ; and for warm, 
 dry soils, rotten dung and cool loams. He also states 
 that he has found night soil, mixed with the drainings of 
 the dunghill, or even with common ditch or pond Avater, 
 so as to make a thick liquid, the best possible manure for 
 roses, poured on the surface of the soil twice in winter — 
 one to two gallons to each tree. The soil need not be 
 stirred until spring, and then merely loosened two or three 
 inches deep, with the prongs of a fork ; for poor soil, and 
 on lawns, previously removing the turf, this will be found 
 most efficacious. He directs this compost to be applied 
 in the first two winter months, but as our ground is fre- 
 quently frozen so hard then that it cannot absorb the 
 liquid, it would probably be best to apply it in this coun- 
 try a month earlier. Where a bed or border of roses is 
 to be planted, it is well to dig out the soil to the depth 
 of two or two and a half feet ; fill the bottom to the depth 
 
SOIL, SITUATION, AND PLANTING. 87 
 
 of six inches with small stones, and then replace the earth, 
 well fertilized, as directed above. Nothing is more in- 
 jurious to the Rose than a wet, retentive subsoil ; and 
 where expense and trouble are no object, this perfect 
 draining is much the best calculated to ensure a thrifty- 
 growth and perfect bloom. A rich and dry soil is, in fact, 
 all-important ; for otherwise the most double flower will 
 frequently become single or semi-double. We have seen 
 a plant of La Reine produce a perfect flower in the green- 
 house, and when removed to an inferior soil, produce 
 flowers almost single. It may therefore be safely laid 
 down as a rule, that it is impossible to make the soil too 
 rich for the Rose, and that in proportion to the fertilizing 
 matter contained therein, provided it is properly decom- 
 posed, will be the approximation of the plant and the 
 flower to perfection. The fertility of the soil may be very 
 much assisted by frequent applications of liquid manure, 
 made either of cow dimg or guano ; the former is always 
 safe ; the latter, valuable if properly used, may, in the 
 hands of a careless person, ruin the plant. 
 
 In these remarks on fertility of soil, we have no desire 
 to discourage those who may not have a fertile soil, or the 
 means of obtaining the elements of fertility. The Rose 
 will grow and bloom in any soil; the wood will be 
 healthy, but short and small ; the flower will be produced, 
 but, as we have said before, will be smaller and often semi- 
 double ; yet even under these disadvantages, it is still the 
 most desirable flower for the poor man ; none other can 
 so cheaply and so well ornament his small yard, or hang- 
 ing in graceful festoons about his windows, shed forth its 
 bloom and sweetness to enliven his hours of relief from 
 labor, and give his children happiness, from the associa- 
 tion of pleasant thought with natural beauty. But the 
 poor man has within his reach more than he supposes of 
 the elements of fertility. The ashes of his hearth, the 
 decomposed turf of the road-side, and the domestic ma- 
 
88 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 nure, too generally thrown away, all contain some of the 
 best fertilizing matter, and with proper care could be 
 made amply sufficient for the production of liis flowers 
 and vegetables. The decomposed turf alone would grow 
 roses admirably, although a little manure would be a use- 
 ful addition. 
 
 SITUATION. 
 
 The best situation for the Kose is an eastern or northern 
 exposure, rather than a southern ; the intensity of the heat 
 of our midsummer often aflects injuriously the expansion 
 of the flowers, their color, and fragrance. A useful de- 
 gree of shade can be obtained by planting amidst groups 
 of dwarf roses, pillars, trellises, obelisks, etc., on which 
 climbing roses can be trained, and whose shadow, chang- 
 ing with the sun, would protect the opening bloom and 
 answer the same end as a cool situation. While, however, 
 the Rose requires a cool, airy locality, it should by no 
 means be placed entirely in the shade ; a portion of the 
 sun's rays is always necessary to ensure a good bloom. It 
 is from this cause that the bloom of roses is much more 
 certain and perfect in France and this country than in 
 England. In the latter country, the sun is scarcely ever 
 sufficiently powerful to develop all the resources of a 
 plant. The summer of 1846 was unprecedentedly hot 
 throughout England, and all the horticultural journals 
 united in pronouncing the bloom of roses that season un- 
 surpassed by the bloom of any previous year. For climb- 
 ing roses the situation should not be too exposed, or where 
 they would be liable to encounter heavy winds, which 
 might break ofi" the young shoots and in other ways injure 
 the plant. Most of our American cities possess in the 
 culture of roses a great advantage over the large towns 
 of England, in the use of anthracite instead of bituminous 
 coal ; for, according to Loudon, the Rose will not thrive 
 
SOIL, SITUATION, AND PLANTING. 89 
 
 in towns where the prevailing fuel is of this character, and 
 the bloom will not compare with those produced some ten 
 miles distant. " The first effect of the smoke is to pre- 
 vent the flower buds from opening freely, next to diminish 
 their number ; the leaves then gradually become smaller, 
 and the length of the shoots less, after which the plant 
 weakens by degrees, and in a few years, if a standard, it 
 dies altogether, or, if a dwarf, barely exists, and seldom 
 if ever flowers." 
 
 Such a result, from such a cause, is rarely known here, 
 and the resident of the city may have his little yard filled 
 with roses whose bloom will be in no way inferior to that 
 of the plants in an extensive lawn or garden. 
 
 PLANTING. 
 
 All those roses that bloom only once in the year, and 
 also the Perpetuals, or Remontant Roses, can be planted 
 in autumn, after the first severe frost. The ends of the 
 roots, which have been broken in taking np, will then form 
 a callus, and the soil will be so thoroughly settled about 
 the roots by the winter rains, that the plant will com- 
 mence forming new roots early in the spring, and will rap- 
 idly make strong and luxuriant shoots. As far north as 
 New York and its vicinity, the Bourbons and the Bengal, 
 "with their sub-classes, being more delicate, should not be 
 planted until spring. 
 
 If the subsoil is wet and retentive of moisture, the 
 planting of any roses should be deferred until spring, but 
 from our preceding remarks it will be borne in mind that 
 such soil should be well drained before planting, in which 
 case the autumn will still answer. 
 
 The plant should be taken up carefully, with all the root 
 possible, bearing in mind that the elements of life are in 
 the root, and every fibre that is lost is so much taken from 
 the future health and prosperity of the plant. The root 
 
90 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 should then be carefully examined, and every portion that 
 has been bruised should be cut off; all the broken ends 
 should also be cut away as far as they are split or injured. 
 Any root of the character of a tap-rOot, or growing di- 
 rectly down into the earth, should be cut off; for it is best 
 to encourage only lateral roots, which can more readily 
 partake of the benefits of the rain and sun, and can more 
 effectually absorb the nutriment in the soil. 
 
 In the spring the hole for each plant should be dug 
 somewhat larger than the root, and the bottom fork- 
 ed, or dug up, and if necessary enriched with the surface 
 soil, which, it is presumed, has been prepared according 
 to preceding directions. Let one hold the plant, while 
 another throws in the soil ; or if one alone is planting, let him 
 hold the stem just above the root with one hand, and throw 
 in the soil with the other, moving the stem from side to side, 
 and occasionally pulling it upward a little and shaking the 
 root until the soil has worked well among the fibres ; on 
 which much of the subsequent prosperity of the plant de- 
 pends. If the weather is dry, a little water may be 
 placed in the hole, which should then be filled up and the 
 soil well trodden down about the stem. When planted, 
 it should be very little, if at all, lower in the ground than 
 before ; very little of the stem should be buried ; and 
 when trodden down, the root should be made firm and 
 solid. 
 
 In planting climbing or pillar roses, care should be 
 taken to set the trellis, or pillar, or whatever may be used 
 for their support, before the plant is put in the ground ; 
 for if such should be set after the plant has commenced 
 growing vigorously, it will in all probability damage the 
 roots, and give the plant a check from which it will not 
 recover during the whole season. 
 
 The Rose, even in the best soils, should be taken up ev- 
 ery three or four years, and have its roots shortened and 
 pruned ; a portion of the soil in which it grew should 
 
SOIL, SITUATION, AND PLANTING. 91 
 
 also be removed and replaced by soil of the character be- 
 fore described. Where the soil is poor, they should be 
 taken np every other year, and replanted, after renewing 
 the soil as above, or digging it with plenty of manure. 
 
 Van Mons states that in Belgium the plants are uni- 
 formly taken up at the end of eight years and placed in 
 fresh soil, or they are thrown away and young plants sub- 
 stituted in their place. This substitution of young plants 
 is perhaps the most certain mode of ensuring a continual 
 supply of strong, healthy wood and well-formed flowers. 
 
 The Rose may be transplanted at any season, provided 
 the shoots are pruned closely and deprived of all their 
 leaves, and the soil in which they are planted kept well 
 watered. The flowering also may be retarded in this 
 way, and those roses that bloom only once in the season, 
 if they are transplanted just before they are coming into 
 flower, and properly pruned, will bloom in autumn. The 
 autumn and spring, or the dormant season, however, is 
 the proper period for all transplanting. 
 
 Whether planted in autumn or spring, if purchased of 
 a nurseryman, they should be ordered in the autumn. In 
 the spring, as soon as the frost is out of the ground, the 
 first few warm days, operating upon their excitable nature, 
 will start them into growth. If then the nurseryman has 
 a large number of orders on hand, some of them will in- 
 evitably be delayed until the plants have grown too much. 
 If ordered in the autumn, the purchaser should not expect 
 to receive them before the 10th or 15th of November. 
 No nurseryman who values his reputation will allow roses 
 to leave his grounds before the vegetation is checked by 
 several heavy frosts, and the wood and roots allowed time 
 thereafter to thoroughly ripen. Dealers who desire roses 
 early, in order to deliver with other plants, sometimes 
 rebel at this ; but purchasers should understand that roses 
 will not flourish unless the wood and roots are thoroughly 
 ripe. This applies more particularly to the Remontant, 
 
92 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 Moss, and June roses. The Tea, China, and Noisette, 
 will bear taking up at any time, but their roots will rarely 
 be in a condition to endure the cold as far north as New 
 York without some protection. When received from the 
 nurseryman in the autumn, they should be carefully and 
 separately heeled-in in a dry piece of land, and covered 
 with sand. A covering of litter should be avoided, be- 
 cause it affords a harbor for mice, who would soon destroy 
 the plants. 
 
 Plants from the open ground are always to be preferred 
 by the purchaser. Those sold in pots in the spring have 
 frequently been forced, and will require a long period of 
 rest before growing again, while those from the open 
 ground, having had their rest, will grow luxuriantly at 
 once. 
 
 It should also be remembered by the purchaser that the 
 delicate roots of the Rose will not bear exposure to the 
 air. All reputable nurserymen understand this, and pack 
 in moss. Dealers, however, who purchase of these nurs- 
 erymen, and who have many lots to deliver after they are 
 unpacked, are often not sufficiently careM to guard the 
 roots against exposure. The plants then failing to grow 
 well, the fault is attributed to some deficiency in the plant, 
 rather than to its true cause. To ensure safety while be- 
 ing delivered, dealers should dip them, as soon as un- 
 packed, in a puddle of mud of the consistency of thick 
 paint. This precaution is useful in every case after un- 
 packing and before planting, for there must always be 
 some delay and exposure even when the purchaser obtains 
 plants directly from the grower. 
 
PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 93 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 
 
 In pruning roses at the time of transplanting, the prin- 
 cipal object to be attained is relief to the plant by taking 
 away all the wood and branches which the diminished 
 root may not be able to support. The mode of pruning 
 depends very much upon the condition of the plant. If 
 it is very bushy, all the weaker branches should be cut 
 away, leaving not more than three or four of the strong- 
 est shoots, and shortening even those down to a few eyes. 
 If it is desired that the plant should continue dwarf and 
 bushy, the new wood should be cut down to the lower 
 two eyes, and every half-grown or slender shoot cut out. 
 These two eyes will each throw out a branch ; then cut 
 these branches down to the two eyes, and again cut back 
 the shoots they produce until a symmetrical habit is 
 formed, with close, thick foliage. There should not be 
 sufficient wood allowed to remain to make the bush 
 crowded ; and if there should be danger of this, some of 
 the branches, instead of being cut down to two eyes, 
 should be removed altogether. 
 
 Climbing roses, when planted, should be cut down al- 
 most to the ground, and also carefully thinned out. Only 
 a few of the strongest branches should be preserved, and 
 the new wood of these cut down to two eyes each. 
 
 The preceding remarks are applicable to roses at the 
 time of planting ; they should also be pruned every year, 
 — the hardy varieties in the autumn or winter, and the 
 more tender in the spring. For all roses that are not lia- 
 ble to have part of their wood killed by the cold, the 
 autumn is decidedly the best time for pruning ; the root, 
 having then but little top to support, is left at liberty to 
 store up nutriment for a strong growth the following 
 season. The principal objects in pruning are the removal 
 
94 PABSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 of the old wood, because it is generally only the young 
 wood that produces large and fine flowers ; the shortening 
 and thinning out of the young wood, that the root, having 
 much less wood to support, may devote all its nutriment 
 to the size and beauty of the flower ; and the formation 
 of a symmetrical shape. If an abundant bloom is de- 
 sired, without regard to the size of the flower, only the 
 weak shoots should be cut out, and the strong wood 
 should be shortened very little; each bud will then pro- 
 duce a flower. By this mode, the flowers will be small, 
 and the growth of new wood very short, but there will 
 be an abundant and very showy bloom. If, however, the 
 flowers are desired as large and as perfect as possible, all 
 the weak wood should be cut out entirely, and all the 
 strong wood formed the last season should be cut down 
 to two eyes. The knife should always be applied di- 
 rectly above a bud, and sloping upward from it. The 
 preceding observations apply principally to rose bushes, 
 or dwarf roses ; Avith pillar, climbing, and tree roses, the 
 practice should be somewhat different. The former two 
 need comparatively little pruning ; they require careful 
 thinning out, but should seldom be shortened. The very 
 young side shoots can sometimes be shortened in, to pre- 
 vent the foliasre from becominsj too thick and crowded. 
 
 Pillars for roses can be made of trellis work, of iron 
 rods in different forms, or of wood, but they should en- 
 close a space of at least a foot in diameter. The cheapest 
 plan, and one that will last many years, is to make posts 
 of about 1^ or 2 inches square, out of locust or pitch- 
 pine plank, and connect them with common hoop-iron. 
 They should be the length of a plank — ^between twelve 
 and thirteen feet — and should be set three feet in the 
 ground, that they may effectually resist the action of the 
 wind. The Rose having been cut down to the ground, is 
 planted inside of the pillar, and will make strong growths 
 the first season. As the leading shoots appear, they 
 
PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 
 
 95 
 
 should be trained spirally around the outside of the pillar, 
 and sufficiently near each other to enable them to fill up 
 the intermediate space with their foliage. These leading 
 shoots will then form the permanent wood, and the young 
 side shoots, pruned in from year to year, will produce the 
 flowers, and at the flowering season cover the whole pil- 
 
 PILLAR KOSB. 
 
 Fig. 6. — BOSK PYRAMID. 
 
 lar with a mass of rich and showy bloom. Figure 5 gives 
 the appearance of a pillar of this kind. If the tops of 
 the leading shoots die down at all, they should be shortened 
 down to the first strong eye, because, if a weak bud is 
 left at the top, its growth will be slender for a long time. 
 The growth of difierent varieties of roses is very varied ; 
 some make delicate shoots, and require little room, while 
 others, like the Queen of the Prairies, are exceedingly ro- 
 bust, and may require a larger pillar than the size we have 
 mentioned. Figure 6 shows the method of constructing 
 a pyramid by the use of a central post and iron rods. 
 
96 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 Climbing roses require very much the same treatment 
 as pillar roses, and are frequently trained over arches, or 
 in festoons from one pillar to another. In these the weak 
 branches should also be thinned out, and the strong ones 
 be allowed to remain, without being shortened, as in these 
 an abundant bloom is wanted, rather than large flowers. 
 An arbor, made by training roses from one pillar to 
 another, is represented in figure 7. In training climbing 
 
 Fig. 7.— A ROSE ARBOB. 
 
 roses over any flat surface, as a trellis, wall, or side of a 
 house, the principal point is so to place the leading 
 shoots that all the intermediate space may be filled up 
 with foliage. They can either be trained in fan-shape, 
 with side shoots growing out from a main stem, or 
 one leading shoot can be encouraged and trained in 
 parallel horizontal lines to the top, care being taken to 
 preserve sufficient intermediate space for the foliage. 
 Where no shoots are wanted, the buds can be rubbed off 
 before they push out. No weak shoots should be al- 
 lowed to grow from the bottom, but all the strong ones 
 should be allowed to grow as much as they may. When 
 the intermediate space is filled with young wood and fo- 
 
PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 97 
 
 liage, all the thin, small shoots should be cut out every 
 year, and the strongest buds only allowed to remain, 
 which, forming strong branches, will set closely to the 
 wall and preserve a neat appearance. 
 
 The production of roses out of season, by forcing, was, 
 as we have shown, well known to the ancient Romans, 
 and from them has been handed down to the present time. 
 But the retarding of roses by means of a regular process 
 of pruning owes its origin to a comparatively modern 
 date. This process is mentioned both by Lord Bacon and 
 Sir Robert Boyle. The latter says : " It is delivered by 
 the Lord Verulam^ and other naturalists, that if a rose 
 bush be carefully cut as soon as it is done bearing in the 
 summer, it will again bear roses in the autumn. Of this, 
 many have made unsuccessful trials, and thereupon report 
 the affirmation to be false ; yet I am very apt to think 
 that my lord was encouraged by experience to write as 
 he did. For, having been particularly solicitous about 
 the experiment, I find by the relation, both of my own 
 and other experienced gardeners, that this way of procur- 
 ing autumnal roses will, in most rose bushes, commonly 
 fail, but succeed in some that are good bearers ; and, ac- 
 cordingly, having this summer made trial of it, I find that 
 of a row of bushes cut in June, by far the greater num- 
 ber promise no autumnal roses ; but one that hath mani- 
 fested itself to be of a vigorous and prolific nature is, at 
 this present, indifferently well stored with those of the 
 damask kind. There may, also, be a mistake in the species 
 of roses ; for experienced gardeners inform me that the 
 Musk Rose will, if it be a lusty plant, bear flowers in au- 
 tumn without cutting ; and, therefore, that may unjustly 
 be asciibed to art, which is the bare production of na- 
 ture." Thus, in quaint and ancient style, discourses the 
 wise and pious philosopher on our favorite flower, and 
 also mentions the fact, that a red rose becomes white on 
 being exposed to the fumes of sulphur. This, however, 
 5 
 
98 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 had been observed before Sir Robert's time. ]N"otwitb- 
 standing his doubts, it is now a well-established fact, that 
 the blooming of roses may be retarded by cutting them 
 back to two eyes after they have fairly commenced grow- 
 ing, and the flower buds are discoverable. A constant 
 succession can be obtained where there is a number of 
 plants, by cutting each one back a shorter or longer dis- 
 tance, or at various periods of its growth. In these cases, 
 however, it very often will not bloom until autumn, be- 
 cause the second eflTort to produce flowers is much great- 
 er than the first, and is not attended with success until 
 late in the season. 
 
 However desirable may be this retarding process, it 
 cannot be relied on as a general practice, because the very 
 unusual exertion made to produce the flowers a second 
 time, weakens the plant, and materially afiects its pros- 
 perity the subsequent year. 
 
 There is, indeed, but one kind of summer pruning that 
 is advantageous, which is the thinning out of the flower- 
 buds as soon as they appear, in order that the plant may 
 be burdened with no more than it can fully perfect, and 
 the cutting off all the seed vessels after the flower has 
 expanded and the petals have fallen. Until this last is 
 done, a second bloom cannot readily be obtained from the 
 Bengal Rose and its sub-classes, the Tea and Noisette, 
 which otherwise grow and bloom constantly throughout 
 the season. 
 
 We would impress upon our readers the absolute, the 
 essential, importance of cultivation — of constantly stir- 
 ring the soil in which the Rose is planted ; and we scarce- 
 ly know of more comprehensive directions in a few words 
 than the reply of an experienced horticulturist to one who 
 asked the best mode of growing fine fruits and flowers. 
 The old gentleman replied that the mode could be de- 
 scribed in three words, " cultivate, cultivate, cultivate." 
 After the same manner, we would impress the importance 
 
PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 99 
 
 of these three words upon all those who love well-grown 
 and beautiful roses. They are, indeed, multurn in parvo 
 — the very essence of successful culture. The soil cannot 
 be plowed, dug, or stirred too much ; it should be dug 
 and hoed, not merely to keep down the weeds, but to en- 
 sure the health and prosperity of the plant. Cultivation 
 is to all plants and trees manure, sun, and rain. It opens 
 the soil to the nutrition it may receive from the atmosphere, 
 to the beneficial influence of light, and to the morning and 
 evening dew. It makes the heavy soil light, and the light 
 soil heavy ; if the earth is saturated with rain, it dries it ; 
 if burned up with drought, it moistens it. Watering is 
 often beneficial, and is particularly so to roses just before 
 and during the period of bloom ; but in an extremely dry 
 season, if we were obliged to choose between the water- 
 ing-pot and the spade, we should most unhesitatingly give 
 the preference to the latter. 
 
 We do not wish, however, to undervalue the benefits 
 of water. If the plants are well mulched with straw, 
 salt hay, or any other litter, frequent watering is very 
 beneficial. When not mulched, the watering should al- 
 ways be followed by the hoe, in order to destroy the bak- 
 ing of the surface. While the j)l:ints are in a growing 
 state, liquid manure will give a larger and a finer bloom. 
 This liquid manure may be made with soapsuds, or the 
 refuse from the house. When these are not easily ob- 
 tained, half a bushel of cow or horse dung can be placed 
 in a barrel, which can then be filled with water, well 
 stirred up, and allowed to settle a day or two before being 
 used. 
 
 For those who are willing to incur the expense, a very 
 nice way of applying pure water is to sink ordinary tile, 
 two inches in diameter, with collars, about a foot below 
 the surface, around and through the rose bed. An elbow 
 from this, coming to the surface, can convey the water 
 into the pipes, through the ioints of which it will escape, 
 
103 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 and thus irrigate tlio Avholo ground, without baking the 
 surface. 
 
 BEDDING KOSES. 
 
 While Remontant, Moss, and Garden Roses are adapted 
 to the wants of much the larger number of growers, be- 
 cause they require no protection in winter, and are strong 
 and robust in their growth and habit, yet the everbloom- 
 ing varieties are becoming daily more popular. While 
 but few of the Remontants have more than two seasons 
 of distinct and abundant bloom, the Teas, Chinas, and 
 Noisettes, bloom constantly and continuously. In grace, 
 and color, and beauty, these last have more varied charms 
 than the more hardy and abundant Remontants, and the 
 difficulty of caring for them in the winter, even by those 
 who have no glass, is compensated by tlie additional pleas- 
 ure they give in the summer. Those who have glass can 
 enjoy them winter and summer alike. Their superiority 
 in constant blooming, especially, adapts them for planting 
 in masses or beds scattered about the lawn. These beds 
 can be each of one color, or they can bo assorted, or can 
 be planted in the ribbon style, rows of white, or red, or 
 yellow alternating. No bedding flowers. Verbenas, Sal- 
 vias, or any other ]>lant, will give so constant pleasure as 
 Roses. They can be purchased, also, nearly as cheaply as 
 ordinary bedding plants, and are found in, several places 
 as low :is $15 per 100, or $100 per 1,000. On being taken 
 out of the pots they will grow rapidly, and bloom after 
 they are thoroughly established, and afterward, year after 
 year, they will commence blooming early, and continue 
 until frost. A bed made in any part of tlie lawn, and in 
 any soil, will grow them well, provided it has a dry bot- 
 tom, and has some well-decomposed manure dng in it. A 
 lio-ht, sandy soil will grow them in the greatest perfection. 
 They can be planted eighteen inches to two feet apart, 
 
PRUNING, TRAINING, AND BEDDING. 101 
 
 and the new shoots, as soon as they have attained suffi- 
 cient length, should be pegged down, so as to cover the 
 whole ground. The branches thus laid down will give 
 abundant flowers throughout their whole length, and froni 
 each bud a strong-rooted shoot Avill be thrown u}), nnd 
 being pruned down close in the autumn, will be rea«ly to 
 produce a strong and bearing shoot another year. If 
 they become too close and crowded, the new shoots can 
 be partially cut away. North of Baltimore, these Roses 
 will need protection in the winter. This can be done by 
 covering the bed with sand, several inches deep, or by 
 taking up the plants, cutting them down, heeling them in 
 in a dry cellar, or potting them for a green-house. 
 
102 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 CHAPTER YI. 
 
 POTTING AND FORCING. 
 
 " Seek Roses in December, ice in June."— Btkok. 
 
 Every variety of Rose, in the hands of a skillful man, 
 will grow and bloom Avell in pots, although the Bengal 
 and its sub-classes, and the more dwarf Hardy Roses, are 
 the most easily managed. The great point in potting is 
 to imitate planting in the open ground as nearly as possi- 
 ble. The soil used should possess all the nutritious ele- 
 ments required in the open ground, and, if possible, in 
 somewhat greater abundance. More manure should be 
 used, because the frequent watering required by plants in 
 pots must inevitably wash away a portion of the fertiliz- 
 ing matter. There is nothing better than one portion of 
 stable manure, and three of turf, or leaf-mould, all well 
 decomposed, and mixed with a little pure peat earth. A 
 portion of night-soil, well incorporated with charcoal, is 
 also very excellent. Charcoal is the most powerful ab- 
 sorbent known ; it retains the nutritious elements in the 
 night-soil, prevents their being washed away by watering, 
 and gives them out as the plant needs them. English 
 gardeners should bear in mind that roses require in this 
 climate a stronger soil than in England. Half-gallon pots 
 are the best size at first, from which, by repeated pottings, 
 corresponding with the growth of the plant, they can be 
 shifted to one or two-gallon pots. The size of the pots 
 should, however, be regulated by the extent of the roots ; 
 it should be just sufficiently large to allow the roots to go 
 in without crowding. A few broken pieces of pots or 
 small lumps should be put in the bottom for drainage. 
 When the plant is to be taken from the open ground, se- 
 
POTTING AND FORCING. 103 
 
 lect one, the roots of which are not too large, and with a 
 sharp spade cut around it a ball of earth about the size 
 of the pot, depriving it at the same time of a portion of 
 its top, as directed in remarks on pruning. It should 
 stand in this state about a fortnight, until the roots have 
 become callused, and the plant is somewhat accustomed 
 to the loss of its roots and branches. It can then be 
 safely taken up at any season, and transferred to the pot, 
 which should then be filled in with earth, firm and solid. 
 If potted in the autumn, after the leaves have fallen and 
 the wood become mature, the above previous preparation 
 is not required, but the plant can be taken up without a 
 ball of earth, and after being pruned of its bruised or 
 broken roots, placed in the pot. It should then be pro- 
 tected from the frost and light until it has entirely recov- 
 ered from its change of habitation, when it can be placed 
 in any cool spot free from frost, until it is wanted for 
 forcing. 
 
 Roses may, without difficulty, by the above previous 
 management, be forced to bloom in the latter part of win- 
 ter, but where their bloom is desired at Christmas or 
 New-Year, they should be gradually prepared for the 
 space of a year previous. To produce roses the latter 
 part of winter, our own management has been simple and 
 effective, giving us as many flowers as a green-house and 
 vinery full of pots could afford. After putting the plants 
 in pots, as directed above, pruning them down to eight 
 or ten buds, and hardening them in a shady place, they 
 are removed to the vinery before the frost out of doors can 
 have injured them, and cut down to two buds. The 
 house is then kept as cool as possible, while the frost is 
 carefully excluded by a light fire at night, and on fine 
 days the sashes are opened, and plenty of air admitted. 
 They are thus kept in a dormant state until the first of 
 the year, when the heat is gradually increased to about 
 70° by day, sinking as low as 35° at night. Care is 
 
104 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 taken to give them sufficient watering, and in their whole 
 management to subject them as nearly as possible to the 
 conditions of open culture. When the green-fly appears, 
 it is immediately destroyed by fumigation with tobacco, 
 and the plants are subsequently syringed with clean wa- 
 ter. With this management, they soon begin to show 
 signs of life, the bud commences pushing forth its deli- 
 cate, light green shoot, the leaves then appear, the plant, 
 soon growing with luxuriance, is clothed with rich foli- 
 age, and about the middle of the third month, the house 
 presents a mass of thrifty growth and perfect bloom. 
 
 By the means above described, roses may be forced 
 into bloom the latter part of winter ; and by observing 
 some care to bring them into the house at different peri- 
 ods, in regular succession, a bloom can be enjoyed through 
 all the spring months, until roses bloom in the open 
 ground. This process cannot, however, be continued two 
 years in succession without weakening the plant ; and al- 
 though, if placed in a shady spot, and allowed to rest 
 during the summer, it may sufficiently recover to perform 
 the same work another year, it is desirable, if possible, 
 to have fresh plants, whose strength has not been exhaust- 
 ed by the unusual effort attending the production of flow- 
 ers out of season. 
 
 The preceding directions apply more particularly to 
 late forcing ; and although the same means, with an earli- 
 er application of heat, will produce flowers early in winter, 
 yet the true art of early forcing consists in gradually 
 bringing the Rose out of its season ; and it is only by this 
 mode that thrifty plants and perfect flowers can be pro- 
 duced before Christmas. 
 
 Two years, and sometimes three, should be employed in 
 preparing a Rose for early forcing. Having been prepared 
 by digging around it with a sharp spade some two weeks 
 previously, the plant should be taken up immediately 
 after the first frost, placed in a cold frame a few days, to 
 
POTTING AND FORCING. 105 
 
 harden, and then taken to the green-house or vinery. A 
 moderate heat should then be given it, with plenty of 
 light and air to prevent its being drawn. The flower- 
 buds should be plucked off as soon as they appear, and no 
 bloom should be allowed. It will thus make fine growths, 
 and can be plunged in the open ground as soon as danger 
 of frost has passed in the spring. Here it can remain 
 during the summer, to ripen its wood, and will require no 
 care except a little watering in dry weather, and an occa- 
 sional taking up and examination, that the roots may not 
 push through the hole of the pot, and become fixed in the 
 ground, in which case the plants would make too strong 
 a growth, and suffer on being removed from the new- 
 made root. In October it can be placed in a pot one size 
 larger, pruned by thinning out all the weak branches, and 
 shortening the strong ones down to two eyes. It should 
 then go through the same process as before, carefully 
 picking off all the flower-buds, promoting its growth 
 until completed, when let it be ])ut in a cold frame until 
 all danger of frost is over, and then plunge it in the 
 ground to ripen its wood. As its vegetation was started 
 a month earlier the last year, it can now be taken up in 
 September, repotted and pruned as before, and then taken 
 into the green-house. The temperature should then be 
 gradually raised to about 55° until the plant has commenced 
 growing, and then gradually increased to 65° or 70°, giv- 
 ing as much air as can be obtained without lowering the 
 temperature. 
 
 All useless shoots should be kept down, and all the 
 flower-buds taken off that threaten to be abortive. In 
 fumigating for the grfeen-fly, care should be taken not to 
 do it too strongly, but repeated and gentle doses at night 
 are better. We have known many fine plants ruined by 
 fumigation in the hands of an inexperienced person. A 
 good bloom can be obtained the second year by this mode ; 
 but if the amateur has the patience to wait until a third, 
 
106 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 he will be rewarded by a thrifty and compact habit, rich 
 foliage, and beautiful bloom for two months before Christ- 
 mas ; and if there are a number of plants to be brought 
 into the green-house a week after each other, he can have 
 them in bloom until the late forced roses appear. At all 
 periods subsequent to their commencement, care should 
 be taken to give them sufficient moisture, and as much air 
 as is consistent with the state of growth and the external 
 temperature. Without water, they will neither grow nor 
 bloom well. Under glass, every other day, and in some 
 cases, twice a week is sufficient. 
 
 The great principle to be borne in mind in forcing roses 
 is, that sudden excitement is fatal, and that a plant should 
 never be taken from the open ground into a heated house 
 without being gradually prepared for it. This principle 
 is particularly applicable to deciduous roses. The Re- 
 miontant and Bourbon, the Bengal and its sub-classes, 
 which grow and bloom through the whole year, are not 
 so liable to be injured by exciting treatment. 
 
 Cuttings of these that are struck in the spring and 
 planted out in the open ground may have their tops 
 slightly pruned, and their buds all pinched off during the 
 summer, to encourage the formation of wood and of a 
 close head. 
 
 About the last days of summer, or the first of autumn, 
 they can be taken up and placed in quart pots, with a soil 
 composed of one half loam, one quarter cow-dung, and 
 one quarter peat. After being slightly pruned, and left 
 in the shade for a week, they can be placed in frames, 
 protected at night from frost, and exposed to the air in 
 mild weather for some two months, when they can be re- 
 moved, a few at a time, into the green-house, and subject- 
 ed to a moderately increased temperature. They will 
 soon bloom well, and will succeed each other throughout 
 the winter and spring, until roses bloom in the open air. 
 Like the deciduous roses, they require to be protected 
 
POTTING AND FORCING. 107 
 
 against the green-fly by syringing, and if that does not 
 answer, by fumigation with tobacco. 
 
 The Bengal, however, like the deciduous roses, will 
 bloom better the second winter than the first, by shifting 
 them into larger pots, pruning them, cutting off" all the 
 flower-buds, and giving them very little water the latter 
 part of summer. They can then be put into the frames, 
 and treated as before. The Bengal Rose is very easily 
 forced in this way ; and if the temperature is at first kept 
 during the day at 45°, and gradually increased to 60°, 
 there can be little difficulty in obtaining beautiful and 
 healthy plants. This temperature can be obtained in any 
 green-house or vinery. The latter is becoming more 
 common, and when it is provided with heating appa- 
 ratus, there can be nothing better for roses. We have 
 forced them very successfully in one of our own vineries, 
 one hundred and twenty feet long, twelve feet wide, ten 
 feet high in the rear, three and a half in front, and heat- 
 ed by hot water. But as there may be many who desire 
 a cheaper structure, we will give the description of one 
 used by Rivers, (the best rose-grower known), with his 
 mode of managing roses in a structure of that character. 
 " A pit, ten or twelve feet long, and eight feet wide, just 
 high enough to stand upright in, with a door at one end, 
 and a sunken path in the centre, a raised bed on each side 
 of the path, and an 18-inch Arnott's stove at the farther 
 end, opposite to the door, with a pipe leading into a small 
 brick chimney outside, (a chimney is indispensable), will 
 give a great abundance of forced roses from February to 
 the end of May. To ensure this, a supply must be kept 
 ready, so that, say twenty may be placed in the forcing 
 pit about the middle of December, a like number in the 
 middle of January, and the same about the middle of 
 February ; they must not be pruned till taken into the 
 house, when each shoot should be cut back to two or three 
 buds for the formation of strong shoots^ The fire should 
 
108 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 be lighted at seven in the morning, and suffered to bum 
 out about the same hour in the evening, unless in frosty 
 weather, when it must be kept burning till late at night, 
 so as to exclude the frost ; and for this purpose, double 
 mats should be placed on the lights. The thermometer 
 should not, hjjire heat^ be higher in the day than 70° 
 during December, January, and February ; at night it may 
 sink to 35° without injury. The temporary rise in a sun- 
 ny day is of no consequence, but no air must he admitted 
 at such tim.es ^ or the plants will exhaust themselves^ and 
 immediately shed their leaves. When the sun begins to 
 have power, and in sunny weather, toward the end of 
 February, the plants may be syringed every morning 
 about 10 oi clock with tepid water, and smoked with to- 
 bacco at night on the least appearance of the Aphis, or 
 green-fly. To ensure a fine and full crop of flowers, the 
 plants should be established one year in pots, and plunged 
 in tan or sawdust, in an open, exposed place, that their 
 shoots may be well ripened ; the pots must be often re- 
 moved, or, what is better, place the pots on slates, to pre- 
 vent their roots striking into the ground. With the Re- 
 montant or Perpetuals, even if only potted in November 
 previous, a very good crop of flowers may often be ob- 
 tained, and a second crop better than the first ; for the 
 great advantage of forcing Kemontant roses is, that after 
 blooming in the green-house or drawing-room, their young 
 shoots may be cut down to within two or three buds of 
 their base, and the plants placed again in the forcing- 
 house, and a second crop of flowers obtained. The same 
 mode may be followed also with the Bourbon, China, and 
 Tea-scented roses ; with the latter, indeed, a third crop 
 may be often obtained. Toward the end of March, when 
 the second crop of flowers is coming on, the plants may 
 be gradually inured to the air, by opening the sashes in 
 mild weather. This will make them hardy and robust. 
 Syringing should be practiced every morning and even- 
 
POTTING AND FORCING. 109 
 
 ing ; but when the flower-buds are leady to open, this 
 must be confined to the stems of the plants and the pots ; 
 otherwise the flowers will be injured by the moisture. 
 Air must at first only be given about noon ; care must be 
 taken to remove the plants from the forcing-house to the 
 green-house or drawing-room before their blossoms ex- 
 pand ; they may then be kept in beauty many days. We 
 have not found the check which the plants receive by this 
 sudden change of temperature at all detrimental. During 
 their second growth, the plants should be watered once a 
 week with manure-water, and the surface of the pot occa- 
 sionally stirred. Two pounds of guano to ten gallons of 
 water forms the very best species of liquid manure; this 
 should be stirred before it is used. 
 
 " The treatment recommended for roses in a pit with 
 Arnott's stove may be pursued with roses in a house with 
 smoke-flues or hot-water pipes. Arnott's stove is recom- 
 mended as an economical and eligible mode of heating, 
 practiced here to some extent with success for several 
 years. On these stoves an iron pan, fitted to the top, 
 should always be kept fall of water. Roses may be 
 forced slowly, but with perhaps greater certainty by the 
 uninitiated, by giving air freely and constantly in mild 
 weather during the day, keeping the fire constantly burn- 
 ing during the same period, as recommended when keep- 
 ing them closely shut up." 
 
 We have copied the whole of this article, although in 
 a measure a repetition of previous remarks, since it may 
 be interesting to some to know the opinion of so eminent 
 a cultivator on this least understood branch of rose cul- 
 ture. A few of his directions are somewhat different from 
 those we have given before, and may be far better than 
 our own plan, in the climate of England. Here, an 
 Arnott's stove would scarcely heat a pit to 70° with the 
 thermometer at zero ; and if it should, we would think it 
 rather dangerous to give so high a temperature at once. 
 
110 PARSONS ON THE KOSE. 
 
 The strength of guano is also so varied, that we should 
 feel very cautious in using it according to the above re- 
 ceipt. While, however, we would not venture to ques- 
 tion the general utility of his directions, we may perhaps 
 say, that we have found our own plan effective in its re- 
 sults, and productive of thrifty plants and beautiful flow- 
 ers. We would advise cultivators to test them both, and 
 adopt that which succeeds best in their hands. A pit of 
 the above description can be constructed at a very low 
 price, and should be found on the premises of every gen- 
 tleman of even very moderate income, for the supply of 
 his parlors during winter. If, in addition to this, there 
 were constructed on the east side of the house, and facing 
 south, a little room with a glass front and roof, opening 
 into the parlor, and heated either by a valve from the 
 house furnace, or by a Avater-back connected with the 
 parlor grate, more enjoyment would be afforded the lover 
 of flowers than could be obtained by any other outlay of 
 two hundred dollars. This room could then be kept con- 
 stantly filled with roses from the pit, and through the 
 most dreary winter, amid rain, snow, and storm, would 
 present a bright array of the living reminders of spring 
 and summer. It is a matter of much surprise, that, 
 among all the beautiful country residences in the vicinity 
 of our large cities, surrounded by all the appliances of 
 luxury and comfort that taste and wealth can afford, so 
 few instances are found in which the drawing-room or 
 parlor opens into a green-house or conservatory. These 
 buildings are frequently placed at a distance from the 
 house, and although they may be filled with the most 
 beautiful and rare exotics, are, during the greater part of 
 the winter, inaccessible to the ladies of the family. 
 
 Let gentlemen of wealth, then, place their vineries any- 
 where, but use them as forcing-houses when the vines are 
 in a dormant state. Let them also have a green-house 
 or conservatory opening from the drawing-room, into 
 
POTTING AND FORCING. Ill 
 
 which all the plants can be brought from the vinery 
 whenever they show signs of bloom. This conserva- 
 tory can be heated by hot water, flowing through iron 
 pipes from a boiler placed over the furnace that warms 
 the drawing-room — taking from this very little heat, and 
 yet abundantly warming the conservatory. An improve- 
 ment could still farther be made, by having the east end 
 of the conservatory arch over a carriage drive, and thus 
 allow visitors to enter the drawing-room through the con- 
 servatory. Exclusive of the delight afforded visitors by 
 this very pleasant addition to a dwelling, it affords a de- 
 lightful promenade for the ladies of the family, where, 
 while all is wintry without, and walking is unpleasant, 
 even when the ice-bound trees are glittering in the clear 
 sunlight, they may luxuriate amid roses and jasmines, 
 breathing air fragrant with the perfume of daphne and 
 orange flowers, and surrounded with everything that can 
 remind them of the beauty and bland climate of the sunny 
 south. 
 
 We bave occupied so much space with the peculiarities 
 of culture for the forcing-house, that we had almost for- 
 gotten that more humble, but no less pleasure-giving 
 mode of Window culture. As this culture is practiced 
 chiefly by those who cannot spare tbe time nor incur the 
 expense of previous preparation, the best mode is that 
 given for late forcing of roses, taken up the autumn pre- 
 vious, placing the plants in pots seven inches in diameter, 
 and using a soil composed of equal parts of sand, loam, 
 and manure, or peat, loam, and manure. They can be 
 watered with manure-water every fortnight, made from 
 the drippings of the barn-yard, or, what is more pleasant, 
 a safely weak solution of guano, about one pound to fif- 
 teen gallons. 
 
 The plants should be brought into the heat gradually ; 
 first into a cold room where there is no frost, and then 
 into the sitting-room, where they can be placed in the 
 
112 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 window, and turned around every week, in order to give 
 each side of the plant its share of light. They will soon 
 begin to put forth their thrifty shoots, in some six weeks 
 will present a fine show of beautiful flowers, and, if prop- 
 erly managed, will continue blooming through the winter. 
 If attacked by the green-fly, the plant can be inverted in 
 a strong decoction of tobacco, or it can be fumigated by 
 being placed under an inverted barrel, or other re- 
 ceptacle, with some burning tobacco. For window cul- 
 ture, the Everblooming Roses are the best, and they 
 should be ordered of the nurseryman in suitable pots. 
 This mode conamends itself to all ; it is within the reach 
 of the daily laborer; the seamstress can have it in her 
 window, and in the midst of her toilsome duties, be re- 
 minded by its bright flowers of many a green spot in 
 past days. It is especially suited to the means and leisure 
 of the operatives in our factories, many of whom have 
 left the country and all its green fields and pleasant flow- 
 ers for the crowded city, where they can have no garden, 
 but simply this little pot to remind them of past pleasures, 
 and throw a gleam of sunshine over their hours of relief 
 from labor. The plant can be placed in their chamber 
 window, or in the windows of the factory, where the high 
 temperature, if it has been brouglit from the chamber, 
 will soon bring out its foliage in great luxuriance, and its 
 flowers in beauty, and be a pleasant object of care in the 
 moments snatched from the operations of the loom. To 
 this class we would especially commend the Rose ; as 
 thriving under simple treatment, as possessing, more than 
 any other flower, the elements of beauty, and tending, 
 like other flowers, to keep alive in a crowded city that 
 freshness and purity of feeling that distinguished their 
 country life, and which, unless there exists an unusual 
 perversion of the moral faculties, must always result 
 from an intimate acquaintance with natural objects. 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 113 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 
 
 CUTTINGS. 
 
 This mode of propagation, although possible with all 
 roses, is more difficult with those that bloom only once in 
 the season. It is most applicable to the smooth-wooded 
 kinds, as the Bengal and its sub-classes, and the Bour- 
 sault, Microphylla, rubifolia, etc. Many of the Perpetuals 
 and Bourbons are propagated with facility by the same 
 mode. For propagation in the open ground, cuttings 
 should be made in the autumn, or early part of winter. 
 They should be made of wood of the growth of the sea- 
 son, and about six inches long. The lower end should be 
 cut square, close to a bud, and they can then be planted 
 thickly, two-thirds of their length in sand, in a light and 
 dry cellar. Here a callus will be formed on the bottom 
 of each cutting during the winter, and on being planted 
 out in the spring, they will immediately throw out roots. 
 They should be planted as early as possible in the spring, 
 in a light sandy loam, with one-third of their length and 
 at least one bud above the surface of the ground. They 
 should be planted very early in the spring, because, if left 
 until late, the power of the sun is too much for them. 
 The earth should be trodden down very tight about them, 
 in order, as much as possible, to exclude the air. If the 
 weather is dry, they should be carefully watered in the 
 evening. Where it is inconvenient to make the cuttings 
 in the fall or early in the winter, they can be made in the 
 spring; but in consequence of having to form the callus, 
 they will require a much lighter soil than will afterward 
 be desirable for their growth, and they will also be much 
 
114 
 
 PARSONS OJ^^ THE KOSE. 
 
 later in coming on. This mode of open propagation an- 
 swers very well for some of the smooth-wooded roses of 
 the more robust growing varieties, like the Boursault and 
 Rubifolia ; but for the delicate Bengals, the best mode is 
 pot propagation. For this purpose, small pots can be 
 used, filled with equal parts of mould and sand, or peat 
 and sand. About the middle of autumn, cuttings of the 
 same season's growth 
 are taken off with two 
 to four buds, cutting 
 off one or two of the 
 lower leaves, and cutting 
 off the wood smooth 
 and square close to 
 the eye, as in figure 8. 
 These cuttings can be 
 inserted in the pot, leav- 
 ing one eye above the 
 surface. It should then 
 be slightly watered to 
 settle the soil firmly 
 around the cuttings, and 
 then placed in a cold ^'S- 8--^ rose cutting. 
 
 frame, or on the floor of a vinery, in which no fire is 
 kept during winter. Early in the spring the pot sliould 
 be placed in a house with a moderate temperature, kept 
 perfectly close, and sprinkled every morning with water 
 a little tepid. Now, as well as during the autumn, they 
 should be shaded from the too bright glare of the sun. 
 In about a fortnight, and after they have formed a third 
 set of leaves and good roots, a little air can be given 
 them ; and after being thus hardened for a week, they can 
 be repotted into larger pots. In order to ascertain when 
 they are sufficiently rooted, the ball of earth can be taken 
 out of the pot, by striking its inverted edge lightly against 
 some body, at the same time sustaining the ball of earth 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 115 
 
 by the hand, the cutting being passed between two of the 
 fingers a little separated. If well rooted, the fibres will 
 be seen on the outside of the ball of earth. They can 
 then be placed in a cold frame, or anywhere under glass, 
 to be planted out the latter part of spring, or retained 
 for pot culture. Where hot-bed frames are not conven- 
 ient, or the amateur wishes only to experiment with one 
 or two cuttings, he can use a tumbler, or any kind of 
 close glass covering. 
 
 Where roses are forced into bloom the latter part of 
 winter, cuttings can be taken from them immediately after 
 the bloom is past ; and they will also succeed if taken 
 from plants in the open ground immediately after their 
 first bloom. Cuttings of the Everblooming Roses will 
 all strike at any time during the summer, but tliey suc- 
 ceed much better either in the autumn, or after their first 
 bloom. The heat of our midsummer sun is so great upon 
 plants forced in the house, that cuttings often fail at that 
 time. When a cutting is made near the old stem, it is 
 better to take with it a portion of the old wood, which 
 forms the enlarged part of the young branch. Where the 
 cuttings are scarce, two buds will answer very well — one 
 below the surface ; and, in some cases, propagation has 
 been successful with only one eye. In this case they are 
 planted up to the base of the leaf in pots of sand, similar 
 to that used in the manufacture of glass, and the eye is 
 partially covered. They are then subject to the same 
 treatment as the others, and carefully shaded ; they will 
 thus root easily, but require a long time to make strong 
 plants. 
 
 Some years since, Lecoq, a French cultivator, conceived 
 the idea of endeavoring to propagate roses by the leaf. 
 He gathered some very young leaves of the Bengal rose, 
 about one quarter developed, cutting them ofi* at their 
 insertion, or at the surface of the bark. He planted these 
 in peat soil, in one-inch pots, and then plunged the pots 
 
116 
 
 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 into a moderate heat. A double cover of bell glasses 
 was then placed over them, to exclude the air entirely, 
 which course of treatment was pursued until they had 
 taken root. The shortest time in which 
 this could be accomplished was eight 
 weeks, and the roots were formed in the 
 following manner. First, a callus was 
 formed at the base of the leaf, from which 
 small fibres put forth ; a small bud then 
 appeared on the upper side (figure 9) ; a 
 stalk then arose from this bud, which 
 finally expanded into leaves and formed 
 a perfect plant. 
 
 An English writer remarks, that " the 
 leaves or leaflets of a rose will often take 
 root more freely than even cuttings, and 
 in a much shorter time, but these uni- 
 formly refuse to make buds or grow." 
 
 This experiment is certainly very curi- 
 ous, and evinces how great, in the vege- 
 table kingdom, are the powers of nature for the main- 
 tenance of existence, and is one of those singular results 
 which should lead us to make farther experiments with 
 various parts of plants, and teach us that in Horticulture 
 there is yet a wide field for scientific research. 
 
 A favorite mode of propagation with some nurserymen 
 is from soft wood of plants forced in the winter. Many 
 fail entirely in this for want of knowledge of the right 
 condition in which the wood should be before cutting, a 
 condition which cannot be described on paper. Some va- 
 rieties, like Persian Yellow, will not strike at all, or with 
 great difficulty in this way. 
 
 The plants from which these cuttings are to be taken 
 should be prepared and treated as in the preceding chap- 
 ter. In February and March the cuttings are made and 
 inserted in sand, either in pots or benches, in a house of 
 
 CUTTING. 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 117 
 
 the same temperature as that in which the parent plant 
 has grown. These pots or benches would be better cov- 
 ered with glass, but it is not essential. After the cuttings 
 have rooted, they can be potted into small pots, and 
 placed in a house of moderate temperature. About the 
 middle of May they can be taken out of these pots and 
 planted in the open ground. 
 
 BY LAYERS. 
 
 This mode is more particularly applicable to those roses 
 that bloom only once in the year, and which do not strike 
 freely from cuttings, although it can be equally well ap- 
 plied to all the smooth-wooded kinds. It can be perform- 
 ed at midsummer and for several weeks afterward, and 
 should be employed only in those cases where young 
 shoots have been formed at least a foot long and are well 
 matured. The soil should be well dug around the plant, 
 forming a little raised bed of some thi-ee feet in diameter, 
 with the soil well pulverized and mixed with some manure 
 thoroughly decomposed, and, if heavy, a little sand. A 
 hole should then be made in this bed about four inches 
 deep, and the young matured shoot bent down into it, 
 keeping the top of the shoot some three or four inches 
 above the surface of the ground ; the angle thus being 
 found, which should always be made at a bud and about 
 five or six inches from the top of the shoot, the operator 
 should cut off all the leaves below the ground. A sharp 
 knife should then be placed just below a bud, about three 
 inches below the surface of the ground, and a slanting cut 
 made upward and lengthwise, about half through the 
 branch, forming a sort of tongue from one to two inches 
 long, on the back part of the shoot right opposite the bud ; 
 a chip or some of the soil can be placed in the slit, to pre- 
 vent it from closing, and the shoot can then be carefully 
 laid in the hole, and pegged down at a point some two 
 
118 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 inches below the cut, keeping, at the same time, the top 
 of the shoot some three or four inches out of the ground, 
 and making it fast to a small stake, to keep it upright. 
 Care should be taken not to make the angle where the 
 branch is pegged at the cut, as the branch would be in- 
 jured and perhaps broken off; the best place is about two 
 inches below the incision. The soil can then be replaced 
 in the hole, and where it is convenient covered with some 
 moss or litter of any kind. This will protect the soil 
 from the sun and keep it moist, and will materially aid 
 the formation of new roots. These are formed in the same 
 manner as in cuttings ; first a callus is produced on those 
 parts of the incision where the bark joins the wood, and 
 from this callus spring the roots, which, in some cases, 
 will have grown sufficiently for the layers to be taken 
 from the parent plant the latter part of the following au- 
 tumn ; in some cases, however, the roots will not have 
 sufiiciently formed to allow them to be taken up before 
 another year. The summer is the best period for layering 
 the young shoots. Early in the spring, layers can be 
 made with the wood formed the previous year. Where 
 it is more convenient, a shoot can be rooted by making 
 the incision as above, and introducing it into a quart pot 
 with the bottom partly broken out. This pot can be 
 plunged in the ground, or if the branch is from a stand- 
 ard, it can be raised on a rough platform. In either case, 
 it should be covered with moss, to protect it from the sun, 
 and should be watered every evening. We recollect see- 
 ing in the glass manufactories of Paris, a very neat little 
 glass tumbler, used by the French gardeners for this pur- 
 pose. It held, perhaps, half a pint, and a space about 
 half an inch wide was cut out through the whole length 
 of the side, through which space the branch of any plant 
 was inserted, and the tumbler then filled with soil. When 
 the roots were formed and began to penetrate the soil, 
 they could be easily perceived through the glass. Al- 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 119 
 
 though an incision is always the most certain, and it is 
 uniformly practiced, roots will in many varieties strike 
 easily from the buds ; and a common operation in France 
 is simply to peg down the branches in the soil, without 
 any incision ; in some cases, they give the branch a sudden 
 twist, which will break or bruise the bark, and facilitate 
 the formation of roots. 
 
 Some Chinese authors state that very long branches 
 may be laid down, and that roots may be thus obtained 
 from all the eyes upon them, which will eventually form 
 as many j^lants. 
 
 Yibert, a well-known rose cultivator in France, remarks 
 upon this point : " Upon laying down with the requisite 
 care some branches fifteen to twenty-four inches long, of 
 the new growth, or of that of the previous year, and up- 
 on taking them up with similar care, after twelve or 
 eighteen months, I found only the first eyes expanded into 
 buds or roots, while the rest had perished. I have seldom 
 seen the fifth eye developed, while I have frequently 
 known the whole branch entirely perish. I speak in gen- 
 eral terms, for there are some rare exceptions, and the 
 different varieties of the Four-seasons Rose may be cited 
 as proof that a great number of eyes of the same branch 
 have taken root." 
 
 This is the opinion of an eminent rose grower ; but if, 
 as he states, the Monthly Damask Rose will root freely in 
 this way, many of the smooth-wooded roses would un- 
 doubtedly root still more readily, and our rapid growing 
 native rose. Queen of the Prairies, would very probably 
 throw out roots readily, when treated in this manner. It 
 is worth repeated experiment ; for, if rapid growing roses, 
 like some of the evergreen varieties, the Greville, and the 
 Queen of the Prairies, could with facility be made to grow 
 in this Avay, rose hedges could be easily formed by laying 
 down whole branches, and a very beautiful and effective 
 
120 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 protection would be thus produced, to ornament our fields 
 and gardens. 
 
 StrCKEES. 
 
 Many roses throw up suckers readily from the root, and 
 often form one of the principal causes of annoyance to the 
 cultivator. For this reason, budding and grafting should 
 always be done on stocks that do not incline to sucker. 
 The I)og Rose — on which almost all the imported varieties 
 are now worked — is particularly liaise to this objection, 
 and it is no unusual thing to see half-a-dozen suckers 
 growing about a single rose-tree. When the health and 
 prosperity of the plant are desired, these should be care- 
 fully kept down, as they deprive the plant of a material 
 portion of its nourishment. When, however, they are 
 wanted for stocks, they should be taken off every spring 
 with a small portion of root, which can generally be ob- 
 tained by cutting some distance below the surface of the 
 ground. They should be planted immediately where they 
 are wanted for budding, and will soon be fit for use. 
 Many fine varieties of the summer roses will sucker in this 
 way, and an old plant when taken up will sometimes fur- 
 nish a large number of thrifty stems, each with a portion 
 of root attached. 
 
 BUDDING. 
 
 Fifty years ago, budding and grafting were very little 
 practiced, excepting with new varieties, that could with 
 great difiiculty be propagated in any other way. Within^ 
 that time, however, the practice has been constantly in- 
 creasing until now, when it is extensively employed in 
 Europe, and roses imported from France and England can 
 very rarely be obtained on their own roots. To this mode 
 of propagation, there is one great objection, while the ad- 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 121 
 
 vantages in some varieties are sufficiently great to coun- 
 terbalance any inconveniences attending the cultivation of 
 a budded or grafted rose. It is generally the case, that 
 the stock or plant on which the Rose is budded is of 
 some variety that will throw up suckers very freely, wliich 
 growing with great luxuriance, will sometimes overpower 
 the variety budded upon it, and present a mass of its own 
 flowers. The purchaser will thus find a comparatively 
 worthless bloom, instead of the rare and beautiful varieties 
 whose appearance he has been eagerly awaiting, and upon 
 the head of the nurseryman will frequently descend the 
 weight of his indignation. This difficulty can, however, be 
 avoided by a very little attention. The shoot of the stock 
 can very readily be distinguished from that of the budded or 
 grafted variety by its growth and foliage, even if the age 
 of the plant will not allow the point of inoculation to be 
 recognized. In passing the plant in his walks, let the 
 owner simply cut away any shoot of tliis character that 
 may spring from the stock or root. The budded variety 
 thus receiving all the nourishment from the root, will soon 
 grow with luxuriance, and present to the eager expectant 
 as fine a bloom as he may desire — at the expense only of 
 a little observation, and the trouble of occasionally taking 
 his knife from his pocket. 
 
 This trouble, however, is such that the plant is in most 
 cases neglected. Budded or grafted roses are thus very 
 unpopular in this country, and those on their own roots 
 are deemed the only ones which it is safe to plant. 
 
 The practice of budding has brought into cultivation a 
 form of the plant which is highly ornamental, but which 
 can never become very general in this country. The Tree 
 Rose is an inoculation upon a standard some four or five 
 feet in height, generally a Dog Rose or Eglantine. The 
 tall, naked stem, a greater part of which is unsheltered 
 by any foliage, is exposed to the full glare of our summer 
 sun, and unless protected in some way, will often die out 
 6 
 
122 
 
 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 in two or three years. Its life can be prolonged by cov- 
 ering the stem with moss, or with a sort of tin tube, pro- 
 vided with small holes, to allow the air to enter and cir- 
 culate around the stem. This is, however, some trouble ; 
 and as many will not provide this protection, a large part 
 of the standard roses imported to this country will grad- 
 ually die out, and rose bushes be generally employed for 
 single planting, or for grouping upon the lawn. 
 
 In budding, there are two requisites : a well-established 
 and thriftily growing plant, and a well-matured eye or 
 bud. The operation can be performed at any season when 
 these requisites can be obtained. In the open ground, the 
 wood from which the buds are cut is generally not mature 
 until after the first summer bloom. 
 
 Having ascertained by running a knife under the bark, 
 
 that the stock will 
 peel easily, and having 
 some perfectly ripe 
 young shoots with 
 buds upon them, the 
 operation can be per- 
 formed with a sharp 
 knife that is round and 
 very thin at the point. 
 Make in the bark of 
 the stock a longitudi- 
 nal incision of three- 
 quarters of an inch, 
 and another short one 
 across the top, as in a, 
 fig. 10 ; run the knife 
 under the bark and 
 loosen it from the 
 wood ; then cut from 
 one of the young shoots of the desired variety, a bud, as 
 in b ; placing the knife a quarter to three-eighths of an 
 
 Fig. 10.— BUDDINGT THE EOSE. 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 
 
 123 
 
 inch above the eye or bud, and cutting out about the same 
 distance below it, cutting sufficiently near the bud to take 
 with it a very thin scale of the wood. English gardeners 
 will always peel off this thin scale ; but in our hot cli- 
 mate, it should always be left on, as it assists to keep the 
 bud moist, and does not at all prevent the access of the 
 sap from the stock to the bud. The bud being thus pre- 
 pared, take it, by the portion of leaf-stalk attached, between 
 the thumb and finger in the left hand, and, with the knife 
 in the right, open 
 the incision in the 
 bark sufficiently to 
 allow the bud to be 
 slipped in as far as 
 it will go, when the 
 bark will close over 
 and retain it. Then 
 take a mat-string, or 
 a piece of yarn, and 
 firmly bind it around 
 the bud, leaving only 
 the petiole and bud 
 exposed, as in c, 
 fig. 10. The string 
 should be allowed 
 to remain for about 
 two weeks, or until 
 the bud is united to 
 the stock. If allow- 
 ed to remain longer, 
 it will sometimes cut ^'^- 11--b^^ing in the bkanches. 
 into the bark of the rapidly growing stock, but is productive 
 of no other injury. It is the practice with many cultivators 
 to cut off the top of the stock above the bud immediately 
 after inoculation. A limited acquaintance with vegetable 
 physiology would convince the cultivator of the injurious 
 
124 
 
 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 results of tTiis practice, and that the total excision of the 
 branches of the stock while in full vegetation must be de- 
 structive to a large portion of the roots, and highly detri- 
 mental to the prosperity of the plant. A much better mode 
 is to bend down the top, and tie its extremity to the lower 
 part of the stock. Several days after this is done, the bud 
 can be inserted just below the sharpest bend of the arch. 
 When the buds are to be placed in the branches of a 
 stock, as in fig. 11, the top of the main stem can be cut 
 
 off, and the branches 
 arched over and tied 
 to the main stem, as at 
 f ^ the bud is then in- 
 serted in each branch, 
 as at e. The circula- 
 tion of the sap being 
 thus impeded by the 
 bending of the branch- 
 es, it is thrown into the 
 inoculation, and forms 
 then a more immediate 
 union than it would if 
 the branches were not 
 arched. After the 
 buds have become 
 fairly united to the 
 stock and have com- 
 menced growing, the 
 top can be safely cut 
 Fig. 12.— BUDDING A POTTED ROSE. offtothcbud, although 
 it would be still better to make the pruning of the top 
 proportionate to the growth of the bud ; by this means, a 
 slower, but more healthy vegetation is obtained. When 
 the buds are inserted very late in the season, it is better 
 not to cut off the top of the stock or branches until the 
 following spring, and to preserve the bud dormant. If. 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 125 
 
 allowed to make a rapid growth so late in the season, 
 there would be great danger of its being killed by frost. 
 European cultivators are very fond of budding several va- 
 rieties on one stock, in order to obtain the pretty effect 
 produced by a contrast of color. This will only answer 
 where great care is taken to select varieties of the same 
 vegetating force; otherwise one will soon outstrip the 
 others, and appropriate all the nourishment. It is also de- 
 sirable that they should belong to the same species. When 
 a bud is inserted in a plant in pot, as in fig. 12, the main 
 branches are left, and a portion of the top only cut off, in 
 order to give the bud some additional nourishment. 
 
 GRAFTESTG. 
 
 From the pithy nature of the wood of the Rose, graft- 
 ing is always less certain than budding ; but it is frequently 
 adopted by cultivators, as budding cannot be relied upon 
 in the spring, and as there is much wood from the winter 
 pruning which would be otherwise wasted. It is also 
 useful for working over those plants in which buds have 
 missed the previous summer. 
 
 There are several modes of grafting, of which the most 
 generally practiced is cleft-grafting. For this mode, the 
 stock is cut off at the desired height with a sharp knife, 
 either horizontally, or slightly sloping. The cut should 
 be made just above a bud, which may serve to draw up the 
 sap to the graft. The stock can then be split with a heavy 
 knife, making the slit or cleft about an inch long. The 
 cion should be about four inches long, with two or more 
 buds upon it. An inch of the lower part of the cion can 
 be cut in the shape of a wedge, making one side very 
 thin, and on the thick or outer side, leaving a bud oppo- 
 site to the top of the wedge. This ci;;n can then be in- 
 serted in the cleft as far as the vv^edge is cut, being veiy 
 careful to make the bark of the cion fit exactly to that of 
 
126 
 
 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 the stock. In order to exclude the air, the top and side 
 of the stock should then be bound with a strip of cloth 
 covered with a composition of beeswax and resin in equal 
 parts, with sufficient tallow to make it soft at a reasonably 
 low temperature. In the course of two or three weeks. 
 
 ^^ 
 
 Fig. 13.— CLEFT GRAFTING. Fig. 14.— WHIP GRAFTING. 
 
 if every thing is favorable, the cion will begin to unite, 
 and will be ready to go forward with advancing vegeta- 
 tion. When the stock is sufficiently large, two cions can 
 be inserted, as in fig. 13. 
 
 Whip-grafting is performed by cutting a slice of bark * 
 with a little wood from the side of a stock about an inch 
 and a half long, and then paring a cion of the usual length 
 down to a very thin lower extremity, as in fig. 14. This 
 cion can then be accurately fitted on to the place from which 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 
 
 127 
 
 the slice of bark and wood is taken. The whole can then 
 be bound around with cotton cloth, covered with the 
 composition described before. In all grafting it should 
 be borne in mind, that it is essential for the bark of the 
 cion and that of the stock to touch each other in some 
 point, and the more the points of contact, the greater 
 will be the chance of success. 
 
 Mind-grafting is also sometimes practiced, but is more 
 uncertain than the former, as the swelling of the stock is 
 very apt to force the cion 
 out. This mode must be 
 practiced when the bark 
 peels easily, or separates 
 with ease from the wood. 
 The top of the stock must 
 be cut off square, and the 
 bark cut through from the 
 top about an inch down- 
 ward. The point of the 
 knife can then be inserted 
 at the top, and the bark 
 peeled back, as in a, fig. 15. 
 It is desirable, as before, 
 that a bud should be left on 
 the other side of the stock, 
 opposite this opening ; and 
 the French prefer, also, to have a bud left on the outside 
 of the part of the cion which is inserted. The cion should 
 be cut out and sloped flat on one side, as in J, fig. 15 ; then 
 inserted in the stock between the bark and wood, as in c, 
 and bound with mat-strings, or strips of grafting cloth. 
 
 The French have another mode of grafting stocks about 
 the size of a quill or the little finger. It is done by plac- 
 ing the knife about two inches below a bud which is just 
 on the point of starting, and cutting half way through 
 the stock, and two inches down, as in fig. 16. The cion 
 
 Fig. 15. — -RTSU GRAFTING. 
 
128 
 
 PAKSONS OK THE EOSE. 
 
 is then placed in the lower part of this cavity, in the same 
 manner as with cleft grafting. This mode is called 
 Aspirant^ from the bud above the incision, which continues 
 to draw up the sap, until the development of 
 the cion. When the cion has grown about two 
 inches, the top of the stock is cut off and covered 
 with grafting wax. This mode is not always 
 successful, as the sap sometimes leaves the side 
 of the stock which has been partly cut away 
 and passes up the other side. 
 
 The French have also a mode of grafting, 
 which they call par incrustation^ and which is 
 performed in the spring, as soon as the leaf-buds 
 appear. A cion with a bud adhering to the wood 
 is cut in a sort of oval shape, and inserted in a 
 cavity made of the same shape, and just below 
 an eye which has commenced growing. It is then 
 bound around with matting, as in budding. This 
 is a sort of spring budding, with rather more wood 
 ^ig- ^6- attached to the bud, than in summer budding. It 
 is very successfully practiced by various cultivators in the 
 vicinity of Paris. There is still another mode sometimes 
 practiced in France, which owes its origin to a cultivator 
 named Lecoq. A small branch is chosen, which is provided 
 with two buds, one of them being on the upper part, and 
 the other near its larger end. A sidelong sloping cut is 
 made all along its lower half, the upper being left entire. 
 When the cion is thus prepared, its cut side is fitted to 
 the side of the stock under the bark, which has been cut 
 and peeled back. It is then bound around with mat- 
 strings or grafting cloth in the usual way. This mode 
 has a peculiar merit ; should the upper bud not grow, the 
 lower one rarely fails, and develops itself as in common 
 budding. 
 
 Cleft and whip-grafting is also practiced occasionally 
 upon the roots of the Rose, and succeeds very well with 
 
PROPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 129 
 
 some varieties. These modes of grafting can all be more 
 successfully practiced on stocks in pots in green-houses 
 with bottom heat and bell glasses. We have given 
 thus concisely, and, we hope, clearly, the various modes of 
 budding and grafting with which we are acquainted. 
 They may be sufficient to enable the amateur to amuse 
 his leisure hours, though his success may not entirely meet 
 his expectations. Simple as these operations are, they 
 require a kind of skill, and, if we may so call it, sleight-of- 
 hand, which is only attained by constant practice upon 
 a great number of plants. 
 
130 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 CHAPTER Ym. 
 MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND HYBRIDIZING. 
 
 We have described^ in former pages, the various modes 
 of cultivating the Rose, and of propagating the many- 
 beautiful varieties which exist, and would now briefly ad- 
 vert to a mode of developing still farther the beauty 
 which lies hid within the horny covering that protects the 
 dormant germ of vitality — in other words, of obtaining 
 new varieties by seed. With the making of the seed-bed 
 commenced a new era in the culture of the Rose, and ad- 
 vancing with rapid strides, it made more progress in forty 
 years tlian in centuries before. The Dutch seem to have 
 been the first to raise roses from seed, by the same mode 
 which they applied successfully to their tulips, hyacinths, 
 etc., and from the time that this mode became generally 
 employed, the varieties of roses began to increase. In 
 this species of cultivation the French soon outstripped 
 their Dutch neighbors, and gained the reputation which 
 they still retain, of preeminent skill in the production of 
 new varieties of roses from the seed. 
 
 From 1805 to 1810, the Empress Josephine, whose love 
 for flowers is well known, collected at her favorite resi' 
 dence, Malmaison, the choicest varieties of the Rose that 
 could be obtained from Holland, Germany, and Belgium, 
 and thus gave an increased impulse to the culture of roses 
 in the vicinity of Paris. 
 
 According to De Pronville, a French writer, there were, 
 in 1814, only 182 varieties of roses, and the advantage of 
 multiplication by seed is sufficiently evinced by the fact 
 that there are now more than 6,000 varieties, the poor- 
 est of which are much better than any which existed at 
 
MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND HYDRIDIZING. 131 
 
 that day. Among the earliest cultivators of roses from 
 the seed, were three Frenchmen : Dupont, Vilmorin, and 
 Descemet. The former was the gardener of the Empress 
 Josephine. When the allied armies entered Paris, in 
 1815, the garden of Descemet contained 10,000 seedling 
 roses, which Yibert, in his anxiety to secure from destruc- 
 tion, succeeded in carrying to his garden in the interior. 
 
 In England, very little attention seems, at that time, to 
 have been paid to the production of new varieties from seed, 
 and the English relied very much upon the continent for 
 their choice roses. ISTow, however, they are abundantly 
 redeeming their reputation, and many fine varieties have 
 been produced by English rose-growers, at the head of 
 whom stands Rivers, whose efforts are seconded by 
 Wood, Paul, Lane, and others. They are still, however, 
 compelled to yield to the French cultivators ; for to these 
 we are indebted for our very finest roses — for Lamarque, 
 Solfaterre, La Reine, Chromatella, the new white Perpetu- 
 als. Souvenir de Malmaison, and others. 
 
 The varieties of roses became increasingly great after 
 the introduction of the Bengals, Noisettes, Teas, and 
 Bourbons — all these classes producing readily from seed, 
 and in endless variety. There still remains a willingness 
 to cast aside the old for the new, and however much we 
 may regret this disposition, for the sake of some old and 
 truly deserving favorites, we cannot feel willing to de- 
 nounce it, for it exhibits a gratifying evidence of a desire 
 for improvement, and the existence of a spirit of progress, 
 which, dissatisfied with things as they are, is continually 
 striving after nearer approaches to perfection. If, in this 
 strife, some of our old favorites have been cast aside, we 
 are more than abundantly compensated for their loss by 
 the new claimants to our regard. 
 
 Those who intend to raise new roses from seed should 
 
 select varieties differing as much as possible in color and 
 
 . habit, and possessing broad, thick, and well-formed pet- 
 
132 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 als ; their stamens should also be visible, and their pistils 
 perfect ; for perfectly double flowers, in which all the or- 
 gans of propagation — the stamens and pistils — are changed 
 into petals, never yield seed. These should be planted 
 together in a rich soil, and as far as possible from any 
 other roses. If there are among them any two varieties 
 whose peculiarities it is desired to unite in a single plant, 
 place these next to each other, and there may possibly be 
 such an admixture of the pollen as will produce the de- 
 sired result. 
 
 Care should be taken not to affect the proper maturity 
 of the seed by taking off the petals, but allow them to 
 fall by their own decay. The seed should be perfectly 
 mature before it is gathered, which will be immediately 
 after the first hard frost. After the hips have been gath- 
 ered, the seeds can be taken out with the point of a knife, 
 or, if there is a large quantity, they can be put on a table 
 and bruised with a wooden roller ; the covering of the 
 seeds is so tough that they cannot easily be injured. 
 When the hip is sufiiciently bruised, it can be plunged in- 
 to a vessel of water ; and by continued friction, the seeds 
 can be easily separated from the pulp which surrounds 
 them, and will generally fall to the bottom. After 
 being dried a few days in the shade, they should be 
 placed just beneath the surface, in pots filled with fine 
 sand, or peat earth, where they can be kept until wanted 
 for planting in the spring. The seeds which are not thus 
 placed in sand soon after they are gathered will not grow 
 until the second, and if delayed very long, until the third 
 year. In this case, however, their germination can be 
 hastened by sowing them in earthen pans, which are 
 placed upon a hot-bed or under a glass frame. The seeds 
 being thus planted immediately after being gathered, the 
 sand should be kept moistened through the winter, and the 
 pots put out of the reach of frost. Mice are very fond 
 of these seeds, and will destroy them unless they are pro- 
 
MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND HYBRIDIZING. 133 
 
 tected. The pots should be kept out of all heat, except- 
 ing Avhat may be required to keep the frost from them, 
 until the first of April, in this latitude, and at the South, 
 earlier ; this is requisite, in order to prevent their germ- 
 inating before all danger of frost is past in the open air. 
 At the time the pots or pans are brought from their shel- 
 tered place into a warm temperature, beds for the plants 
 should be made in the open air, that they may be ready 
 the moment they are required. For these an eastern as- 
 pect is the best, and in our hot climate, on the north side 
 of a fence would answer very well ; if they are in an open 
 piece of ground, they should be sheltered by an awning 
 from the hot sun. The soil should be a rich, light sandy 
 mould, with a little peat, if convenient, and should be 
 finely pulverized. The seeds should now be closely watch- 
 ed, and the moment they are seen pushing up the sand, in 
 order to obtain light, they should be taken out singly with 
 the point of a knife, taking a small portion of the sand 
 with them. The bed having been previously watered, and 
 raked fine, drills can be made, half an inch deep and 
 about a foot apart, in which the germinating seeds can be 
 placed, at a distance of six inches from* each other, and 
 then carefully covered with finely pulverized soil. Having 
 commenced germinating in the pots, the seeds, now in the 
 genial warmth of a spring sun, but protected from its 
 fiercest rays, will soon show their heads above the ground, 
 and striking deep root in the rich soil, grow rapidly. 
 While the plants are small, care should be taken to keep 
 the ground constantly moist. 
 
 We are aware' that this process is somewhat new with 
 rose seeds, although it has been long practiced with 
 Rhododendrons and other plants, but we are convinced 
 of its superiority to the old mode. The delicate roots of 
 young plants are very susceptible of injury by change, 
 and many are frequently lost by the first potting ; this 
 risk is avoided by transplanting the seed before the first 
 
134 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 root fibre is formed, and wben, being in the act of germ- 
 ination, there can be no possible danger of its rotting, 
 which is frequently a serious objection to sowing seeds at 
 once in the open ground. The trouble and risk of loss 
 occasioned by subsequent re-pottings are also avoided, 
 and the plants have, by this mode, full liberty to grow as 
 luxuriantly as they choose, with only the slight attention 
 required by watering and shading. As the plan of Rivers 
 is materially different, we will give his directions in de- 
 tail, admitting, at the same time, that, under some circum- 
 stances, it may be preferable to that we have presented 
 above. 
 
 " 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 Febru- 
 ary, 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 cov- 
 ered, 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 in- 
 gress 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 occasion- 
 ally, in dry weather. The young plants will perhaps 
 make their appearance in April or May, but very often the 
 seed does not vegetate until the second spring. When 
 
MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND HYBRIDIZING. 135 
 
 they have made their * rough leaves,' that is, when they 
 have three or four leaves, they must be carefully raised 
 with the point of a narrow pruning-knife, potted into small 
 pots, and placed in the shade ; if the weather is very hot 
 and dry, they may be covered with a handglass 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 for budding." Until the plants have become 
 firmly rooted, and, in fact, through the most of the first 
 Bummer, they should be protected from the heat of the 
 sun ; a cheap mode of doing this is to put up rough posts, 
 connect them by pieces of wood, lay rough slats across 
 these, and cover the whole with straw or cornstalks ; but 
 a much neater covering is a good canvas awning, sup- 
 ported by posts, which can be taken down when not need- 
 ed, and will last many years. The Bourbons and Bengals, 
 with the Teas and Noisettes, will sometimes bloom the 
 first season; but as the plant will be weak, a correct 
 opinion cannot be formed of its character until the second 
 summer. The summer roses, or those which bloom only 
 once in the season, never show bloom until their third, and 
 sometimes not until their fourth and fifth year. It is well 
 to let all the plants remain in the seed-bed until the fifth 
 year, as some which prove unpromising at first may result 
 in something really good. All that prove bad the fifth 
 year can be marked for destruction, or cut down to receive 
 the buds of the o-ood varieties. In order to obtain a orood 
 bloom as soon as possible, it is well to have ready some 
 strong stocks of the Greville, Mannetti, or any other free- 
 growing rose, into which buds can be inserted of any of the 
 seedlings whose habit and general appearance promise good 
 flowers, and whose growth has been sufficient to furnish 
 good buds. The next spring the stock should be cut down 
 to the bud, which will then make luxuriant shoots, and 
 produce flowers the same season, if an Everblooming-va- 
 
136 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 riety ; but if one of the Summer roses, not until the next 
 season. The third spring let every branch be cut down 
 to three or four eyes, when it will more fully develop its 
 character, and will often continue improving until its fifth 
 or sixth year. 
 
 The first winter, the young plants will require protec- 
 tion from the cold by some kind of litter, and the Bengal, 
 Tea, and Noisette varieties will always need it during the 
 winter. Where there are any plants of these latter, whose 
 habit and appearance promise something excellent, they 
 can be potted on the approach of winter, kept in a cool 
 temperature, free from frost, and replanted in the spring. 
 
 When it is desired that the young j)lant should possess 
 the properties of two well-known flowers, resort is had to 
 artificial impregnation. 
 
 Although the existence of sexuality in plants appears 
 to have been known to the ancients, and is mentioned not 
 only by Pliny, Claudian, and Theophrastus, but also by 
 Ebu-Alwan, in a work on agriculture written originally in 
 Chaldaic ; yet it does not seem to have been generally ad- 
 mitted by botanists, until announced by Linnaeus in 1731. 
 From this time the possibility of the existence of hybrid 
 plants was admitted, and Linnaeus, with many subsequent 
 authors, published observations tending to show that, even 
 in the natural state, new species were formed by two dif- 
 ferent plants, the pistil of one having been fecundated by 
 the stamens of the other. This impregnation has been 
 artificially applied, by modern cultivators, to the jDroduc- 
 tion of new varieties of fruits and flowers. With the 
 Geranium, Fuchsia, Paeony, Pansy, and other flowers, it 
 has produced remarkable results. The mode of impreg- 
 nating the Rose artificially has been so little practiced 
 with us, and has been so well described by Rivers, that 
 we prefer detailing the process in his own words : 
 
 " When it is desirable the qualities of a favorite rose 
 should preponderate, the petals of the flower to be fertil- 
 
MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND IIYBEIDIZING. 137 
 
 ized 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 remov- 
 ed with a pair of pointed scissors. The following morn- 
 ing, when this flower is fully expanded, it must be fertil- 
 ized with a flower of some variety of whose qualities it is 
 desired to have seedlings largely partake. It requires 
 some watchfulness to open the petals 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 press- 
 ed 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. 
 "To exemplify the process, we will suppose that a 
 climbing Moss Rose, with red or crimson flowers, is wish- 
 ed for : the flowers of the Blush Ayrshire, which bear 
 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 
 fertihzed with those of the Luxembourg Moss ; if the 
 operation succeed, seed 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 ap- 
 proximation to them. 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 inter- 
 esting 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 seed- 
 
138 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 ling 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 until 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 per- 
 fect 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 Rose, and 
 that of the Scotch, is very remarkable ; and this it was 
 which drew my particular attention to the plant in ques- 
 tion. 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. 
 
 "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 de- 
 sirable to have the qualities of both parents in an equal 
 degree, the removal of the anthers must not take place : 
 thus I have found, by removing them from the Luxem- 
 bourg Moss, and fertilizing that rose with a dark variety 
 of Bosa Gallica, that the features of the Moss Rose are 
 totally lost in its offspring, and they become nearly pure 
 varieties of the former ; but if the anthers of the Moss 
 Rose are left untouched, and it is fertilized with Bosa 
 Gallica, interesting hybrids are the result, more or less 
 mossy." 
 
 There is no branch of rose culture possessing more in- 
 terest for the amateur, with whose leisure its prosecution is 
 
MULTIPLICATION BY SEED AND HYDRIDIZING. 139 
 
 compatible. The constant care and attention required, in 
 order to ensure success, place it in a great measure beyond 
 the limits of a large commercial establishment. The 
 great desideratum at this time is a double, yellow, climb- 
 ing rose. If the Harrison Rose were fertilized with the 
 Queen of the Prairies, or the latter with the Solfaterre or 
 Chromatella, a rose might possibly be obtained with the 
 rich yellow of the Harrison Rose, and the robust habit 
 and beautifully formed flower of the Queen of the Prairies. 
 While, however, we recommend this mode of artificial 
 impregnation, we would by no means discourage the sow- 
 ing of seeds whose flowers have not thus been fecundated. 
 The seed of the Harrison Rose, or of any of the yellow 
 roses, may, if perseveringly saved from generation to 
 generation, produce a yellow climbing rose. In fact, we 
 are inclined to think that among all the reputed hybrids, 
 a much less number than is supposed owe their origin to 
 a crossed fecundation. It is a fact generally admitted by 
 botanists, that all varieties of plants will generally pro- 
 duce from their seed plants very dissimilar, preserving, 
 perhaps, some peculiarities of their parents, but differing 
 in many essential particulars. 
 
 It will thus be perceived that, in the simple sowing of 
 seeds, where there is a dislike to the trouble of artiflcial 
 impregnation, there is a wide field for experiment and for 
 successful result. But to those who have the leisure and 
 the patience to transfer from one plant to another its fer- 
 tilizing matter, it forms a pleasant amusement, with rather 
 a greater probability of satisfactory results. In either 
 case, every amateur of roses should have his seed-plat ; 
 and if, out of a thousand, or even five thousand roses, he 
 should obtain one good variety, and differing from any other 
 known, lie will be conferring an important service upon 
 rose-culture, and will encourage others to pursue the same ^ 
 course, until we shall be in no wise behind either France 
 or England in this interesting branch of horticulture. 
 
140 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE ROSE. 
 
 Brave Eose, alas, whose art tbou ? In thy chair 
 Where thou didst lately so triumph and shine 
 A worm doth sit, whose many feet and hair 
 
 Are the more foul the more thou art divine. 
 This, this hath done it ; this did bite the root 
 
 And bottom of the leaves, which, when the wind 
 Did once perceive, it blew them under foot, 
 Where rude, unhallow'd steps do crush and grind 
 Their beauteous glories. Only shreds of thee, 
 And those all bitten, in thy chair I see. 
 
 Herbert. 
 
 The diseases to which the Rose is liable are generally 
 owing either to the presence of various Cryptogamic 
 plants, or to the attacks of certain insects whose larvae 
 are supported at the expense of the plant. Among Cryp- 
 togamic parasites which have been observed upon rose- 
 bushes, and which infest chiefly the Provence and other 
 rousfh-leaved roses, the folio win 2^ are the most trouble- 
 some : 
 
 Rust. — The rust, when examined by a magnifier, is 
 found to consist of minute yellow spots, each of which is 
 a fungus, Lecythea Mosm. It is common and injurious to 
 roses, as it frequently covers all the leaves. The most ef- 
 fectual mode of preventing its spreading is to cut off with 
 care and burn all the infected branches, which will some- 
 times render necessary the destruction of the whole plant. 
 
 Mildew. — The minute fungus which produces mildew is 
 called by botanists Sphmrotheca pannosa. It appears like 
 a gray mould on the smaller stems and blistered leaves. 
 It is a very troublesome enemy to the Rose, and will 
 sometimes put at defiance every application for its destruc- 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE ROSE. 141 
 
 tion. The most effectual is smoking with sulphur, dusting 
 with dry flowers of sulphur, or syringing with sulphur wa- 
 ter. The former should only be practiced by a skillful 
 hand, as too much sulphur-smoke will sometimes entirely 
 kill the plant. 
 
 Mould is due to a minute gray fungus, Peronospora 
 sparsa, and manifests its presence by the appearance of 
 irregular pale brownish spots upon the upper surface of 
 the leaf. Upon the under surface of these spots the 
 mould will be found. 
 
 Other species of fungi attack the Rose, but they ai-e 
 not sufficiently troublesome to the cultivator to need 
 enumeration here. 
 
 The insects which infest the Rose are quite numerous, 
 and their attacks are more or less injurious. The majority 
 of those which are found on the plant in the state of per- 
 fect insects are comparatively harmless. The most in- 
 jurious are those whose larvae feed on the leaves and pith 
 of the trunk and limbs, and thus destroy the plant; while 
 the perfect insect, like the Green-fly, will simply stop the 
 growth and impair the health of the tree, by fastening up- 
 on the green and tender bark of the young shoots, and 
 devouring the sap. It is highly desirable that amateur 
 cultivators should devote more time to the study of Ento- 
 mology, for upon an intimate acquaintance with the hab- 
 its of these minute depredators depends, in a greater de- 
 gree than is generally supposed, the success of cultivation. 
 Our own leisure is so limited, that we have been able to 
 devote very little time to this subject; and we can find 
 no work that treats in detail the insects that attack the 
 Rose. We simply give some account of the most trouble- 
 some ones drawn mainly from Harris' Insects Injurious to 
 Vegetation. 
 
 Green-Fly, or Plant-Louse. — Aphis Bosce. — This very 
 common insect is a scourge to roses, from the facility of its 
 
142 PARSONS OK THE KOSE. 
 
 reproduction, and its numerous progeny sometimes en- 
 tirely cover the leaves, the young sprouts, and the flower 
 buds. Devouring the sap, they are very injurious, and, 
 when numerous, sometimes destroy tlie plant, while they 
 soil every part on which they collect. The most common 
 species is of a pale green, but there is a variety of a dingy 
 yellow. Many are destroyed by small birds, but they 
 have other enemies, as the larvae of the Coccmellas, or 
 Lady-birds, and other insects destroy large numbers. 
 The first eggs of the Green-fly are deposited in the au- 
 tumn, at the base of the buds, and are hatched in the early 
 part of the following spring. Generation after generation 
 is then rapidly produced, numbering sometimes eight or 
 ten before autumn. These are produced alive, and with- 
 out the intervention of the male. Reaumur estimated 
 that a single Aphis might produce six thousand millions in 
 one summer. The first hatching can be prevented by 
 washing the plant with soft soap and water, or with whale- 
 oil soap, before the buds commence swelling. When the 
 plant is infested with them, it can be washed with tobac- 
 co-water and then rinsed in clean water. If in a house, 
 fumigation with tobacco is better. An English writer 
 recommends washing in a decoction of an ounce of quassia 
 to a quart of water, as a very eflective and safe remedy. 
 Fumigation is, however, the most thoroughly searching 
 remedy, and can be easily applied to plants in the open 
 air, by means of an empty barrel inverted over the plant, 
 and a pan of burning tobacco. 
 
 Gall-Flies. — ^Several species of Cynips, or Gall-flies, at- 
 tack the rose, their punctures, made for the purpose of 
 depositing their eggs, being followed by variously formed 
 excrescences containing the larvae. The Bedequars, formed 
 by the puncture of the Cynips Roscb^ were formerly em- 
 ployed in medicine as astringents. Harris enumerates the 
 American species as follows : 
 
 Cynips Ucolor, — " Round, prickly galls, of a reddish 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE KOSE. 143 
 
 color, and rather larger than a, pea, may often be seen on 
 rose-bushes. Each of them contains a single grub, and 
 this in due time turns to a gall-fly. Its head and thorax 
 are black, and rough with numerous little pits ; its hind- 
 body is polished, and, with the legs, of a brownish-red 
 color. It is a large insect compared with the size of its 
 gall, measuring nearly one-fifth of an inch in length, while 
 the diameter of its gall, not including the prickles, rarely 
 exceeds three-tenths of an inch." 
 
 Cynips dicJilocerus^ " or the gall-fly with two-colored 
 antennae, is of a brownish-red or cinnamon color, with four 
 little longitudinal grooves on the top of the thorax, the 
 lower part of the antennae red, and the remainder black. 
 It varies in being darker sometimes, and measures from 
 one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch in length. Great 
 numbers of these gall-flies are bred in the irregular woody 
 galls, or long excrescences, of the stems of rose-bushes." 
 
 Cynips semipiceus. — " The small roots of rose-bushes, 
 and of other plants of the same family, sometimes pro- 
 duce rounded, warty, and woody knobs, inhabited by 
 numerous gall-insects, which, in coming out, pierce them 
 with small holes on all sides. The winged insects closely 
 resemble the dark varieties of the preceding species in 
 color, and in the little furrows on the thorax ; but their 
 legs are rather paler, and they do not measure more than 
 one-tenth of an inch in length." 
 
 Rose- Slug) Selandria JRosm^ of Harris, who gives the 
 following account : " The saw-fly of the rose, which, as it 
 does not seem to have been described before, may be call- 
 ed Selandria Hosce, from its favorite plant, so nearly re- 
 sembles the slug-worm saw-fly as not to be distinguished 
 therefrom except by a practiced observer. It is also very 
 much like Selandria barda, Vitis, and pyymcea, but has 
 not the red thorax of these three closely allied species. 
 It is of a deep and shining black color. The first two 
 
144 PARSONS 01^ THE ROSE. 
 
 pairs of legs are brownish-gray or dirty wMte, 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 twentieth 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 more 
 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, de- 
 positing 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 first of June, but do not usually ap- 
 pear in considerable numbers until the twentieth 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 the young of the 
 saw-fly 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, immedi- 
 ately behind the head. These gelatinous and sluggish 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE KOSE. 145 
 
 creatures eat the upper surface of the leaf in large irreg- 
 ular patches, leaving the veins and the skin beneath un- 
 touched ; 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 
 afterward. 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, espe- 
 cially 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 
 email 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 earthy cells, remain therein through- 
 out the winter, and appear in the winged form, in the fol- 
 lowing 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 excited 
 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. About ten years ago, I observed 
 them in gardens in Cambridge, and then made myself ac- 
 qainted with their transformations. At that time they 
 had not reached Milton, my former place of residence, 
 and have appeared in that place only within two or three 
 years. They now seem to be gradually extending in all 
 directions, and an effectual method for preserving our 
 7 
 
146 PAESONS ON THE HOSE. 
 
 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 w^ater 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 of various kinds, 
 red spiders, canker-worms, and a little jumping insect 
 which has lately been found quite as hurtful to rose-bush- 
 es as the slugs or young of the saw-fly." 
 
 Rose-Bll§^« — Macrodactylus suhspinosa. — " 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 en- 
 tirely covered with very short and close ashen-yellow 
 down ; the thorax is long and narrow, angularly widened 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE ROSE. 147 
 
 in the middle of each side, which suggested the name 
 suhspinosa^ or somewhat spined ; the legs are slender, 
 and of a j^ale 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 Avith which our gardens and nurseries 
 have been afflicted, was for a long time involved in mys- 
 tery, but is at last fully cleared up. The prevalence of 
 this insect on the rose, and its annual appearance, coincid- 
 ing 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 thirty years, they have prodigiously increased 
 in number, have attacked at random various kinds of 
 plants in swarms, and have become notorious for their ex- 
 tensive and deplorable ravages. The grape-vine in par- 
 ticular, 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 un- 
 der contribution by these indiscriminate feeders, by whom 
 leaves, flowers, and fruits are alike consumed. The unex^ 
 pected 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 
 Kose, 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 
 
148 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 globular, whitish, and about one-thirtieth of an inch in 
 diameter, and are hatched twenty days after they are 
 laid. The young larva) begin to feed on such tender 
 roots as arc within their reach. Like other grubs of the 
 Scarabaaians, when not eating, they lie upon the side, 
 with the body curved, 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 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 toward the surface, and each 
 one forms for itself a little cell, of an oval shape, by turn- 
 ing round a great many times, so as to compress the 
 earth, and render the inside of the cavity hard and 
 smooth. Within this ceil the grub is transformed to a 
 pupa, during the month of May, by casting off its skin, 
 v/hich is pushed downward in folds from the head to the 
 tail. The pupa has somewhat the form of the perfected 
 beetle, but it is of a yellowish white color, and its short, 
 stump-like wings, its antennae, and its legs, are folded upon 
 the breast, and its whole body is inclosed in a thin film 
 that wraps each part separately. During the month of 
 June this filmy skin is rent, the included beetle with- 
 draws 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. 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE ROSE. 149 
 
 " 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 gath- 
 ering 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 de- 
 scribed, or at least none but an ocular witness could con- 
 ceive of their numbers. Destruction by hand was out of 
 the question ' in this case. He put sheets under the tree, 
 and 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 suc- 
 ceed 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. 
 
150 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 During the time of their prevalence, rose-bugs are some- 
 times found in immense numbers on the flowers of the 
 common white-weed, or ox-eye daisy, ( Chrysanthemum 
 leucanthemmn,) a worthless plant, whicli has come to us 
 from Europe, and has been suffered to overrun our pas- 
 tures, 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 in- 
 forms 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 {Carahus 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 in- 
 crease of our native Melolontbians." — Harris. 
 
 A. J. Downing recommends the use of open-mouthed 
 buttles, half filled (and occasionally renewed) with a mix- 
 ture of sweetened water and vinegar, and placed about 
 the plant. He also recommends pouring boiling water on 
 the ground, under the bushes, at the first appearance of 
 the insects, and before their wings are formed. They 
 nearly all rise to the surface of the ground, and emerge 
 about the same time that the Damask Rose first begins 
 
DISEASES AND INSECTS ATTACKING THE ROSE. 151 
 
 to open. A little observation will enable the cultivator 
 to seize the right time for the scalding operation. 
 
 Rose Leaf- Hopper. — Tettigonia Rosm of Harris, who 
 states that it has been mistaken for the Vine-fretter, 
 or Thrips. It is yellowish white, and about three-twenti- 
 eths of an inch long ; the male has two recurved append- 
 ages at the tip of its hind body. Dr. Harris says, " Swarms 
 of these insects may be found in various stages of growth 
 on the leaves of the rose-bush through the greater part of 
 summer, and even in winter upon housed plants. Their 
 numerous cast skins may be seen adhering to the lower 
 side of the leaves. They pair and lay their eggs about 
 the middle of June, and they probably live through the 
 winter in the perfect state, concealed under fallen leaves 
 and rubbish on the surface of the ground. Fumigation 
 with tobacco, and the application of a solution of whale- 
 oil soap in water with a syringe, is the best means for 
 destroying these leaf-hoppers." 
 
 "We have enumerated but a very small part of the nu- 
 merous insects which infest the rose, and in the absence 
 of correct information on this important branch of flori- 
 culture, it is much to be hoped that farther investigations 
 will be made by men of leisure. As an instance of the great 
 variety of these insects, a French writer remarks that he 
 *^'found in less than an hour, on the leaves of two species only 
 of the Rose, six kinds of small caterpillars, all differing from 
 each other in the number of their feet, the color of their 
 head and body, and the lines and points with which they 
 were marked. Their habits were all apparently the same. 
 They lived between two or three folds which they had se- 
 cured in shape by the films of their silk. Thus enveloped 
 and protected, they eat the leaf until it is wholly or at 
 least partly consumed. They then endeavor to establish 
 themselves on another leaf, in which also they enwrap 
 themselves, and consume it in the same manner. The 
 
152 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 plants attacked by these caterpillars are known by their 
 ruffled leaves, partly eaten, and more or less covered with 
 silk." The writer does not give their name, nor the re- 
 sult of any experiments for their destruction ; he merely 
 mentions it as an instance of the great abundance of in- 
 sects on almost every plant. Such being the case, there 
 is abundant room for farther observation and research, i 
 
HISTORY OF THE ROSE. 
 
 " Round every flower there gleams a glory, 
 Bequeathed by antique song or story ; 
 To each old legends give a name, 
 And its peculiar charm proclaim. 
 O'er smiling lawn, through shady grore, 
 Our dreaming poets pensive rove, 
 And strive to read their language rare, 
 And learn the lesson latent there." 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE ROSE, AND FABLES 
 RESPECTING ITS ORIGIN. 
 
 Very little is known of the early history of the Rose, 
 or who were its first cultivators ; and on this point all is 
 conjecture. Mention of it is made in the ancient Coptic 
 manuscripts, while nothing concerning it can be distin- 
 guished, with any degree of certainty, on the Egyptian 
 monuments which are left us. Bocastre, the French trav- 
 eler, observes that he carefully searched all the monuments 
 in Egypt, and could find neither sculpture nor painting, 
 figure nor hieroglyphic, that would lead us to suppose that 
 the Rose was cultivated by the ancient Egyptians. We 
 are, however, induced to believe that this beautiful flower 
 was known to them, from the fact that several varieties 
 are now found in Egypt. Dr. Delile, Director of the Bo- 
 tanic Garden at Montpelier, and with whom we enjoyed 
 some pleasant intercourse during a visit to that place, 
 was with Napoleon in his expedition to Egypt. In his 
 153 7* 
 
154 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 valuable published account of that expedioion, he men- 
 tions that he found there two Roses — B,osa alha^ and 
 Rosa centifolia ; and there is also reason to believe, that 
 under Domitian the Egyptians cultivated another — Hosa 
 hifera. It is quite probable that the Rose was planted in 
 the celebrated gardens of Babylon, the formation of which 
 is attributed to Semiramis, about 1200 years before the 
 Christian era; and it also appears probable, from the test- 
 imony of modern travelers, that several kinds of roses 
 crossed over into Persia. 
 
 It is very certain that the Rose was cultivated by the 
 Jews during the reign of Solomon, abou'3 two centuries 
 after Semiramis ; for mention of this flower is made in the 
 Scripture books attributed to that king. In the Song of 
 Solomon, he says : " I am the Rose of Sharon, and the 
 Lily of the valleys ;" and in the Apocryphal Wisdom of 
 Solomon — "Let us crown ourselves with rose-buds before 
 they be withered." 
 
 It also appears, by several passages of the Book of 
 Ecclesiasticus, the author of which lived about 700 years 
 after Solomon, that the Jews possessed beautiful gardens 
 of roses, particularly at Jericho. " I was exalted like a 
 pabn-tree in Engaddi, and as a rose-plant in Jericho :" 
 xxiv. 14. "Hearken unto me, ye holy children, and bud 
 forth as a rose growing by the brook of the field :" xxxix. 
 13. " And as the flower of roses in the spring of the 
 year :" 1. 8. These passages prove that this most fertile 
 and beautiful portion of Palestine abounded in roses, 
 palms, and cedars. They no longer, however, abound; 
 for while " the cedars wave on Lebanon," and the solitary 
 palm stands in its isolated beauty, the Rose has entirely 
 disappeared; and that now called the Rose of Jericho is 
 but a little plant of the family of Cruciferce. The Greeks 
 cultivated the Rose at an early period, during the time 
 of Homer, who lived about 200 years after the wise He- 
 brew monarch. In the Iliad and Odyssey he borrows the 
 
HISTORY OF THE ROSE. 155 
 
 brilliant colors of the Rose to paint the rising of the sun. 
 Aurora, according to this poet, has fingers of roses, and 
 perfumes the air with roses. Few poets are more cele- 
 brated than Homer for beauty of conception, and for his 
 frequent similes borrowed from natural objects. His se- 
 lection, in this instance, evinces that the Rose was neither 
 an unknown nor an unadmired flower. Herodotus, who 
 lived about 400 years before the Christian era, mentions 
 that in Macedonia, in the gardens which were supposed 
 to have belonged to Midas, there were roses of sixty pet- 
 als, which grew spontaneously without culture, and 
 emitted a most delightful perfume. 
 
 Ancient writings are full of allusions to the Rose, and 
 fabulous accounts of its origin. From its brilliant colors, 
 melting into each other as the shades of night melt into 
 the glowing richness of the rising sun, it was frequently 
 consecrated to Aurora. It was also consecrated to Har- 
 pocrates, the patron of Silence, of which it was consider- 
 ed the symbol. Thus the expression, " sub rosa "^ (under 
 the Rose), signified that all that was said should remain 
 secret ; and there is scarcely used a more expressive de- 
 vice for a seal than the simple figure of a Rose. It was 
 the custom, in some of the northern countries, to suspend 
 a Rose over the table in the dining-room, reminding th'e 
 guests that silence should be observed respecting all that 
 might be said during the meal. 
 
 Anacreon, Bion, Theocritus, ApoUodorus, and others, 
 relate various fables respecting its origin, and its obtain- 
 ing the bright color for wliich it is distinguished. 
 
 One fable relates that Flora, having found the dead 
 body of one of her favorite nymphs, whose beauty could 
 only bo equaled by her virtue, implored the assistance of 
 all tlie Olympian deities to aid her in changing it into a 
 flower, which all others should acknowledge to be their 
 queen. Apollo lent the vivifying power of his beams, 
 Bacchus bathed it in nectar, Vertumnus gave its perfume, 
 
156 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Pomona its fruit, and Flora herself gave its diadem of 
 flowers. A beetle is often represented on antique gems 
 as expiring, surrounded by roses ; and this is supposed to 
 be an emblem of luxurious enervation ; the beetle being 
 said to have such an antipathy to roses, that the smell of 
 them will cause its death. 
 
 From the earliest period the Greeks gave to the Rose 
 the preference over all other plants, and distinguished it 
 as the " Queen of Flowers." In the fragments which still 
 exist of Sappho, who lived about 600 years before the 
 Christian era, there are lines in which the Rose is placed 
 in the highest rank. 
 
 Since Sappho, many poets, both ancient and modern, 
 have celebrated in their songs the charming qualities 
 of the Rose. They have chosen it for an emblem 
 of the most beautiful things — for the most pleasing and 
 delightful comparisons ; and they have united in making 
 it the symbol of innocence, of modesty, of grace, and of 
 beauty. Quite a volume might be collected of all the 
 verses and pleasant sentences that have been inspired by 
 the elegant form of the Rose, its charming color, and de- 
 lightful fragrance. Some of these we have inserted in 
 another part of the work. Nothing proves better the 
 preference which has always existed for this beautiful 
 flower than the thoughts expressed by Sappho. Anacreon 
 and the other poets of antiquity have since imitated her 
 in almost every language, and the lines of these have sac- 
 rificed nothing of her elegance and freshness. 
 
 The poets and writers of the East have abundantly 
 celebrated in their works the beauties of the Rose. Ac- 
 cording to the Boun-Dehesch, of Zoroaster, the stem of 
 that flower was free from thorns until the entrance of 
 Ahrimanus (the evil one) into the world ; the universal 
 spirit of evil, according to their doctrine, aflecting not 
 only man, but also the inferior animals, and even the very 
 trees and plants. The same work states that every flower 
 
HISTORY OF THE ROSE. 157 
 
 is appropriated to a particular angel, and that the hund- 
 red-leaved Rose (Rosa centifolia) is consecrated to an 
 archangel of the highest order. Basil, one of the early- 
 fathers, had undoubtedly seen these passages in oriental 
 works, when he related that at the creation of the world 
 the Rose had no thorns, and that it was gradually fur- 
 nished with them as mankind became more corrupt. 
 
 The oriental writers also represent the nightingale as 
 sighing for the love of the Rose ; and many beautiful 
 stanzas have arisen from this fable. According to the 
 Language of Flowers ; " In a curious fragment by the cele- 
 brated Persian poet, Attar, entitled Bulhul Nameh^ the 
 Book of the Nightingale, all the birds appear before Solo- 
 mon, and charge the nightingale with disturbing their rest 
 by the broken and plaintive strains which he warbles forth 
 all the night in a sort of frenzy and intoxication. The 
 nightingale is summoned, questioned, and acquitted by 
 the wise king ; because the bird assures him that his ve- 
 hement love for the Rose drives him to distraction, and 
 causes him to break forth into those passionate and touch- 
 ing complaints which are laid to his charge." The same 
 work also mentions that the Persians assert that " the 
 nightingale, in spring, flutters around the rose-bushes, ut- 
 tering incessant complaints, till, overpowered by the 
 strong scent, he drops stupefied on the ground." The in- 
 vention of these fables, extravagant as they are, evince 
 the Persian fondness for this beautiful flower. The Ghe- 
 bers, or Persian fire-worshipers, believe that Abraham was 
 thrown into the fire by Nimrod, when the flame turned 
 into a bed of roses. According to the Hindoo mytholo- 
 gy. Pagoda Siri, one of the wives of Yishnu, was found 
 in a rose. 
 
 Among the many stories of roses in the East, is that 
 of the philosopher Zeb, related by Madame de Latour. 
 " There was at Amadan, in Persia, an academy with the 
 following rules : Its members must think much write a 
 
158 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 little, and be as silent as possible. The learned Zeb, cele- 
 brated through all the East, learning that there was a 
 vacancy in the academy, endeavored to obtain it, but ar- 
 rived, unfortunately, too late. The academy was annoyed 
 because it had given to power what belonged to merit ; 
 and the president, not knowing how to express a refusal 
 without mortifying the assembly, caused a cup to be 
 brought, which he filled so full of water, that a single 
 drop more would have made it run over. The wise phi- 
 losopher understood by that emblem that no place re- 
 mained for him, and was retiring sadly, when he per- 
 ceived a rose petal at his feet. At that sight he took 
 courage, seized the petal, and placed it so delicately on 
 the water, that not a single drop escaped. At this in- 
 genious allusion to the rules of the academy, the whole 
 assembly clapped their hands, and the philosopher was 
 admitted as a member." Madame de Gen lis relates very 
 nearly the same anecdote, but attributes it to Abdul-kadri, 
 a person celebrated among the Turks, who was desirous 
 of residing at Babylon, where they were unwilling to re- 
 ceive him. 
 
 The Turks themselves, matter-of-fact as they are, have 
 also seen something marvelous in the beautiM and vivid 
 tints which the hand of nature has painted on the corolla 
 of the Rose; but their imagination, less glowing than 
 that of the Greeks, furnished them an idea more singular 
 than pleasing. They suppose that the Rose owed its 
 origin to the perspiration which fell from Mahomet ; for 
 which reason they never tread upon a rose-leaf, or suffer 
 one to lie on the ground. 
 
 Meshilu, the Turkish poet, speaks of " a pavilion of 
 roses as the seat of pleasure raised in the garden ;" of 
 " roses like the bright cheeks of beautiful maidens ; " of 
 the time when " the plants were sick, and the rose-bud 
 hung its thoughtful head on its bosom ;" and of the *' dew, 
 as it falls, being changed into rose-water." They also 
 
HISTORY OF THE ROSE. 159 
 
 sculpture a rose on the tombstone of a female who dies 
 an married. 
 
 The early Roman Catholics have made the Rose the 
 subject of various miraculous events, one of which is 
 attributed to the canonized Elizabeth, Queen of Hungary. 
 As the French author, Montalembert, relates it in his his- 
 tory of that Queen, Elizabeth loved to carry to the poor 
 herself, by stealth, not only money, but even food, and 
 other things which she had provided for them. She went 
 thus loaded, and on foot, by the steep and hidden paths 
 which led from the chateau to the town, and to the cot- 
 tages in the neighboring valleys. One day, when, accom- 
 panied by her favorite maid, she was descending by a 
 rough and scarcely visible path, carrying under her cloak 
 some bread, meat, eggs, and other food, for distribution 
 among the poor, she was suddenly met by her husband, 
 who was returning from the chase. Astonished to see 
 her thus bending under the weight of her burden, he said 
 to her, " Let me see what you are carrying." At the 
 same time he threw open the cloak, which she held, with 
 terror, to her breast, but found, as the legend says, noth- 
 ing there but some white and red roses, the most beauti- 
 ful he had ever seen. 
 
 D'Orbessan, in his work on the Rose, states, that in the 
 churrh of Sainte-Luzanne, at Rome, is a mosaic of the 
 time of Charlemagne, in which that prince is represented 
 in a square mantle, and on his knees, while St. Peter is 
 placing in his hands a standard covered with roses. 
 
 Michaud, in his Biographie Universelle, speaks of 
 Clemence Isaure, a French lady, who lived in the latter 
 part of the fifteenth century. She bequeathed to the 
 academy of Toulouse a large income, exclusively for the 
 celebration of floral games, and for the distribution of 
 five prizes for as many pieces of poetry. The prizes con- 
 sisted of an amaranth and rose of gold, and of a violet, 
 martgold, and lily, of silver. The will also required that 
 
160 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 every three years, on the day of the commencement of 
 the floral games, among other ceremonies to be observed, 
 the members of the academy should, visit and spread 
 flowers upon her tomb. Ronsard, the French poet, hav- 
 ing gained the first prize in the floral games, received, in 
 place of the accustomed rose, a silver image of Minerva. 
 Mary, Queen of Scots, was so much delighted with Ron- 
 sard's beautiful poetry on the Rose, that she sent him a 
 magnificent rose of silver, valued at £500, with this in- 
 scription :—"J^. Hansard. VApollon de la source des 
 
LUXURIOUS USE OF THE ROSE. 161 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 LUXURIOUS USE OF THE ROSE. 
 
 The ancients possessed, at a very early period, the lux- 
 ury of roses, and the Romans brought it to perfection by 
 covering with beds of these flowers the couches whereon 
 their guests were placed, and even the tables which were 
 used for banquets ;* while some emperors went so far as 
 to scatter them in the halls of their palaces. At Rome, 
 they were, at one time, brought from Egypt in that part 
 of the year when Italy could not produce them ; but af- 
 terwards, in order to render these luxuries more easily at- 
 tainable during the winter by the leaders of the ton in 
 that capital city of the world's empire, their gardeners 
 found the means of producing, in green-houses warmed 
 by means of pipes filled with hot water, an artificial tem- 
 perature, which kept roses and lilies in bloom until the 
 last of the year. Seneca declaimed, with a show of ridi- 
 cule, against these improvements;! but, without being 
 discouraged by the reasoning of the philosopher, the Ro- 
 mans carried their green-houses to such perfection that, 
 at length, during the reign of Domitian, when the Egyp- 
 tians thought to pay him a splendid compliment in honor 
 of his birthday, by sending him roses in the midst of 
 winter, their present excited nothing but ridicule and 
 disdain, so abundant had winter roses become at Rome 
 by the efforts of art. Few of the Latin poets have been 
 
 * " Tempora Bnbtilius pinguntur tecta coronis, 
 Et latent injecta splendida mensa Rosa." (Ovid, lib. v.) 
 
 t "Non vivunt contra naturam, qui hieme concupiscunt Rosam? 
 Fomentoque aquarum calentium, et calorum apta imitatione, bnima 
 lilium florem vemum, exprimunt." {Seneca^ epistle 123-8.) 
 
162 PAESONS ON THE BOSE. 
 
 more celebrated for their epigrammatic wit than Martial ; 
 and his epigram " To Caesar, on the Winter Roses," serves 
 to show that the culture of roses at Rome was carried to 
 such perfection as to make the attempts of foreign com- 
 petitors subjects only for ridicule. 
 
 " The ambitious inhabitants of the land watered by the 
 Nile have sent thee, O Caesar, the roses of winter, as a 
 present valuable for its novelty. But the boatman of 
 Memphis will laugh at the gardens of Pharaoh as soon as 
 he has taken one step in thy capital city — for the spring, 
 in its charms, and the flowers in their fragrance and 
 beauty, equal the glory of the fields of Paestum. Wher- 
 ever he wanders or casts his eyes, every street is brilliant 
 wdth garlands of roses. And thou, O Mle, must now 
 yield to the fogs of Rome. Send us thy harvests, and we 
 will send thee roses." 
 
 By this passage it is evident that the cultivation of 
 Roses among the ancients was much farther advanced 
 than is generally supposed. In another epigram Martial 
 speaks again of roses, which were formerly seen only in 
 the spring, but which, in his time, had become common 
 during the winter. We are, also, but copyists of the Ro- 
 mans in the cultivation of flowers in windows ; for vases 
 of every style of beauty, and filled with roses, were a fre- 
 quent ornament of their windows. Martial says that a 
 miserly patron had made him a present of a very small 
 estate, and adds that he has a much better country place 
 in his window. Much that illustrates the use which the 
 ancients made of roses in their ceremonies, in their festi- 
 vals, and in their domestic life, may be found in various 
 authors, evincing still more how very common the use of 
 them had become. Floras relates that Antiochus, king 
 of Syria, being encamped in the island of Euboea, under 
 woven tents of silk and gold, was not only accompanied 
 by a band of musicians, but that he might yet more en- 
 hance his pleasures, he wished to procure roses; and 
 
LUXURIOUS USE OF THE ROSE. 163 
 
 although it was in tlie midst of winter, he caused them to 
 be collected from every quarter. 
 
 The gallants of Rome were in the habit of presenting 
 their favorite damsels with the first roses that appeared 
 ill spring; and " Jfea rosa " was an affectionate expres- 
 sion they often used to their betrothed. 
 
 We frequently find in old Latin authors an entire aban- 
 donment to pleasure and excessive luxury, signified by 
 such expressions as " living in the midst of roses," "sleep- 
 ing on roses," etc. (" Vivere in rosa,''^ ^^dormire in rosa.^^) 
 
 Seneca speaks of Smyndiride, the most wealthy and 
 voluptuous of the Sybarites, who could not sleep if a sin- 
 gle one of the rose-petals with which his bed was spread, 
 happened to be curled. 
 
 Cicero, in his " De finibus^'' alludes to the custom which 
 prevailed at Rome at that time, of reclining at the table 
 on couches covered with roses ; and comparing the happi- 
 ness which virtue gives to the pleasures of luxury says, 
 that " Regulus, in his chains, was more happy than Thori- 
 us drinking on a couch of roses, and living in such a man- 
 ner that one could scarcely imagine any rare and ex- 
 quisite pleasure of which he did not partake." 
 
 The same author, in his celebrated speech against 
 Verres, the greatest extortioner whose name is recorded 
 in history, reproached him not only with the outrageous 
 robberies and cruelties which he committed during the 
 three years that he was governor of Sicily, but yet more 
 with his effeminacy and licentiousness. " When spring 
 commenced," said the Roman orator, " that season was 
 not announced to him by the return of Zephyr, nor by the 
 appearance of any heavenly sign ; it was not until he had 
 seen the roses bloom that spring was visible to his volup- 
 tuous eye. In the voyages which he made across the 
 province, he was accustomed, after the example of the 
 kings of Bithynia, to be carried in a litter borne by dght 
 men, in which he reposed, softly extended upon cushions 
 
164 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 made of transparent material, and filled with roses of 
 Malta, having in his hand a net of the finest linen, and 
 equally full of these flowers, whose fragrance incessantly- 
 gratified his eager nostrils." 
 
 Latinus Pacatus, in his enlogium on the Emperor Theo- 
 dosius, inveighs against the luxury of the Romans, whose 
 sensual desires, he says, were not satisfied until they had 
 reversed the order of the seasons, and produced roses in 
 the winter season to crown their cup of wine, and until 
 their Falernian, during the summer, was cooled in large 
 vessels filled with ice. The forcing of roses in winter is 
 no longer extensively practiced in Rome ; but during the 
 summer they are abundant, and we recollect being much 
 struck with admiration of some beautiful hedges of the 
 Daily rose in the villas near Rome. 
 
 After reading the preceding statements of the abund- 
 ance of roses among the ancient Romans, it is with some 
 surprise that we recollect the great scarcity of that flower 
 during the gayest and most animated festival of the mod- 
 em Romans — the Carnival. As we slowly walked along 
 the Corso, submitting with as quiet a grace as possible to 
 the various fantastic tricks of the masked figures around 
 us, and occasionally pelted Avith handfuls of sugar-plums 
 from the windows, or passing carriages, we looked in vain 
 for roses or camellias in the numerous bouquets that were 
 cleaving the air around us. Little bouquets of violets 
 were numerous, and the air was thick with them, as our 
 eyes, nose, and mouth, could bear striking witness ; and 
 we recollect, too, the contemptuous curl of the lip, and 
 rush of the aristocratic blood into the face of a fair En- 
 glish girl in one of the carriages whose blue eyes had been 
 nearly closed by an awkward cast of one of these little 
 bouquets from the hand of a plebian performer. But we 
 only recollect catching a glimpse now and then of a single 
 rose or camellia, skillfully passed by a cavalier below into 
 the hands of some dark-eyed beauty in the balconies 
 
LUXURIOUS USE OP THE HOSE. 165 
 
 above, the bright sparkle of whose eye convinced us that 
 the single flower was of value, and a mark of especial re- 
 gard. The Rose appeared to be valued as some rare 
 exotic, and not to be idly bestowed where there was small 
 probability of its due appreciation ; it was, indeed, a 
 " vara flora in urhe^'' and quite superseded by the very 
 pretty and abundant violets. 
 
 The modem Romans have not only lost many of the 
 good qualities of their early ancestors, but they have also 
 escaped much of the effeminate softness which character- 
 ized the Romans under some of the later emperors ; and, 
 as belonging to this state of luxury, the cultivation of the 
 Rose has, in modern times, been much neglected. The 
 homage of the Romans is now reserved for art, and the 
 beautiful products of nature are, in their opinion, worthy 
 only of secondary consideration. The Rose is now most- 
 ly confined in that city to the residences of the wealthier 
 classes, and can scarcely be said to have resumed its old 
 place in Roman esteem until it is again a favorite with 
 the mass of the people. 
 
 When Cleopatra went into Cilicia to meet Mark An- 
 tony, she gave him, for several successive days, festivals 
 in which she displayed a truly royal magnificence. She 
 caused to be placed in the banqueting hall twelve couches, 
 each of which would hold three guests. The walls were 
 covered with purple tapestry, interwoven with gold ; all 
 the vases were of gold, admirably executed, and enriched 
 with precious stones. 
 
 On the fourth day, the queen carried her sumptuous- 
 ness so far as to pay a talent (about six hundred dollars) 
 for a quantity of roses, with which she caused the floor 
 of the hall to be covered to the depth of eighteen inches. 
 These flowers were retained by a very fine net, in order 
 that the guests might walk over them. 
 
 After the loss of the battle of Actium, Antony, not 
 wishing to survive his defeat, from fear of falling into 
 
166 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 the hands of Augustus, thrust himself through with his 
 sword, and requested Cleopatra to scatter perfumes over 
 his tomb, and to cover it with roses. 
 
 The greatest profusion of roses mentioned in ancient 
 history, and which is scarcely credible, is that which Sue- 
 tonius attributes to Nero. This author says, that at a 
 fete which the emperor gave in the Gulf of Baiae, when 
 inns were established on the banks, and ladies of distinc- 
 tion played the part of hostesses, the expense incurred for 
 roses alone was more than four millions of sesterces — 
 about 1100,000. Since Nero, many of his successors have 
 nearly equaled him in prodigal enjoyment of the luxury 
 of roses. Lucius Aurelius Yerus, whose licentiousness 
 and destitution of every manly quality equaled that of 
 the worst emperors, but whom no one reproaches with 
 any act of cruelty, was the inventor of a new species of 
 luxury. He had a couch made on which were four laised 
 cushions, closed on all sides by a very thin net, and filled 
 with leaves of roses. Heliogabalus, celebrated for luxury 
 and vice of every kind, caused roses to be crushed with 
 the kernels of the pine (Pinus maritima), in order to in- 
 crease the perfume. The same emperor caused roses to 
 be scattered over the couches, the halls, and even the 
 porticoes of the palace, and he renewed this profusion 
 with flowers of every kind — lilies, violets, hyacinths, nar- 
 cissus, etc. Gallien, another equally cruel and luxurious 
 prince, lay, according to some authors, under arbors of 
 roses ; and, according to others, on beds covered with 
 these flowers. And finally, Carrius, another licentious 
 and prodigal emperor, who reigned only a few months 
 caused roses to be scattered over the chambers of hi' 
 palace, and on the couches of his guests. 
 
ETC. 167 
 
 CHAPTER Xn. 
 
 THE ROSE, IN CEREMONIES AND FESTIVALS, AND IN 
 THE ADORNMENT OF BURIAL-PLACES. 
 
 Among the ancients, the Rose was conspicuous in all 
 the sacred ceremonies, and in public and private fetes. 
 The Greeks and the Romans surrounded the statues of 
 Venus, of Hebe, and of Flora, with garlands of roses. 
 They were lavish of these flowers at the festivals of Flora; 
 in those of Juno, at Argos, the statue of the Olympian 
 Queen was crowned with lilies and roses. In the festivals 
 of Hymen, at Athens, the youth of both sexes, crowned 
 with roses and adorned with flowers, mingled in dances 
 which were intended to represent the innocence of prime- 
 val times. At Rome, in the public rejoicings, they some- 
 times strewed the streets with roses and other flowers. 
 It is thus that Lucretius gives a description of the manner 
 in which were celebrated the festivals of Cybele.* 
 
 To scatter flowers on the passage of the funeral proces- 
 sion of a private citizen was an honor not common at 
 Rome. Pliny informs us, however, that a Scipio, belong- 
 ing to the illustrious family of that name, who while he 
 was tribune, fulfilled his duties to the satisfaction of the 
 people, dying without leaving sufficient to pay his funeral 
 expenses, the people voluntarily contributed to pay them, 
 and on the appearance of the body, cast flowers upon its 
 passage. 
 
 " Ergo cum primum, magnas invecta per urbes 
 Munificat tacita mortales muta salute; 
 ^re atque argento, sternunt iter omne viarum. 
 Largifica stipe dilantes, niuguntque Rosarum 
 Floribus, umbrantes raatrem comitumque catervas." 
 
 Lucretius, lib. ii., ver. 625. 
 
168 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 At Baise, when fetes were given upon the water, the 
 whole surface of the lake of Lucina appeared covered 
 with roses. 
 
 The custom of encircling the head, of surrounding the 
 neck, and also the breast, with crowns and garlands of 
 roses, on different occasions, and j^articularly during the 
 last days of a gay festival, when, after the solid dishes, 
 they passed to the dessert and the rare wines, is well 
 known by the odes of Anacreon, and from the writings 
 of several of the ancient poets. 
 
 The voluptuous Horace, when he abandoned himself to 
 pleasures, was always supplied with roses. In congratu- 
 lating one of his friends on his safe return from Spain, he 
 recommended that these flowers should not be wanting at 
 the festival. On another occasion, he told his favorite 
 servant that he cordially disliked the pompous displays of 
 the Persians, and escaped them by searching in what 
 place the late Rose was found. Drawing a picture of 
 luxurious ease for his friend Hirpinus, he speaks of " lying 
 under the shade of a lofty Plane or Pine tree, perfuming 
 our spotless hair with Assyrian spikenard, and crowning 
 ourselves with roses." We can very well judge how 
 general had become the custom of making crowns of 
 roses, from the number of times which it is mentioned in 
 Pliny, and the frequency with which Martial speaks of it 
 in his epigrams. The latter author also informs us, that 
 in the very height of Roman luxury and reveling, the 
 most favorable time for solicitingr and obtaining: a favor 
 was when the patron was entirely given up to the pleas- 
 ures of the table and of roses.* 
 
 Whatever doubt may exist of the use of crowns of 
 roses, as objects of luxury, it is well authenticated, that 
 
 * " Haec bora est tu;v, dum furit L3-8eus 
 Cum regnat Rosa, cum madent capilli, 
 Tunc me vel rigidi legant Catones." 
 
 Lib. X., epig. 19. 
 
THE ROSE IN CEREMONIES, ETC. 169 
 
 among medical men of antiquity, endeavors were made to 
 determine what kinds of flowers were suitable to place in 
 crowns without detriment to health; and according to 
 the report made on this subject, the parsley, the ivy, the 
 myrtle, and the Rose, possessed peculiar virtues for dis- 
 sipating the fumes of the wine. According to Athenaeus, 
 a crown of roses possessed not only the property of allevi- 
 ating pain in the head, but had a very refreshing effect. 
 
 Pliny mentions two Greek physicians — Mnesitheus and 
 Callimachus, — who wrote on this subject. 
 
 The custom of crowning with roses had passed from 
 the Greeks to the Romans, and it also existed among the 
 Hebrews, who had probably borrowed it from some of the 
 neighboring nations, either from the Egyptians, in the 
 midst of whom they had spent many years, or from the 
 Babylonians, with whom they had in the captivity much 
 connection. The practice of this custom among the 
 Israelites is attested by the previously quoted passage, 
 in the apocryphal " Wisdom of Solomon." 
 
 At Rome it was not only at the religious festivals that 
 they crowned themselves with roses and other flowers, 
 but it was the custom to wear these crowns during public 
 and private fetes ; they were strictly forbidden at some 
 other times, and above all on certain public occasions, 
 where to appear with such an ornament would pass for an 
 insult to a public calamity. Pliny informs us, that during 
 the second Punic war, which lasted sixteen years, a banker 
 named Lucius Fulvius, for looking from his gallery on the 
 Forum, and wearing a crown of roses on his head, was, 
 by order of the Senate, sent to prison, from which he was 
 not liberated until the end of the war. 
 
 This anecdote, moreover, proves that crowns of roses 
 were in fashion at Rome at an early period, and before 
 licentiousness and luxury had yet made many inroads up- 
 on the national character. 
 
 It may readily be supposed, that at Rome, under th« 
 8 
 
170 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 emperors, the use of crowns of flowers was, like every 
 other species of luxury at that time, constantly on the in- 
 crease. At first they wore the crowns interwoven with 
 leaves of flowers, then they wore them composed partly 
 of roses, and finally they were not satisfied unless they 
 'consisted of these flowers only. 
 
 Martial, as we have already mentioned, speaks often of 
 his crowns of roses. The crown sent by this poet to his 
 friend Sabinus was composed entirely of these flowers, 
 and he was desirous that they should be considered the 
 production of his own gardens. 
 
 From the poverty of Turkish history, little is known of 
 the early use of the Rose among them. We have, how- 
 ever, some account of its use among the Mohammedan 
 Persians. 
 
 Although wine was forbidden by the laws of Mahomet, 
 the Persians frequently made use of it ; and in the time 
 of Tavernier and of Chardin, they frequently drank it to 
 excess. One of their kings, Soliman III., was intoxicated 
 almost every day ; and it was the custom then in Persia, 
 to serve the wine in crystal decanters, which, when the 
 season permitted, they corked with roses. 
 
 The most interesting purpose to which roses were de- 
 voted was the adornment of tombs and burial-places. 
 The Greeks employed generally for this object, the myrtle 
 and the amaranth ; but the Romans gave the preference 
 to the lily, the saffron-plant, and, above all, the Rose. 
 
 The ancients were careful to renew the plants which 
 were placed around the sepulchral urn, in order that it 
 might be surrounded by a continual spring. These flow- 
 ers were regarded as sacred, and as a relic of the deceased. 
 
 The Romans considered this pious care so agreeable to 
 the spirits of the departed, that wealthy citizens bequeath- 
 ed by will entire gardens, to be reserved for furnishing 
 their tombs with flowers. They also often ordered that 
 their heirs, or those to whom they left a legacy for the 
 
THE EOSE IN CEREMONIES, ETC. 171 
 
 care of their ashes, should meet together every year, on 
 the anniversary of their death, and dine near their tomb, 
 scattering roses about the place. This custom is attested 
 by several stories of ancient Roman tombs. One with an 
 ancient inscription was found at Ravenna, and others in 
 some other parts of Italy. 
 
 D'Orbessan, in his " Essai sur Us Hoses,^^ mentions hav- 
 ing seen, at Torcello, a city about five miles from Venice, 
 an inscription of this kind, mentioning a donation made 
 by an emancipated slave to the assembly of the Centum, 
 consisting of gardens and a building to be employed in 
 celebrating his obsequies and those of his master. It re- 
 quested that roses should not be spared, and that food 
 should be then distributed in abundance. Generally, the 
 donation made on condition of covering the funeral monu- 
 ment with roses was transferred to another, if that con- 
 dition was not fulfilled. Sometimes the most terrible 
 maledictions threatened those who dared to violate these 
 sacred gardens. That which proves how frequent among 
 the Romans was this custom of ornamenting tombs with 
 roses is, that those who were not rich enough to make 
 such bequests often directed to be engraved upon the 
 stone which covered their remains a request to the passers- 
 by to scatter roses upon their tomb. Some of these stones 
 still exist, with the following inscription : " Sparge, pre- 
 cor, Hosas supra mea busta, viator. ''"' It was, perhaps, 
 because they compared the short duration of human life 
 to the quick fading existence of the Rose, that this flower 
 was devoted to the burial-place of the dead ; and there 
 can certainly be chosen no more beautiful emblem of this 
 transitory state of existence. This supposition is some- 
 what strengthened by the following passage from Jerome, 
 one of the early Christian fathers : 
 
 "The ancients scattered roses over the urns of the deceased, and in 
 their wills ordered that these flowers should adorn their graves, and 
 should be renewed every year. It was also the custom for husbands to 
 
173 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 cast roses, violets, and lilies, on the ums which enclosed the ashes of 
 their wives. These modest flowers were emblematic signs of their 
 grief. Our Christians were content to place a Rose among the ornaments 
 of their graves, as the image of life." 
 
 In Turkey, females that died unmarried had a rose 
 sculptured at the top of their monument. 
 
 At the well-known cemetery of Pere la Chaise, which 
 has often excited the ecstasy, admiration, or praise of many 
 travelers, but which in reality exhibits neither elegance, 
 sentiment, nor taste, wreaths of roses and other flowers 
 are frequently seen upon the thickly crowded tombs, either 
 as mementos of affection, or in compliance with a popular 
 custom ; while the street leading to the cemetery is filled 
 with shops in which are exposed for sale the wreaths of 
 flowers. 
 
 The prevalence of the same custom in Denmark is al- 
 luded to by Shakespeare, in Hamlet, in the scene of 
 Ophelia's burial. 
 
 The custom still remains also in America and Great 
 Britain. In "Wales, when a young girl dies, her female 
 companions bring flowers with them to her funeral, and 
 place them in her coffin. They plant lilies and snow-drops 
 over the graves of children, and wild and cultivated roses 
 over those of adults. 
 
 Gwillym, a Welsh poet, thus speaks .of the custom in 
 one of his elegies : — " Oh ! while the season of flowers 
 and the tender sprays, thick of leaves, remain, I will pluck 
 the roses from the brakes, to be offered to the memory of 
 a child of fairest fame ; humbly will I lay them on the 
 grave of Ivor." 
 
 Evelyn tells us that *' the white rose was planted at the 
 grave of a virgin, and her chaplet was tied with white 
 riband, in token of her spotless innocence ; though some- 
 times black ribands were intermingled, to bespeak the 
 grief of the survivors. The red rose was occasionally 
 used in remembrance of such as had been remarkable for 
 
THE ROSE IN CEEEMONIES, ETC. 173 
 
 their benievolence ; but roses in general were appropriated 
 to the graves of lovers." 
 
 Drummond, the Scotch poet, requested one of his 
 friends to have the following couplet placed over his grave : 
 " Here Damon lies, whose songs did sometimes grace 
 The murmuring Esk : — may roses shade the place." 
 
 The first Christians disapproved of the use of these 
 flowers, either at their festivals or as ornaments for their 
 tombs, on account of its connection with the pagan my- 
 thology, and the custom thus became extinct. Tertullian 
 wrote a book against crowns and garlands. Clement of 
 Alexandria thought it improper that Christians should 
 crown themselves with roses. A little later, however, 
 Christians relaxed from this strictness, and the Christian 
 poet Prudence did not fear to invite his brethen " to cover 
 with violets and with verdure, and to surround with per- 
 fumes those bones which the voice of the AU-Powerful 
 would one day restore to life." 
 
 The Roman Catholics of this day admit flowers to their 
 churches and ceremonies, and on feast days they adorn 
 the altars with bouquets and garlands. At the most im- 
 posing of these solemnities, the day of the " Fete-Dieu^"* 
 rose petals, during the procession, are scattered in the air, 
 and blended with the perfume of censers, directed towards 
 the Host; in many of the towns, particularly those in the 
 south of France and of Europe, the streets through which 
 the procession passes are scattered throughout with fra- 
 grant herbs and flowers of every kind. 
 
 Since the extinction of paganism in a greater part of 
 the world, the custom of wearing crowns of flowers at fes- 
 tivals has passed entirely away. Women only use roses 
 as an ornament for their hair, or employ them in difierent 
 parts of their toilet. In our own country the toilet of a 
 bride is never considered perfect unless she wears a wreath 
 of roses or other flowers, whose snow-white hue is an em- 
 blem, of her departing maidenhood. Sometimes she is 
 
174 PARSONS OX THE HOSE. 
 
 provided only with a bouquet of white roses and camel- 
 lias, and her bridesmaids wear similar ornaments of na- 
 ture's manufacture. 
 
 The Rose is abundantly used by children in their beau- 
 tiful celebration of May-day. We well recollect our en- 
 joyment of one of these scenes some years since. We 
 were returning from a ride in the vicinity of Charleston, 
 S. C, on the first day of this, the sunniest of the months 
 of spring — a day dedicated not to the spirit of motion, 
 and celebrated not by processions of furniture carts, amid 
 the bustle and noise of a populous city, but dedicated 
 there, at the sunny South, to innocent and joyous festivity, 
 and celebrated amid all the fresh and fragrant luxuriance 
 of southern vegetation, surrounded by the delicate sweet- 
 ness of the magnolia, the Rose, and other flowers, while 
 the mocking-bird, with its sweet and varied note, was the 
 minstrel for the occasion. Riding quietly along the road, 
 we were suddenly stopped by a procession which had just 
 dismounted from a number of carriages in a beautiful 
 grove hard by. It consisted mostly of noble-looking 
 boys and beautiful girls, of all ages under fourteen, the 
 latter dressed in white and crowned with wreaths of roses 
 and other flowers. The manly attention of the boys to 
 the fair creatures with whom they walked hand in hand 
 Avould not have disgraced the gallantry of Bayard, or the 
 politeness of Chesterfield. As the procession wound 
 slowly from our view, under the shade of the lofty live 
 oak and the rich magnolia, we could not help reflecting 
 how beautiful was this graceful enjoyment of the sunny 
 days of childhood, and how preferable to the mental ex- 
 citement and precocious training of many of the infant 
 philosophers of this most enlightened nineteenth century. 
 
 It is much to be regretted that in circles where fashion 
 reigns supreme, nature is gradually giving way to art, 
 and instead of the fresh and natural beauty of a newly 
 gathered Rose, various forms of artificial flowers are found 
 
THE KOSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 175 
 
 upon the center table, or in the hair of those whose quick 
 discernment and refined taste should lead them to per- 
 ceive the great inferiority of these artificial toys to the 
 delicate beauty and welcome fragrance of a Rose just 
 from its parent plant. 
 
 Yery much additional matter could be inserted respect- 
 ing the early history of the Rose, and its connection with» 
 ancient superstitions. Sufficient, however, has been given 
 to show the esteem in which the Rose was held by the 
 ancient Greeks and Romans. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE EOSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 
 
 In Great Britain, according to Loudon, " one of the 
 earliest notices of the Rose occurs in Chaucer, who wrote 
 early in the 13th century ; and in the beginning of the 
 15th century, there is evidence of the Rose having been 
 cultivated for commercial purposes, and of the water dis- 
 tilled from it being used to give a flavor to a variety of 
 dishes, and to wash the hands at meals — a custom still 
 preserved in some of the colleges, and also in many of the 
 public halls within the city of London." 
 
 In 1402, Sir William Clopton granted to Thomas 
 Smyth a piece of ground called Dokmedwe, in Haustede, 
 for the annual payment of a rose to Sir William and his 
 heirs, in lieu of all services. The demand for roses for- 
 merly was so great, that bushels of them were frequently 
 paid by vassals to their lords, both in England and France. 
 The single rose, paid as an acknowledgment, was the 
 diminutive representation cf a bushel of roses — as a single 
 
176 PARSONS ON" THE EOSE. 
 
 peppercom, which is still a reserved rent, represents a 
 pound of peppercorns — a payment originally of some 
 worth, but descending by degrees to a mere formality. 
 Among the new-year gifts presented to Queen Mary in 
 1556, was a bottle of rose-water; and in 1570 we find, 
 among the items in the account of a dinner of Lord Lei- 
 cester, when he was Chancellor of the .University of Ox- 
 ford, three ounces of rose-water. In an account of a grant 
 of a great part of Ely House, Holborne, by the Bishop of 
 Ely, to Christopher Hatton, for twenty-one years, the 
 tenant covenants to pay, on midsummer-day, a red rose 
 for the gate-house and garden, and for the ground (four- 
 teen acres) ten loads of hay and £10 per annum ; the 
 Bishop reserving to himself and successors free access 
 through the gate-house, for walking in the gardens and 
 gathering twenty bushels of roses yearly. In 1597, we 
 find Gerard speaking of the Damask rose of Damascus 
 and the Cinnamon rose as common in English gardens. 
 Hakluyt says that the rose of Damascus was brought to 
 England by De Linaker, physician to Henry IX. ; and his 
 successor. Sir Richard Weston, who wrote in 1645, says, 
 "We have red roses from France." In the reign of 
 James I., the keeper of the robes and jewels at Whitehall, 
 among a variety of other offices, had separate salaries al- 
 lowed him, " for fire to air the hot-houses, 40s. by the 
 year;" and, "for digging and setting of roses, in the 
 spring gardens, 40s. by the year." 
 
 It would seem, by these incidents, that previous to the 
 seventeenth century, roses were far from being abundant, 
 and indeed were so rare, that a bottle of distilled water 
 was a fit present for Royalty, and a few roses an amply 
 sufficient rent for house and land. 
 
 In the times of chivalry, the Rose was often an emblem 
 that knights were fond of placing in their helmet or shield, 
 implying that sweetness should always be the companion 
 of courage, and that beauty was the only prize worthy of 
 
THE ROSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 177 
 
 valor. It was not, however, always taken for such em- 
 blems, nor did it always bring to mind pleasant and agree- 
 able images, but was often the signal for bloodshed in a 
 desolating civil war which raged in England for more than 
 thirty years. 
 
 The rival factions of the White and the Bed Rose arose 
 in 1452, during the reign of Henry YL, between the 
 houses of Lancaster and of York. The Duke of York, a 
 descendant of Edward III., claimed that his house pos- 
 sessed a nearer title to the crown than the reigning branch. 
 He adopted a white rose on his shield, for his device, and 
 the reigning monarch, Henry YL, of the house of Lan- 
 caster, carried the red rose. After several furious civil 
 wars, after having flooded the whole kingdom with blood, 
 and after the tragical death of three kings, Henry YH., 
 of the house of Lancaster, re-united, in 1486, the two fam- 
 ilies by marrying Elizabeth, the heiress of the house of 
 York. 
 
 The adoption of the red rose, by the house of Lancaster, 
 was at a period far prior to these civil wars. About 1277, 
 the Count of Egmont, son of the King of England, and 
 who had taken the title of Count of Champagne, was sent 
 by the King of France to Provence, with some troops, to 
 avenge the murder of William Pentecote, mayor of the 
 city, who had been killed in an insurrection. 
 
 When this prince returned into England, after execu- 
 ting his orders, he took for his device the red rose, that 
 Thibaut, Count of Brie and of Champagne, had brought 
 from Syria, on his return from the crusade some years 
 before. — That Count of Egmont was the head of the 
 house of Lancaster, who preserved the red rose on their 
 arms, while the house of York, on the other hand, adopted 
 the white rose as their device. 
 
 An anecdote is told of the Prince of Bearne, afterwards 
 Henry lY. of France, who was not 15 years of age when 
 8* 
 
178 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Charles IX. came to Nerae, in 1566, to visit the court of 
 Navarre. 
 
 The fifteen days that he spent there were marked by 
 sports and fetes, of which the young Henry was already 
 the chief ornament. Charles IX. loved to practice arch- 
 ery ; in providing for him that amusement, they thought 
 that none of his courtiers, not even the Duke of Guise, 
 who excelled at this sport, would venture to prove himself 
 more adroit than the monarch. The young Henry, how- 
 ever, advanced, and at the first shot, carried off the orange, 
 which served for a mark. According to the rules of the 
 sport, he wished, as victor, to shoot first in the next trial ; 
 the King opposed it, and repulsed him with warmth; 
 Henry stepped back a little, drew his bow, and directed 
 the arrow against the breast of his adversary ; the monarch 
 quickly took shelter behind the largest of his courtiers, 
 and requested them to take away " that dangerous little 
 cousin." Peace being made, the same sport was continued 
 on the following day ; Charles found an excuse for not 
 coming. This time the Duke of Guise carried away the 
 orange, which he split in two, and no other could be found 
 for a mark. 
 
 The young prince perceived a Rose in the bosom of a 
 young girl among the spectators, and seizing it, quickly 
 placed it on the mark. The Duke shot first, and missed ; 
 Henry succeeding him, placed his arrow in the middle of 
 the flower, and returned it to the pretty villager with the 
 victorious arrow which had pierced it. 
 
 At Salency, a village of France, the Rose is the reward 
 of excellent traits of character ; they attribute the origin 
 of the fete of La Rosiere, in that country, to Medard, 
 bishop of Noyou, who lived at the end of the fifteenth, 
 and beginning of the sixteenth century, during the reign 
 of Clovis. That bishop, who was also Lord of Salency, 
 had established a fund, giving a sum of twenty-five livres 
 (five dollars), and a crown or hat of roses, to the young 
 
THE ROSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 179 
 
 girl on his estate who enjoyed the greatest reputation for 
 amiability and excellence of character. Tradition states 
 that the prelate himself gave this desired prize to one of 
 his sisters, whom the public voice had named to be Rosiere. 
 Before the revolution of 1789, there could be seen, beneath 
 the altar of the chapel of St. Medard, at Salency, a tablet, 
 where that bishop was represented in pontifical dress, and 
 placing a crown of roses on the head of his sister, who 
 was on her knees, with her hair dressed. 
 
 The bishop had set aside, on a part of his domain, since 
 called the " Manor of the Rose," an annual rent of twen- 
 ty-five livres, at that time a considerable sum, for paying 
 all the expenses of this ceremony. It is stated that Louis 
 XIII., being at the chateau of Varennes, near Salency, 
 about the time of this ceremony, was deirous of adding 
 to its eclat by his personal presence ; but finding himself 
 indisposed, he sent to La Rosiere, by a marquis of rank 
 and first captain of his guards, a ring and his blue ribbon. 
 " Go," said he to the marquis, " and present this riband 
 to her who shall be crowned. It has been long the prize 
 of honor; it shall now become the reward of virtue." 
 Since that time La Rosiere has received a ring, and she 
 and her companions have worn the blue ribbon. 
 
 The Lord of Salency at one time enjoyed the right of 
 choosing La Rosiere from three of the village girls, who 
 were presented l^y the inhabitants. But in 1773 a new 
 lord, who purchased the estate of Salency, wished to take 
 away the right enjoyed by the inhabitants, of naming and 
 l^resenting to him the three candidates for the Rose. He 
 assumed the nomination of La Rosiere, without any as- 
 sembling, election, or presentation, and suppressed entirely 
 the pomp and ceremonies which until that time had al- 
 ways been observed. On the complaint of the inhabit- 
 ants of Salency, the Court of Chancery at once set aside 
 the pretensions of their lord ; but he, not wishing to yield 
 them, instituted a civil process before the Parliament of 
 
180 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 Paris, which gave a decree in favor of the inhabitants of 
 the place, by which it confirmed to them all the ancient 
 customs of the fete of La Rosiere, of which the Lord of 
 Salency was ordered to pay all the expenses. 
 
 The ceremony of La Rosiere was suppressed during 
 the excesses of the Revolution, but was reestablished 
 when the times had become more quiet. The celebration 
 takes place in June, and would be well worthy the at- 
 tendance of foreign travelers. 
 
 We have mentioned this custom very much in detail, 
 as it is one of the few ceremonies still existing, in which 
 the Rose occupies a prominent position, and is made alone 
 the reward of merit. Other festivals of the Rose, similar 
 to those of Salency, were established in several other vil- 
 lages of France and the neighboring countries. When 
 Louis XYIIL was staying at Blakenbourg, in Germany, 
 during the years of his exile, he was invited to assist at a 
 festival of La Rosiere. When he had placed the crown 
 on the head of the young girl who was designated as the 
 most virtuous, she said to him, ingenuously, " My Prince, 
 may your crown be restored you." 
 
 There exists a touching custom in the valley of Enga- 
 dine, in Switzerland. If a man accused of a crime is able 
 to justify himself the same day on which he is liberated 
 from prison, a young and beautiful girl ojQTers him a white 
 rose, called the Rose of Innocence. 
 
 It is somewhat singular that, although the Rose was in 
 these instances employed as the emblem of virtue and in- 
 nocence, it has been considered, at other times and places, 
 as a sign of disgrace and dishonor. 
 
 The synod held at Msmes, about the year 1284, order- 
 ed the Jews to wear on their breast a rose, to distinguish 
 them from Christians, in order that they might not receive 
 the same attentions. At one time, in certain German 
 provinces, a crown of red roses was the punishment of 
 immorality. 
 
THE EOSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 181 
 
 It appears that, in the Middle Ages, roses were much 
 more abundantly cultivated in certain provinces than they 
 have been since ; for the following passage is found in 
 Marchangy's History of France in the 14th century: 
 " For the ornament of certain festivals, they cultivate, in 
 the vicinity of Rouen, fields of flowers of several rods ; 
 and the annual sale of bouquets and wreaths of roses is 
 valued at 50,000 francs. The business of maker of 
 wreaths^ and that of rose merchant^ is in France very 
 common and very profitable. The above sum will not 
 seem surprising, when we think of the enormous consump- 
 tion of rose-water at that time. In all family parties, 
 companies, and associations, many bouquets were present- 
 ed ; at table, during festivals, they crowned themselves 
 with flowers, and scattered them on the table-cloth and 
 the floor." 
 
 The Marquis de Chesnel, in his History of the Rose, 
 mentions that, among the old customs of Auvergne, An- 
 jou. Tours, Lodunois, and Maine, there was one in the no- 
 ble families, that a father who had sons, frequently gave 
 to his daughters, on their marriage, only a wreath of 
 roses. In Normandy, also, the daughters received, for 
 their legitimate portion, a hat adorned with the same 
 flowers. Among the ancient seigniorial rights in France, 
 in the 14th century, was one by which each tenant was 
 obliged to furnish a bushel of roses for the manufacture 
 of rose-water for the lord of the soil. Madame de Genlis 
 mentions, however, that about the same period, every one 
 was not allowed to cultivate these flowers; but permission 
 to do so was granted to privileged persons. Whether it 
 was ever a royal monopoly she does not state ; but it 
 would certainly be no more singular than the monopoly 
 of the sale of butter by the King of Naples. 
 
 We have already mentioned the Avars of the White and 
 Red Rose, which during so long a time deluged England 
 with blood. There is also an instance in French history, 
 
182 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 where this flower, associated as it is with innocence and 
 pleasant thoughts, served, under the reign of Charles YI., 
 as the rallying sign of the faction of Burgundy against 
 that of Arraagnac. The Parisians, urged by the agents 
 of the Duke of Burgundy, established the order of St. 
 Andre for their partisans, in order to manage them more 
 easily ; and the church of St. Eustache was chosen as 
 their rendezvous. Each church member wore a crown of 
 red roses, of which more than seven hundred were made 
 in the space of twelve hours, and the flowers were suf- 
 ficiently abundant to perfume the whole church. 
 
 According to an ancient custom, the dukes and peers of 
 France were formerly obliged to present roses to the Par- 
 liament of Paris, at certain periods of its session. The 
 peer who was chosen to do the honors of this ceremony 
 caused all the chambers of Parliament to be scattered with 
 roses, flowers, and fragrant herbs ; and entertained at a 
 splendid breakfast the presidents, councilors, and even the 
 notaries and door-keepers of the court. He afterwards 
 went into each chamber, accompanied by a page with a 
 large silver basin, which contained as many bouquets of 
 roses and other flowers as there were public officers, with 
 an equal number of crowns composed of the same flowers. 
 The Parliament also had its cultivator of roses, called the 
 Hosier de la Cour^ from whom the peers could obtain the 
 roses for their presents. 
 
 Under the reign of Francis I., in 1541, there was a dis- 
 pute between the Due de Montpensier and the Due de 
 Nevers respecting the presentage of the roses to Parlia- 
 ment. It was decided that the Due de Montpensier, from 
 his rank as prince of the blood, should be entitled to 
 the first presentage. Among the princes of the royal 
 family who submitted to this ceremony at later periods, 
 are numbered the dukes of Yendome, Beaumont, Angou- 
 leme, and several other distinguished names. Henry lY., 
 while only King of Navarre, proved to the procureur- 
 
THE ROSE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 183 
 
 general that neither he nor his predecessors had ever fail- 
 ed to perform that duty. 
 
 About the year 1631, there was published a very curious 
 book on the Rose, by a German named Rosenberg. 
 About 250 octavo pages are devoted entirely to the praise 
 of the curative properties of the Rose in almost every 
 known disease, making, in fact, this flower a universal 
 panacea for the many ills to which flesh is heir. The au- 
 thor also claims for it supernatural qualities, particularly 
 for driving away evil spirits. The work closes by assert- 
 ing, as a positive fact, supported by several authorities 
 which he quotes, the remarkable regeneration or resurrec- 
 tion of the Rose. He gives also the process of this re- 
 production, which is scarcely worth inserting here, being, 
 like the story of the Phoenix, a fable engendered by super- 
 stition upon ignorance. It is somewhat surprising that 
 this fable should have been very gravely reproduced, in a 
 French work on the Rose, published in 1800. The author 
 states that, " notwithstanding the many marvelous things 
 which we already know respecting the^ improving, forcing, 
 changing, and multiplying of roses, we have yet to de- 
 scribe the most surprising of all — that of its regeneration ; 
 or, in other words, the manner of reproducing that flower 
 from its own ashes. This is called the imperial secret^ be- 
 cause the Emperor Ferdinand III. purchased it of a foreign 
 chemist, at a very high price." The conclusion is a rather 
 amusing instance of Munchausenism in the 19th century. 
 " Finally, all this material being placed in a glass vessel, 
 with a certain quantity of pure dew, forms a blue powder, 
 from which, when heat is applied, there springs a stem, 
 leaves, and flowers, and a whole and perfect plant is form- 
 ed from its own ashes." 
 
 It is difficult to credit the fact that, in any part of this 
 enlightened age, an author could be found who would 
 gravely and in sincerity advance such opinions and state 
 such facts as the above ; and it is but an additional proof, 
 
184 PABSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 if such were wanting, tliat nothing can be advanced too 
 monstrous or too incredible to be entirely without be- 
 lievers. 
 
 If the sight of roses, or their delicate fragrance, has 
 been generally delightful and pleasing, there have also 
 been those who could not endure them. Anne of Austria, 
 wife of Louis XIIL, of France, although otherwise very 
 fond of perfumes, had such an antipathy to the rose, that 
 she could not bear the sight of one even in a painting. 
 The Duke of Guise had a still stronger dislike, for he al- 
 ways made his escape at the sight of a rose. Dr. Ladelius 
 mentions a man who was obliged to become a recluse, and 
 dared not leave his house, during the season of roses ; be- 
 cause, if he happened to imbibe their fragrance, he was 
 immediately seized with a violent cold in his head. 
 
 The odor of the rose, like that of many other flowers, 
 has often occasioned serious injury, particularly in closed 
 apartments ; and persons to whose sensitive organizations 
 the odor is disagreeable should not sleep with them in the 
 chamber. Some authors of credibility mention instances 
 of death caused by a large quantity of roses being left 
 during the night in a sleeping apartment. 
 
PKKFITMES OP THE EOSE. 185 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 PERFUMES OF THE ROSE.. 
 
 At an early period in the cultivation of the Rose, and 
 after its admission among the luxuries of the wealthy, 
 human skill was exerted to extract its delightful perfume. 
 
 Several authors have considered the invention of the 
 essence of the Rose very ancient, and have even traced it 
 back as far as the siege of Troy, This, however, can 
 scarcely be admitted, for nothing relating to the essence 
 or essential oil of roses can be found in Homer, or in any 
 other author for many subsequent years. The discovery 
 of these valuable articles of commerce was made at a 
 much later period. If the essential oil of roses had been 
 known to the ancient Greeks or Romans, it would proba- 
 bly have been more particularly mentioned by Pliny, and 
 the mode of preparation even would have been described. 
 In speaking, however, of various perfumes, he says noth- 
 ing of any distillation from the petals of the Rose, but 
 simply mentions that, as early as the siege of Troy, the 
 expressed juice of roses was known, and being mixed with 
 a delicate oil, formed an agreeable perfume. 
 
 In speaking of artificial oils in general, Pliny also ob- 
 serves that the oil of roses was made by simply steeping 
 the rose-petals in oil According to the same author, oil 
 was the body of nearly all the perfumes used at that day, 
 and for a perfuming substance, roses were most frequent- 
 ly used, because they grew everywhere in the greatest 
 abundance. 
 
 Perfumes of every kind were more abundantly used 
 among the ancient Greeks and Romans than at the pres- 
 ent day. Athenaeus, in his Mast of Wise Men, states 
 
186 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 that nearly all of these were drawn from the Rose, and 
 says that the most sweet were those of Cyrene, while 
 those of Naples, Capua, and Faseoli were the best and 
 most delightful of all. 
 
 This agrees with the subsequent researches made on 
 the same subject by D'Orbessan. " The cities of N"aples, 
 Capua, and Preneste," says the latter, "obtained their 
 roses from Campania, where there is yet a considerable 
 tract of land, commonly called II mazzone delle Hose. 
 
 " This field is sometimes called Hosetinus, on account 
 of the prodigious quantity of roses which grow there 
 without culture, and in greater abundance than in any 
 other section of that country." 
 
 Athenseus states that the perfume of roses was frequent- 
 ly used in culinary preparations, and gives a curious re- 
 ceipt for a sort of pot-pourri, made by the cook of the 
 King of Sicily. " This is what I call potted roses, and it is 
 thus prepared : I first pound some of the most fragrant 
 roses in a mortar ; then I take the brains of birds and 
 pigs, well boiled and stripped of every particle of meat ; 
 I then add the yolks of some eggs, some oil, a little cor- 
 dial, some pepper, and some wine : after having beaten 
 and mixed it well together, I throw it in a new pot, and 
 place it over a slow but steady fire." " As he said these 
 things," so runs the story, " the cook uncovered the pot, 
 and there issued forth a most delicious fragrance, perfum- 
 ing the whole dining-hall, and overcoming the guests with 
 delight." This is a point in gastronomic luxury to which 
 Americans have not yet attained. 
 
 Although the perfume of roses was considered more 
 choice than any other, it was frequently used when men 
 were least in the state to enjoy it ; for D'Orbessan states 
 that slaves were made to burn it around their masters 
 while sleeping. 
 
 If the essential oil of roses had been known in the time 
 of Pliny, that author would have mentioned it among the 
 
PERFUMES OF THE ROSE. 187 
 
 most esteemed and precious perfumes. So far from this, 
 however, he only speaks of the " Royal Perfume," so 
 called because it was prepared expressly for the King of 
 the Parthians. This was composed of the oil of Ben, an 
 Arabian tree, with several aromatic substances. Accord- 
 ing to Langles, who has carefully examined a great num- 
 ber of oriental works, no writer, previous to the sixteenth 
 century, has mentioned the essential oil of roses, although 
 these flowers abounded at that time, and mention is made 
 of rose-water as an agreeable perfume. Besides these 
 negative proofs against the ancient existence of this per- 
 fume, Langles quotes several oriental historians, from 
 which it seems evident that its discovery dates about the 
 year 1612, and was owing entirely to accident. 
 
 According to Father Catron, in his History of the 
 Mogul Mnpire^ in the fetes which the sultana Nourmahal 
 gave to the great Mogul, Jehan-guire, their chief pleasure 
 was sailing together in a canal which Nourmahal had 
 filled with rose-water. 
 
 One day that the Emperor was thus sailing with Nour- 
 mahal, they perceived a sort of froth forming and floating 
 upon the water. They drew it out, and perceived that it 
 was the essential oil which the heat of the sun had disen- 
 gaged from the water and collected together on the sur- 
 face. The whole seraglio pronounced the perfume the 
 most exquisite known in the Indies ; and they immediate- 
 ly endeavored to imitate by art that which nature had 
 made. Thus was discovered the essence, essential oil, 
 otto, or attar of roses. 
 
 According to Langles, the word AHher^ AHhr, or Othr, 
 which the Arabs, Turks, and Persians use to designate 
 the essential oil of Roses without adding the name of 
 that flower, is Arabic, and signifies perfume. It is neces- 
 sary, the same author states, to recollect the distinction 
 between AHher^ or AHher gut and gulab, which is simply 
 rose-water. 
 
188 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 From the very small quantity congealed on the surface 
 of the water, the manufacture is limited, and the cost of 
 the article immense. Langles states that the rose-water is 
 left exposed to the freshness of the night, and in the 
 morning a very small quantity of attar is found collected 
 on the surface. 
 
 Dr. Monro, according to Loudon, gives the manner of 
 making the attar in Cashmere, which is apparently more 
 simple, without the tedious process of distilling. 
 
 " The rose-petals are put into a wooden vessel with pure 
 water, and exposed for several days to the heat of the 
 sun. The oily particles, being disengaged by the heat, 
 float upon the surface of the water, whence they are taken 
 up from time to time by applying to them some very fine 
 dry cotton wool. From this wool the oil is pressed into 
 little bottles, which are immediately afterwards sealed 
 hermetically." 
 
 Another method is, exposing the rose-water to heat, 
 then suddenly cooling it, and collecting the drops of con- 
 gealed oil which float upon the surface. 
 
 Bishop Heber describes the method used in India, which 
 is very similar to that of Langles. The attar has the con- 
 sistency of butter, and never becomes liquid except in the 
 warmest weather. 
 
 Loudon states that " a wretched substitute for otto of 
 roses is said to be formed by the apothecaries of Paris. 
 The petals of Mosa Damascena are boiled in a large cal- 
 dron of water along with as much hog's lard as will cover 
 its surface with a thin stratum of grease. The oil of the 
 rose-petals, on separating from them by boiling, unites 
 with this grease, from which it is again separated by spir- 
 its of wine." A large portion of the attar imported into 
 the United States is probably of this manufacture. 
 
 The quantity of genuine attar produced from a given 
 weight of rose-petals is not always the same ; it is very 
 liable to vary according to the nature of the climate, the 
 
PERFUMES OP THE BOSE. 189 
 
 temperature of different seasons, the period of bloom at 
 which the roses are picked, the process of manufacture, 
 and the skill of the manufacturers. Generally, a hundred 
 pounds of roses will scarcely produce a drachm of attar, 
 sometimes only half a drachm, and at others a drachm 
 and a half Bishop Heber states that in India, at Ghaze- 
 poor, two hundred thousand well-grown roses are requir- 
 ed to produce one rupee's (165 grains) weight of attar. 
 The calyx is sometimes used with the petal, but as the oil 
 of that contains little or no perfume, although it may in- 
 crease the quantity of attar, it must sensibly weaken its 
 properties. 
 
 The color of attar is generally green, sometimes lemon 
 or rose color, and occasionally brownish. These differ- 
 ences in color are owing to the various processes of manu- 
 facture, and the different periods at which the roses are 
 picked. The attar is prepared in Barbary, Syria, Arabia, 
 Persia, India, in the island of Scio, at Fayoum, in Egypt, 
 at Tunis, and many other places in the East. That made 
 in Syria and Barbary is considered very inferior ; while 
 the best is made in Chyraz, Kerman, and Cashmere. In 
 some parts of France and Italy it is also prepared, but in 
 comparatively small quantities. 
 
 The attar is very costly, although not so dear as for- 
 merly. The French traveler, Tavernier, who visited Ispa- 
 han about the year 1666, stated that the price of attar at 
 Chyraz rose and fell every year on account of the unequal 
 produce of flowers ; and that an ounce of that article 
 sold, at one period, for ten tomans (about ninety-two 
 dollars). 
 
 At the time another Frenchman, Chardin, traveled in 
 Persia, some years after Tavernier, the attar was some- 
 times much higher. He states that forty pounds of rose- 
 water were required to produce half a drachm of attar, 
 an ounce of which sometimes sold in India for two hund- 
 red ecus. Lansrles states that in India half an ounce of 
 
190 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 attar is wortli about forty dollars. Bishop Heber also 
 speaks of its enormous price at Ghazepoor, where the 
 variation in price is also very great, being, according to 
 Langles, sometimes as low as eight dollars an ounce. 
 
 At one time, soon after its discovery, it was valued at 
 about five times its weight in gold. Until quite recently, 
 it was worth its weight in gold, but now sells in Paris for 
 about one quarter that value. 
 
 Attar is rarely found pure in commerce ; it is always 
 more or less adulterated. In the countries where it is 
 manufactured, they frequently increase the quantity of 
 the attar by mixing scrapings of sandal-wood with the 
 rose-petals during the process of distillation, Ksempfer, 
 a German writer, states this mode of adulteration to have 
 been known a long time, and adds that the sandal-wood 
 gives additional strength to the attar ; but another au- 
 thor, who has also made some researches on the subject, 
 asserts that the sandal-wood injures the delicacy of the 
 attar, which is more sweet and agreeable when mild than 
 when strong. 
 
 The quality as well as the quantity of attar which they 
 obtain from roses depends upon the proportion of aroma 
 which they contain ; and this is found more developed at 
 the South, and in a warm climate. The kinds of roses 
 used in distillation have also a great influence on the 
 quality of the attar. In Persia and the East, the Musk 
 Rose is generally used, and the Damask is employed in 
 France. 
 
 Although roses are distilled in large quantities at Paris 
 for perfumery and for medical purposes, very little attar 
 is made, because the proportion of the manufactured ar- 
 ticle to the roses required is, in that climate, extremely 
 small ; so small, in fact, that, according to one writer, five 
 thousand parts in weight of rose-petals will scarcely pro- 
 duce one part of essential oil. This limited manufacture 
 
PEEFUMES OF THE ROSE. 191 
 
 exists only at Grasse and Montpelier, in France, and at 
 Florence, in Italy. 
 
 Some years since, the adulteration of attar was success- 
 fully practiced in the south of France by mixing with it 
 the essence distilled from the leaves of the Rose Gerani- 
 um (Pelargonium capitatum). This adulteration is very 
 difficult to detect, because this last essence possesses the 
 same properties as the attar ; its odor is almost the same ; 
 like that, it is of a lemon color ; it crystalizes at a lower 
 temperature ; and its density is very little greater. 
 
 The attar, when pure, is, beyond comparison, the most 
 sweet and agreeable of all perfumes. Its fragrance is the 
 most delicate conceivable, and equals that of the freshly 
 expanded Rose. It is also so strong and penetrating, 
 that a single drop, or as much as will attach itself to the 
 point of a needle, is sufficient to perfume an apartment for 
 several days ; and if the small flask in which it is sold, 
 although tightly corked and sealed, is placed in a drawer, 
 it will perfume all the contents. 
 
 When in a congealed or crystalized state, the attar will 
 liquefy at a slight heat ; and if the flask is merely held in 
 the hand, a few minutes will suffice to render it liquid. 
 In the East much use is made of the attar, particularly in 
 the harems. In Europe and America it is employed in 
 the manufacture of cordials, and in the preparation of 
 various kinds of perfumery. 
 
 Rose-water, or the liquid obtained from rose-petals by 
 distillation, is very common, and is found in almost every 
 country where the arts and luxuries of life have at all 
 advanced. 
 
 Pliny tells us that rose-water was a favorite perfume of 
 the Roman ladies, and the most luxurious used it even in 
 their baths. This, however, must have been some prepa- 
 ration difierent from that now known as rose-water, and 
 was probably a mere tincture of roses. 
 
 The ancients could have known nothing of I'ose-water, 
 
192 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 for they were entirely ignorant of the art of distillation, 
 which only came into practice after the invention of the 
 alembic by the Arabs. Some attribute this discovery to 
 Rhazes, an Arabian physician, who lived in the early part 
 of the tenth century; and others attribute it to Avicenna, 
 who lived at Chyraz, in the latter part of the same cen- 
 tury. It is also attributed to Geber, a celebrated Arabian 
 alchemist, who lived in Mesopotamia in the eighth cen- 
 tury. Subsequent, therefore, to this discovery of the 
 alembic, we find, according to Gmelin, in his history of 
 the preparation of distilled waters, that the first notice 
 of rose-water is by Aben-Zohar, a Jewish physician, of 
 Seville, in Spain, who recommends it for diseases of the 
 eye. From the Arabs, this invention passed among the 
 Greeks and Romans, as we are informed by Actuarius, a 
 writer of the eleventh or twelfth century. 
 
 In France, the first distillation of rose-water appears to 
 have been made by Arnaud de Yilleneuve, a physician, 
 who lived in the latter part of the thirteenth century. 
 
 The Orientals made great use of this water in various 
 ways in their houses, and in the purification of their tem- 
 ples when they thought they had been profaned by any 
 other worship than that of Mahomet. There are many 
 anecdotes told by historians of the use of rose-water by 
 the Sultans on various occasions ; and several of these, as 
 Chateaubriand remarks, are stories worthy of the East. 
 It is related of Saladin, that when he took Jerusalem from 
 the Crusaders, in 1187, he would not enter the Mosque of 
 Omar, which had been converted into a church by the 
 Christians, until the walls and courts had been thorough- 
 ly washed and purified with rose-water brought from Da- 
 mascus. Five hundred camels, it is stated, were scarcely 
 suflScient to convey all the rose-water used for this pur- 
 pose. An Arabian writer tells us that the princes of the 
 family of Saladin, hastening to Jerusalem to worship 
 Allah, Malek-Abdul, and his nephew, Taki-Eddin, distin- 
 
PERFUMES OF THE ROSE. 193 
 
 guished themselves above all others. The latter repaired 
 with all his followers to the " Chapel of the Holy Cross," 
 and taking a broom himself, he swept all the dirt from 
 the floor, washed the walls and the ceiling several times 
 with pure water, and then washed them with rose-water ; 
 having thus cleansed and purified the place, he distribu- 
 ted large alms to the poor. 
 
 Bibars, the fourth Sultan of the Mameluke dynasty, 
 who reigned from 1260 to 1277, caused the Caaba of the 
 temple of Mecca to be washed with rose-water. 
 
 Mahomet II., after the capture of Constantinople, in 
 1453, would not enter the Mosque of St. Sophia, which 
 had been formerly used as a church, until he had caused 
 it to be washed with rose-water. 
 
 It is stated by a French historian that the greatest dis- 
 play of gorgeous magnificence at that period was made in 
 1611, by the Sultan Ahmed I., at the dedication of the 
 new Caaba, which had been built or repaired at his ex- 
 pense ; amber and aloes were burnt in profusion, and, in 
 the extravagance of Eastern language, oceans of rose- 
 water were set afloat, for washing the courts and interior 
 surface of the walls. Rose-water is by no means so gen- 
 erally used now as for a few hundred years subsequent to 
 its invention. In France, during the reign of Philip Au- 
 gustus, it was a necessary article at court. It was for- 
 merly the custom to carry large vases filled with rose-water 
 to baptisms. Illustrating this custom, Bayle relates a 
 story of Rousard, the French poet : " It nearly happened 
 that the day of his birth was also that of his death ; for 
 when he was carried from the Chateau de La Poissoniere 
 to the church of the place to be baptized, the nurse who 
 carried him carelessly let him full ; his fall, however, was 
 upon the grass and flowers, which received him softly ; it 
 so happened, that a young lady, who carried a vase filled 
 with rose-water and a collection of flowers, in her haste 
 to aid in helping the child, overturned on his head a large 
 9 
 
194 PARSONS OX THE ROSE. 
 
 part of the rose-water. This incident was considered a 
 presage of the good odor with which France would one 
 day be filled by the flowers of his learned writings." 
 
 At one time rose-water was largely consumed in the 
 preparation of food and the seasoning of various dishes. 
 In the " Private Life of the French," it is mentioned that 
 in the fourteenth century, the Comte d'Etampes gave a 
 feast in which a large part of the dishes and even the 
 chestnuts were prepared with rose-water. It is still used 
 to flavor various dishes, but its principal use is in affec- 
 tions of the eyelids, or as a perfume for the toilet. The 
 principal consumption of rose-water is, however, in the 
 East, where the inhabitants are very fond of perfumes. 
 In Persia a very large quantity is made annually for do- 
 mestic use. They deem it an excellent beverage mixed 
 with pure water. 
 
 The Corinth Grape, mixed with rose-water, and a slight 
 infusion of spices, is the nectar so much in vogue among 
 the Greeks of Morea. The Persians, according to Le- 
 bruyn, sprinkle with rose-water those who visit them. 
 They also make it an important article of commerce; 
 large quantities are sent to different parts of the East, 
 and entire cargoes are sometimes shipped to India. 
 
 In Egypt, the nobles and wealthy inhabitants consume 
 large quantities of rose-water ; they scatter it over their 
 divans and other places where they spend their time ; they 
 also offer it with confectionery to their visitors. 
 
 The custom of offering rose-water to a guest is alluded 
 to by Shakespeare, who makes one of bis characters in 
 Padua say : 
 
 " "What is it your honor will command ? 
 Let one attend him with a silver bason 
 Full of rose-water, and bestrewed with flowers." 
 
 Almost all the rose-water used in Egypt is distilled in 
 the province of Fayoum, from the pale rose. "About the 
 middle of February, in Fayoum," says a French writer, 
 
PERFUMES OF THE ROSE. 195 
 
 " they pluck the roses every morning before sunrise, 
 while the dew is yet upon them ; they then place them 
 immediately in the alembic, not allowing them to become 
 dry or heated by remaining too long a time without dis- 
 tillation. This lucrative branch of manufacture has not 
 escaped the monopoly of Mehemet Ali. No private indi- 
 vidual can now distil roses in Egypt, and those who culti- 
 vate them are obliged to sell the petals to government at 
 a low price. The value of all the rose-water distilled in 
 Fa^^oum, annually, is estimated at 50,000 or 60,000 francs." 
 Of the profusion with which rose-water is used in India, 
 some idea may be formed from the narrative of Bishop 
 Heber, who was shown, in the ruins of the palace of 
 Ghazepoor, a deep trench round an octagonal platform of 
 blue, red, and white mosaic pavement. This trench, he 
 was told, was filled with rose-water when the Nawab and 
 his friends were feasting in the middle. " The ancient oil 
 of roses," according to Loudon, " is obtained by bruising 
 fresh rose-petals, mixing them with four times their 
 weight of olive oil, and leaving them in a sand-heat for 
 two days. If the red Rose of Provence is used, the oil is 
 said to imbibe no odor ; but if the petals of pale roses are 
 employed, it becomes perfumed. This preparation was 
 celebrated among the ancients. Pliny says that, accord- 
 ing to Homer, roses were macerated for their oil in the 
 time of the Trojans. The oil is chiefly used for the hair, 
 and is generally sold in perfumers' shops, both in France 
 and England, under the name of JOhuile antique de Jiose.''^ 
 
 Spirit of roses is made by distilling rose-petals with a 
 small quantity of spirits of wine, and forms an agreeable 
 article for external applications. The green leaves of the 
 sweet-brier are sometimes; in France, steeped in spirits of 
 wine to impart a fragrance ; and in England they are fre- 
 quently used to flavor cowslip wine. 
 
 As the petals of the rose preserve their fragrance for a 
 long time after being dried, many are in the habit of mak- 
 
196 PARSONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 ing, annually, little bags filled with them. These, being 
 placed in a drawer or wardrobe, impart an agreeable per- 
 fume to the linen or clothing with which they may come 
 in contact. The petals can be obtained from almost any 
 garden in sufficient quantity for this purpose, and can be 
 dried by the process mentioned hereafter. The confec- 
 tioners, distillers, and perfumers of France draw from the 
 Rose a part of their perfumes, particularly from 72. Da- 
 mascena^ and M. centifolia^ in fixing their sweet odors in 
 sugar-plums, creams, ices, oils, pomatum, essences, and 
 fragrant powders. 
 
 The petals of the Rose, after being freshly picked and 
 bruised in a marble mortar, until they are reduced to a 
 sort of paste, are employed in the preparation of different 
 kinds of confectionery. Of this paste the French also 
 make little perfume balls of the size of a pea. They are 
 made round in the same manner as pills, and before be- 
 coming hard, they are pierced with a needle and strung 
 on a piece of silk. In a little while they become hard 
 like wood, assume a brownish color, and emit a delightful 
 perfume. This rose scent continues very long, and one 
 writer remarks that he has known a necklace made in this 
 style, possess, at the end of twenty-five years, as strong a 
 perfume as when first made. 
 
 In Great Britain, in the vicinity of the large cities, and 
 in many private gardens, the flowers are gathered for 
 making rose-water or for drying as perfumes. In Hol- 
 land, the Dutch hundred-leaved and common cabbage rose 
 are grown extensively at Noordwich, between Leyden 
 and Haarlem, and the dried leaves are sent to Amsterdam 
 and Constantinople. In France, the Provence Rose is ex- 
 tensively cultivated near the town of Provence, about sixty 
 miles south-east of Paris, and also at Fontenay aux Roses, 
 near Paris, for the manufacture of rose-water, or for ex- 
 portation in a dried state. The petals of the Provence 
 Rose {Rosa Gallica) are the only ones that are said to 
 
PERFUMES OP THE ROSE. 19T 
 
 gain additional fragrance in drying ; all the other varie- 
 ties losing in this process more or less of their perfume. 
 A French writer states, that apothecaries employ both 
 pale and red roses ; the pale give more perfume, while the 
 red keep the longer. 
 
 Loudon states that " the petals of roses ought always 
 to be gathered as soon as the flower is fully expanded ; 
 and the gathering should never be deferred until it has 
 begun to fade, because, in the latter case, the petals are 
 not only discolored, but weakened in their perfume and 
 their medical properties. They should be immediatel;y 
 separated from the calyx, and the claws of the petals 
 pinched off; they are then dried in the shade, if the 
 weather is dry and warm, or by a stove in a room, if the 
 season is humid, care being taken, in either case, not to 
 spread them on the ground, but on a platform raised two 
 or three feet above it. The drying should be conducted 
 expeditiously, because it has been found that slowly dried 
 petals do not exhale near so much odor as those which 
 have been dried quickly, which is also the case with hay, 
 sweet herbs, and odoriferous vegetables generally. After 
 the petals are dried, they are freed from any sand, dust, or 
 eggs of insects which may adhere to them, by shaking 
 them and rubbing them gently in a fine sieve. After this, 
 the petals are put into close vessels, from which the air is 
 excluded, and which are kept in a dry, airy situation. 
 
 " As it is extremely difficult to free the rose-petals en- 
 tirely from the eggs of insects, they are taken out of 
 these vessels two or three times a year, placed in sieves, 
 rubbed, cleaned, and replaced." 
 
 I have been careful to give the details of the above 
 process, because it may be useful to those who embark ex- 
 tensively in the cultivation of roses for the exportation of 
 petals in a dried state. We should suppose that rose- 
 petals produced in this latitude, where the Rose has a 
 long period of hibernation, would produce more perfume, 
 
198 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 and be more valuable in a dried state tban those grown 
 under the tropics. The Provence and Damask Rose are 
 both known to succeed well here, and to produce abund- 
 ant flowers. Their fragrance is unsurpassed, and our 
 summer's sun would be abundantly sufficient to dry the 
 petals without any artificial heat. It is not too much to 
 hope that the attention of our cultivators may yet be di- 
 rected to this subject, and that the manufacture of rose- 
 water and the preparation of dried petals may yet be an 
 important branch of domestic industry, and form an im- 
 portant addition to the list of exported articles. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 THE MEDICAL PROPERTIES OF THE ROSE. 
 
 We have hitherto viewed the Rose as the chief orna- 
 ment of our gardens, and if we have foimd it abounding 
 with charms of fragrance and beauty, we shall now find 
 it occupying a prominent place in Materia Medica. Some 
 authors have, with a degree of exaggeration, endeavored 
 to make its medical as brilliant as its floral reputation. 
 Rosenberg, in his work on the Rose, makes it a specific in 
 every disease, and even attributes to it supernatural 
 virtues. 
 
 In the opinion of most medical men, the medicinal proper- 
 ties of the Rose are about the same in all the kinds, while 
 some writers assert that the Hosa Gallica is superior to 
 all others in a greater or less degree. We will mention 
 those principally used in medicine, and the properties 
 which are especially attributed to each. 
 
 The most valuable properties of the Rose reside in its 
 
THE MEDICAL PROPERTIES OP THE ROSE. 199 
 
 petals, and in order to preserve these properties, it is 
 highly essential that the petals should be quickly and per- 
 fectly dried. Those of the Provence Rose {JRosa Gallica) 
 have an astringent and somewhat bitter taste, and are 
 tonic and astringent in their effects. 
 
 According to an analysis recently made in France, they 
 contain, besides vegetable matter and essential oil, a por- 
 tion of gallic acid, coloring matter, albumen, tannin, some 
 salts, with a base of potash or of chalk, silex, and oxide 
 of iron. A small dose in powder strengthens the stomach 
 and assists digestion. Their prolonged use will sometimes 
 cause a slight constipation of the bowels, while in a much 
 stronger dose they act as purgatives. 
 
 The conserve of the Provence Rose has much reputa- 
 tion in France for the treatment of all chronic affections 
 of the bowels, caused by weakness and inactivity of the 
 digestive organs ; it is also employed in colic, in diarrhoea, 
 in cases of hemorrhage and leucorrhcea. 
 
 The conserve of any variety of roses is considered ex- 
 cellent in cases of cold or catarrh. It is prepared by 
 bruising in a mortar the petals with their weight in sugar, 
 and moistening them with a little rose-water, until the 
 whole forms a homogeneous mass. Some receipts pre- 
 scribe powdered petals mixed with an equal part of 
 sugar ; others direct to use two layers of sugar, and only 
 one layer of pulverized petals. 
 
 Opoix, a physician of Provence, states that the true Rose 
 of Provence has a more sweet and penetrating fragrance 
 than the same rose grown elsewhere, and even goes so far 
 as to say that it has acquired properties which it does not 
 possess in its native country, the Caucasus. On account 
 of the supposed superior qualities of this rose, the citizens 
 of Provence, in 1807, addressed a petition to government 
 to encourage in their territory the cultivation of the true 
 Provence Rose, by giving it the preference in all the hos- 
 pitals and military dispensaries. This gave rise to a dis- 
 
200 
 
 PAESONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 cussion between two French chemists, but without decid- 
 ing the fact whether the Hosa Gallica was superior in 
 medical properties to any other rose. It seems to be ac- 
 knowledged that those cultivated at Provence were superi- 
 or to the same kind grown elsewhere, and this superiority 
 is attributed by some to the presence of iron in the soil 
 about that city. It was probably owing, also, to the very 
 careful cultivation practiced there. The petals are used 
 extensively in several medical preparations, as the sugar 
 of roses, the ointment of roses, the treacle of roses, etc. 
 Rose-water is, however, more extensively used in medi- 
 cine than any other preparation of the rose. This water, 
 when manufactured from Rosa Gallica^ or any other of 
 the section of CentifolicB, is employed internally as an 
 astringent, and is sometimes mixed with other medicines 
 to destroy their disagreeable smell and taste. In external 
 applications, it is used principally for affections of the 
 eyes, either alone or with some ointment. 
 
 The alcoholic tincture of roses, or spirit of roses, before 
 mentioned, which was formerly given as a stimulus in 
 many cases, has now fallen very much into disuse, medi- 
 cal opinion being very much against the employment of 
 any alcoholic medicines excepting in very rare cases. 
 
 The syrup o/* roses, manufactured from the pale or Dam- 
 ask Rose, is sometimes employed as a purgative, and was 
 once highly esteemed and recommended as a mild laxa- 
 tive. It is now, however, scarcely considered purgative, 
 and its laxative properties are probably owing in a great 
 measure to the senna and other articles which enter into 
 its preparation. 
 
 The electuary of roses, which is now no longer used, 
 Avas also probably indebted for its medical qualities to the 
 addition of scammony, a very strong purgative. 
 
 Yinegar of roses is made by simply infusing dried 
 rose-petals in the best distilled vinegar, to which they 
 communicate their perfume. It is used for cooking and 
 
THE MEDICAL PROPERTIES OP THE ROSE. 201 
 
 for the toilet, and for headaches, when applied in the 
 same way as common vinegar. The ancients prepared 
 this vinegar, and also the wine and oil of roses, which are 
 no longer used. 
 
 Honey of roses is made by beating up rose-petals with 
 a very small portion of boiling water ; the liquid, after 
 being filtered, is boiled with honey. This is esteemed for 
 sore throats, for ulcers in the mouth, and for anything 
 that is benefited by the use of honey. 
 
 The fruit of the rose is said also to possess some astrin- 
 gent properties ; the pulp of the fruit of the wild varie- 
 ties, particularly of the dog rose, after being separated 
 from the seeds and beaten up in a mortar with sugar, 
 makes a sort of conserve, formerly known in medicine 
 under the name of Cynorrhodon. 
 
 Children in the country sometimes eat these fruits after 
 they have attained perfect maturity, and have been some- 
 what mellowed by the frost ; they then lose their pungent 
 taste, and become a little sweet. Belanger, a French 
 writer, who traveled in Persia in 1825, found in that 
 country a rose whose friiit was very agreeably flavored. 
 The apple-bearing rose {R. villosa pomifera) produces the 
 largest fruit of all, and is the best adapted for preserving ; 
 but an English writer remarks that the fruit of R. systyla 
 and R. arvensis^ although of a smaller size, bears a high- 
 er flavor than that of any other species. Rose-buds, like 
 the fruit, are also frequently preserved in sugar, and 
 pickled in vinegar. Tea is sometimes made of the leaves 
 of the rose, which are also eaten readily by the domestic 
 animals. 
 
 The ends of the young shoots of the sweet-brier, de- 
 prived of their bark and foliage, and cut into short pieces, 
 are soirietimes candied and sold by the confectioners. 
 
 The Dog Rose takes its name from the virtue which 
 the ancients attributed to its root as a cure for hydrophobia. 
 The heathen deities themselves, according to Pliny, re- 
 9* 
 
202 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 vealed this marvelous property, in dream, to a mother 
 whose son had beeu bitten by a dog affected with this 
 terrible disease. 
 
 The excrescences frequently found on the branches of 
 the Rose, and particularly on those of the wild varieties, 
 known to druggists by the Arabic name oi Bedeguar^ and 
 which resemble in form a little bunch of moss, partake 
 equally of the astringent properties of the Rose. These 
 excrescences are caused by the puncture of a little insect, 
 known to naturalists as the Cynips rosce^ and, occasion- 
 ally, nearly the same effects are produced by other insects. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 GENERAL EEMARKS. 
 
 The name of the Rose is very similar in most languages, 
 but of its primitive derivation very little or nothing is 
 known. It is rhodon in Greek ; rhos^ in Celtic ; rosa, in 
 Latin, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Hungarian, and Polish ; 
 rose^ in French, Saxon, and English ; rosen, in German ; 
 roose^ in Dutch ; rhoshd^ in Sclavonic ; ros^ in Irish ; ruoze^ 
 in Bohemian ; ouasrath, in Arabic ; nisrin, in Turkish ; 
 chabhatzeleth, in Hebrew ; and gul, in Persian. These are 
 the various names by which the flower has been known 
 from very early times, and a strong resemblance can be 
 traced through all. The Latin name, rosa, also forms a 
 component part of terms used to designate several other 
 things. 
 
 The name of rosary was given to a string of beads used 
 in the Romish Church to represent a certain number of 
 prayers ; it was instituted about the year 667, but was not 
 
GENERAL REMARKS. 203 
 
 much used until Peter the Hermit excited the Christian 
 nations to the Crusade, about 1096. Dominique, a Romish 
 saint, established, in 1207, the brotherhood of the Rosary, 
 and the festival of the Rose was instituted in 1571 by- 
 Pope Pius v., in thanksgiving for the Adctory gained by 
 the Christians over the Turks at Lepante. Subsequent 
 popes gave to that ceremony more eclat, and caused it to 
 be established in Spain. The name of rosary was former- 
 ly also given to the vessel used in distilling rose-water. 
 The Rose has also given the idea of new forms of beauty 
 in architecture and the arts. A rose is sometimes sculp- 
 tured in the centre of each face of a Corinthian capital. 
 It is also frequently seen in iron castings for the banisters 
 of the stone steps of a house, and it is sometimes display- 
 ed upon the pavement in front of some splendid mansion. 
 This, however, is rare in the United States, although fre- 
 quent in Europe. 
 
 Among all the imitations of the Rose, none can compare 
 M'ith those painted on glass, some of which can be found 
 in the windows of celebrated European Cathedrals in 
 Canterbury, Cologne, Milan, Rheims, St. Denis, and oth- 
 ers. We can scarcely imagine anything more beautifully 
 soft than these paintings on glass, as seen from the interi- 
 or of a church, in the rich light of a glowing sunset ; the 
 Rose thus painted seems to possess all the freshness and 
 beauty of the real flower. 
 
 The nave of the Cathedral of Paris, besides twenty-four 
 large windows, is lighted by three others, large and mag- 
 nificent, in the shape of a Rose, which are each forty feet 
 in diameter. The paintings on glass which ornament 
 these windows were executed in the 13th century, and 
 still retain their fresh and bright colors : that over the 
 grand entrance represents the signs of the zodiac, and the 
 agricultural labors of each month. 
 
 In heraldry, the rose frequently forms part of a shield, 
 in full bloom, with a bud in the centre, and with five 
 
204 PARSONS ON THE KOSE. 
 
 points to imitate thorns ; it is an emblem of beauty and 
 of nobility acquired with difficulty. 
 
 The Golden Rose was considered so honorable a present, 
 that none but monarchs were worthy to receive it. 
 
 In the 11th century, the Pope introduced the custom of 
 blessing a golden Rose, which he presented to some church, 
 or to some prince or princess, as an especial mark of his 
 favor. 
 
 In 1096, the Pope Urban II. gave a Golden Rose to the 
 Comte d'Anjou. Alexander III. sent one to Louis, King 
 of France, in acknowledgment of the attentions of that 
 prince during the Pope's visit to France, as stated in a 
 letter which he wrote the King. 
 
 " In accordance with the custom of our ancestors, in 
 carrying a rose of gold in their hands on Dimanche Lastare, 
 we do not think we can present it to one who merits it 
 more than yourself, from your devotion to the Church and 
 to ourselves." 
 
 Pope John, in 1415, sent the Golden Rose to the Em- 
 peror Sigismund. Martin V,, in 1418, sent another to the 
 same prince. Pius II., in 1461, sent one to Thomas Pale- 
 ologue, Emperor of Constantinople. Henry YIII., of 
 England, before his separation from the Church of Rome, 
 received the Golden Rose twice ; the first from Julius II., 
 and the second from Leo X. ; and in 1842, the Pope's 
 Nuncio Capaccini presented it to Donna Maria, Queen 
 of Portugal. Isabella, Queen of Spain, was presented 
 with it a few years since. 
 
 The public ceremony of blessing the Rose was not insti- 
 tuted until 1366, by Urban V. : that pontifi", wishing to 
 give a particular mark of his esteem to Joanna, Queen of 
 Sicily, solemnly blessed a Golden Rose, which he sent her, 
 and made at the same time a decree, that a similar one 
 should be consecrated every year. For fifty or sixty 
 years, the Pope gave the Rose to princes who came to 
 Rome ; and it was the custom to give 500 louis to the 
 
GENERAL KEMARKS. 205 
 
 officer who carried it for the Pope. The Rose, in its in- 
 trinsic value, was, however, sometimes worth double that 
 sum. 
 
 We have thus given all the information we have been 
 able to collect respecting the history of the Rose. 
 
 We shall feel abundantly gratified if the facts and anec- 
 dotes we have cited shall tend to enhance the already 
 growing interest in this flower ; and by thus connecting 
 it with the lore of antiquity, cast around it a bright halo 
 of pleasant associations. 
 
 Among the various riches of the garden, there are many 
 flowers of great attractions : some we admire for their 
 beautiful forms, others for theii* brilliant colors, and oth- 
 ers again for their delightful fragrance ; and we scarcely 
 know which to pronounce the most pleasing. But what- 
 ever may be our feelings of admiration for these beautiful 
 flowers, a desire for something still more beautiful draws 
 us to the Rose, and compels us to pronounce it superior 
 to all its rivals. It is the Rose alone that never fatigues, 
 that always exhibits some new beauty, and that is never 
 afiected by fashion ; for while Dahlias and other flowers^ 
 have had their hour of favor, and have passed out of no- 
 tice, the Rose has been a favorite for some three thousand 
 years, and is still the first and most beautiful, — ^the chef 
 d'ceuvre of the vegetable kingdom. 
 
 The Rose is rendered a favorite by many pleasant asso- 
 ciations. It has been the cherished flower of the ancient 
 poets, and with modern poets it has lost none of its 
 charms, but is still apostrophized and made an object of 
 frequent comparison. With the ancients, it was, as we 
 have seen, the ornament of their festivals, their altars, 
 and their tombs : it was the emblem of beauty, youth, 
 modesty, and innocence, and was full of tender sentiment 
 
206 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 and pleasant images. A French writer, in a somewhat 
 more extravagant vein of laudation, says, " Its name alone 
 gives birth in all sensible minds to a crowd of pleasant 
 thoughts, while, at the same time, it excites a sensation 
 of the most delightfiil pleasures, and the most sweet en- 
 joyments." The name of " Queen of Flowers," has been 
 given to the Rose, almost from time immemorial; but 
 this name is particularly applicable to the M, centifolia 
 and the hybrids from it. Yet the little, modest wild rose, 
 found only in woods and hedges, adorns the solitude 
 where it grows, and possesses for many a charm not sur- 
 passed by that of any of the cultivated varieties : its 
 regularly formed corolla, of a soft and delicate color, com- 
 bines in its simplicity many an attraction not found in the 
 most beautiful flowers of the garden ; and late in the sea- 
 son, when the fields are stripped of their verdure, the 
 landscape is enlivened by the bright appearance of its red, 
 coral-like fruit. 
 
 The beauty of the Rose has preserved it and its reputa- 
 tion for many ages. The most populous nations, the 
 largest cities, the most wealthy and powerful kingdoms, 
 have disappeared from the earth, or have been involved in 
 the revolutions and subversions of empires, while a sim- 
 ple flower has escaped them all, and still remains to tell 
 its story. It has seen a hundred generations succeed each 
 other, and pass away; it has traveled through ages with- 
 out changing its destiny or losing its character : the hom- 
 age rendered and the love borne it have been always the 
 same : now, as in the earliest periods of the world's his- 
 tory, it is decreed the first place in the floral kingdom. In 
 these days, as in those of antiquity, it is par excellence^ 
 the Queen of Flowers, because it is always the most beau- 
 tiful, and because no other flower can furnish half its 
 charms. To elegance and beauty of form it unites the 
 freshness and brilliance of the most agreeable colors, and, 
 as if nature had showered upon it all her most precious 
 
207 
 
 gifts, it adds to its other qualities a delightful perfume, 
 which alone would suffice to entitle it to a distinguished 
 place among the beautiful and pleasant things of the vege- 
 table kingdom. 
 
 FLORA'S CHOICE. 
 
 "When Flora, from her azure home, 
 Came gently down to grace the earth, 
 She called around her every sprite 
 To which the sunny air gives birth. 
 And bade them search each distant realm 
 Of tropic heat or temperate clime. 
 From cold 'New England's rocky hills 
 To Santa Crusian groves of lime, 
 And bring each floweret, rich and rare, 
 For her to choose her favorite there. 
 
 Quick flew the sprites o'er land and sea. 
 Through cloud, and mist, and storm afar, 
 Catching, with rapid, eagle glance. 
 The beauties of each opening flower : 
 From Alpine heights they bore a prize, 
 From Persia and from Hindostan ; 
 For many a bud of beauty rare 
 They searched the central, flowery land, 
 And, filled with treasures rich and sweet, 
 They hasten'd to their mistress' feet. 
 
 Camellia, with its lustrous white 
 And glossy leaves of emerald hue ; 
 
208 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Verbena, with its brilliant red, 
 
 And Heath just touch'd with mountain dew ; 
 
 Azalea, whose aerial form 
 
 Seems scarcely of terrestrial birth ; 
 
 And Cinerara's purple star. 
 
 Gracing full well its mother earth ; 
 
 And many a flower from tropic skies 
 
 Strove mingled there to gain the prize. 
 
 But not the richest tropic blooms, 
 Cull'd from the fairest climes on earth, 
 Could vie with nature's fairest flower. 
 Of Iran's sun-clad soil the birth ; 
 Though clothed in rich and gorgeous hues, 
 They bore no charm of fragrance there, 
 In form and color, sweetness, grace — 
 None with the Rose could once compare : 
 She bore the palm in Flora's eyes, 
 Who to the Rose adjudged the prize. 
 
 S. B. P. 
 
 THE ROSE, 
 
 Though many a flower has graced the lay 
 And formed the theme of poets' song — 
 Has gently flowed in Grecian phrase, 
 Or tripped upon the Roman's tongue ; 
 Yet, still, in ancient song and story 
 The Rose shines forth in beauty rare, 
 Enveloped with a halo bright. 
 And made so glorious, rich, and fair, 
 
THE ROSE. 209 
 
 That all the flowers must yield their seat, 
 
 And lay their beauty at its feet. 
 
 Anacreon sang its primal birth, 
 
 Old Homer praised its form of grace, 
 
 Catullus boasted of its charms, 
 
 Horace, its richly tinted face: 
 
 In fair Italia's glowing words, 
 
 Tasso and Metastasio sang ; 
 
 And 'mong the groves of far Cathay 
 
 The Persian Hafiz' accents rang. 
 
 The flowing tones of old Castile, 
 
 From Camoens and Sannazar, 
 
 And in our own j^i ire English tongue 
 
 It was the signal note of war ; 
 
 In many a poet's verse its beauty shone, — 
 
 Milton, the Bard of Avon, and the Great Unknown. 
 
 High valued were its flowers bright 
 
 By Helle's maids of yore ; 
 
 It graced their scenes of festive glee 
 
 In the classic vales of Arcady, 
 
 And all the honors bore ; 
 
 And shed its fragrance on the breeze 
 
 That swept through academic grove, 
 
 Where sages with their scholars rove — 
 
 The land of Pericles. 
 
 In the sunny clime of Suristan, 
 
 On India's burning shore, 
 
 Amid the Brahmin's sacred shades. 
 
 Or in the wreaths that Persian maids, 
 
 Sporting in bright and sunny glades 
 
 In graceful beauty wore ; 
 
 Upon the banks of Jordan's stream 
 
 Still flowing softly on, 
 
 "Where Judah's maidens once did lave, 
 
 Or where the lofty cedars wave, 
 
 On time-worn Lebanon ; 
 
210 PAKSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 The Rose is still most rich and sweet, 
 
 And wears the crown for beauty meet. 
 
 I have basked in the beauty of southern climes, 
 
 And wandered through groves of palm and limes, 
 
 Where dark-eyed Spanish girls 
 
 Would linger in their myrtle bowers, — 
 
 With garlands rich of orange flowers 
 
 Would weave their raven curls, 
 
 And fasten 'mid their lustrous hair 
 
 The fire-fly's glittering light. 
 
 Which, brighter than the diamond's sheen. 
 
 Bursts on the dazzled sight. 
 
 But yet I would not give for these. 
 
 Produce of tropic sun and breeze — 
 
 For all the flowers in beauty there — 
 
 The Rose our northern maidens wear. 
 
 I've crossed the Andes' lofty height, 
 
 Its mountains, forest-crowned, 
 
 And 'mong the devious, tangled paths 
 
 Of tropic thickets wound. 
 
 In fair Aragua's fertile vale. 
 
 In Hayti's fields of bloom, 
 
 I've marked the prickly Cactus tribe 
 
 Its richest tints assume. 
 
 I've passed through fragrant Coffee groves, 
 
 By the tall Bucara tree. 
 
 And by the Cocoa and the Palm, 
 
 With the Trupeol warbling free ; 
 
 Upon the flower-clad turf, and where 
 
 The rich Orchidia climbs in air. 
 
 But not 'mid all this gorgeous bloom. 
 
 By tropic climate wove, 
 
 'Not Florida's rich Magnolia 
 
 And fragrant Orange grove ; 
 
 Nor the graceful vines of southern France, 
 
 Nor Italy's fair bowers, 
 
THE KOSE. 211 
 
 Nor England's lofty domes of glass 
 All filled with gorgeous flowers ; 
 Nor in our own wide prairie land, 
 With bud and bloom on every hand, 
 Is there a single flower that grows 
 Can vie in beauty with the Rose. 
 
 Then seek, in southern, tropic air, 
 
 And in our northern glade, 
 
 And in the bright and gay parterre. 
 
 And by the forest shade, 
 
 Where every flower, and leaf, and tree, 
 
 In graceful blending met. 
 
 Presents new beauty to the eye, 
 
 Of azure or of jet ; 
 
 And take each blossom, rich and rare, 
 
 Which thou may'st find in beauty there 
 
 Combine their color, form, and grace, 
 
 And each unpleasant tint erase ; 
 
 Then recreate the loveliest flower 
 
 That e'er shed fragrance in a bower ; 
 
 Let all its sweets and charms unclose ; 
 
 It cannot equal yet the Rose. 
 
 S. B. Pe 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 
 
 The following comprise the latest new varieties of Roses: 
 
 EEMOKTAi^T OR HYBRID PERPETUALS. 
 
 As stated on page 32, the name " Hybrid Perpetual," 
 as applied to this class of Roses, is calculated to mislead 
 those unacquainted with Roses, and the term Remontant 
 was chosen instead. Still, most of the catalogues use the 
 term "Hybrid Perpetual," and some call the class 
 "Hybrid Remontant." Of late years Roses of this class 
 have been largely employed for forcing. 
 
 Alfred Colomb, not new, but little known at the time 
 of the former list. Large, brilliant crimson, fine form 
 and very fragrant. A seedling of the popular Gen, 
 Jacqueminot, and one of the best. 
 
 Anne de Diesbach has been several years in cultiva- 
 tion and found to be desirable. Large, full, fine shape; 
 clear, bright carmine; fragrant and very hardy. 
 
 Antoine Mouton. — Medium size, full; lively rose, 
 tinged with lilac; very fragrant; plant vigorous. 
 
 Auguste Buchner.— Large, full; bright scarlet, shaded 
 with purple; growth vigorous. 
 
 Baroness Rothschild, (also Madame de RotJiscMld).— 
 One of the largest roses; fine form; pink, shaded with 
 rose; exceedingly hardy and a free bloomer. 
 
 Beauty of Waltham.— Large, full, of fine form; light 
 rosy crimson; free bloomer. 
 
 Boieldieu. — Very large and full; fine cherry red, of the 
 style of Baronne Prevostj plant vigorous. 
 (312) 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 213 
 
 Charles Darwin. — Deep crimson, with a brownish tint 
 and shaded with yiolet; free grower and good autumn 
 bloomer; very distinct. 
 
 €omte de Mortemart. — Large and full; fine form; 
 clear rose; very fragrant; growth vigorous. 
 
 Countess of Roseberry.— Large, full, finely cupped; 
 brilliant carmine-rose; vigorous grower and blooms freely 
 in autumn. When sent out in 1879 it was regarded as 
 '^the most promising of recent years." 
 
 Dean of Windsor. — Large, full flowers, of good form; 
 clear, rich vermillion; moderately vigorous. 
 
 Doct. Hog^. — Medium size, good form; deep violet 
 crimson; free grower and bloomer. 
 
 Doct. Hooker. — Large, full; rich crimson, with violet 
 shading; free grower and one of the best autumnal 
 bloomers. 
 
 Doct, Sewell. — Large, finely cupped; brilliant crim- 
 son, shaded with purple; very distinct; free flowering. 
 
 Emily Laxton. — A globular, pointed, fine bud, opening 
 into a large globular flower; rich cherry-rose; vigorous. 
 
 Empress of India. — Medium, globular; dark brownish- 
 crimson; very fragrant; free grower. 
 
 Eugene Verdier. — Large; silvery-pink, tinged with 
 fawn-color; bud very fine; dwarfish habit; seedling of 
 Victor Verdier. 
 
 Firebrand. — Very large and full; circular; crimson, 
 with fiery red center; very fragrant; dwarf, but not a 
 good autumn bloomer. 
 
 Fisher Holmes. — Large and full; magnificent scarlet, 
 shaded with crimson; free grower and bloomer. It 
 has been described as an improved Gen. Jacqueminot. 
 
 Gabriel Tournier, — Large, globular and full; deep 
 rosy-red; vigorous grower, and free bloomer in autumn. 
 
214 PARSOiTS Oi^ THE ROSE. 
 
 George Baker.— Large; lake, shaded with cerise; ex- 
 cellent foliage, and rarely mildews. 
 
 George Moreau. — Large, globular and opening well; 
 bright, glossy-red, shaded with vermillion; yigorous. 
 
 Gloire de Bourg la Reine. — Large, full; yivid scarlet; 
 described as ''the most brilliant yariety hitherto raised." 
 Took the first prize at the Uniyersal Exhibition of 1878. 
 
 Glory of Cheshunt. — Kich shaded crimson. A seed- 
 ling of Clias. Lefehvre, and described as ''yigorous and 
 superb." 
 
 Harrison Weir. — Large, of exquisite form; rich yel- 
 yety-crimson, enliyened with scarlet; sweet scented; 
 strong grower, and blooms freely in autumn. 
 
 Hippolyte Jamain. — Fine form; deep clear carmine; 
 moderately yigorous, with the young foliage of a deep 
 shade of red; remarkably hardy. 
 
 Jean Liabaud. — Large; excellent form; yelyety crim- 
 son-maroon; free grower, but shy bloomer in autumn. 
 " One of the most beautiful of the dark roses." 
 
 Jolin Saul. — Large, semi-globular, yery full; fine 
 clear red, the back of the petals carmine; yery fragrant; 
 yigorous, with short- jomted stems; flowers freely. 
 
 Jolin Stuart Mill. — Large, yery double; perfect form; 
 fine bright crimson; free grower, and blooms rather late. 
 
 La Brilliante. — Large, clear bright crimson, yery 
 double, and fragrant; grows fairly and blooms freely. 
 Not yery new, but yaluable. 
 
 Lord Beaconsfield. — Very large and double; excellent 
 form; deep rosy-crimson. 
 
 Lord Macauley. — Large and yery full; brilliant crim- 
 son, free bloomer. Though an old rose, this was not 
 included in the former edition; it is still among the 
 select of its class. 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 215 
 
 Mabel Morrison. — A sport oi Baroness Rothschild, and 
 like it in nearly all respects, save color, which is a pure 
 dead white, but in autumn flushed with delicate pink. 
 
 Madame Chas. Wood. — Very large, and free bloomer; 
 deep crimson, shaded with purple. 
 
 Madame Knorr. — Medium, very full; bright glossy 
 rose, remarkably sweet. Old, but valued. 
 
 Madame Victor Verdier. — Large, full, globular; car- 
 mine-rose; fragrant; free bloomer, and though not new, 
 excellent. 
 
 M'lle. Marie Rady. — Large to very large, full, globu- 
 lar, the petals finely imbricated; vermillion-red; free 
 bloomer, and highly valued among red roses. 
 
 Marguerite de St. Amande. — Medium, particularly 
 beautiful in the bud; bright rose; free, especially in 
 autumn; much used by those who force roses. 
 
 Marie Baumann. — Large and full, excellent form; deep 
 carmine; very fragrant; remarkably free, and classed by 
 all among the best. 
 
 Mons. E. Y. Teas. — Large, fine globular form; car- 
 mine-crimson; highly fragrant; excellent. 
 
 Oxonian* — Large, full, globular; the petals of great 
 substance; bright rose; fragrant. 
 
 Paeonia. — Large to very large, full; red; fragrant; 
 old, but valued for its fine foliage, and free flowering. 
 
 Paul Neyron. — Very large and perhaps the largest yet 
 produced; deep rose; somewhat fragrant; very free 
 bloomer. 
 
 Pierre Notting. — Very large, fine globular form; very 
 deep crimson with a violet shade; highly fragrant; free 
 and one of the most valued among the dark roses. 
 
 Princess Mathilde.— Medium, not very full; fine 
 shade of crimson ; moderately free. 
 
216 PARSOKS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Reine Blanche. — There are two of this name in this 
 class. That raised by Orozy, is from Victor Verdier, a 
 large fine flower; white^ slightly suffused with rose. 
 
 Rev. J. B. €amm. — Medium to large; semi-globular; 
 bright rosy carmine; exceedingly fragrant; very free; fine. 
 
 Richard Laxton. — Large, finely cupped; reddish crim- 
 son; very free bloomer. 
 
 Rosy Morn. — Very large and full; delicate peach, 
 shaded with salmon-rose; fragrant, esteemed notwith- 
 standing some of the flowers are imperfect. 
 
 Souvenir d' Adolph Thiers.— Very large and double, 
 globular; yiolet crimson with fiery-red center; fragrant; 
 moderate growth. 
 
 Souvenir d' Au^uste Riviere. — Large, well formed, 
 very double; brilliant velvety crimson, shaded with ma- 
 roon; free bloomer. 
 
 Souvenir de Victor Verdier. — Medium, full, well 
 formed; red, shaded with purple; free bloomer. 
 
 Star of Waltham. — Medium to large, fine form and 
 full; carmine-crimson; very fragrant; not always reliable. 
 
 Thomas Mills. — Large, very double, of fine cup-shape; 
 rosy-carmine. A fine garden variety. 
 
 Thyra Hammerich. — Large, good form; rosy flesh- 
 color; free and good. 
 
 Triomphe de France. — Very large, full, flat; rich car- 
 mine; fragrant; excellent, but a poor grower. 
 
 Triomphe de 1' Exposition. — Eather large, somewhat 
 coarse; fragrant; very fine at times. 
 
 Victor Verdier. — Medium to large, full, semi-globular; 
 bright rose with carmine center; not fragrant; fine but 
 somewhat tender. 
 
 White Baroness. — Large, full, pure white; sport of 
 Baroness Rothschild and resembling it except in color. 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 217 
 
 ' Xavier OlibOt — Large; deep crimson; moderate grower; 
 fine. 
 
 REMOKTAl^^T MOSS. (Seep. 37.) 
 
 Blauche Morcan. — " Large, full, perfect form; pure 
 white; buds and flowers produced in clusters and freely 
 furnished with deep green moss." New; the foregoing 
 is the European description. 
 
 Soupert and dotting. — Very large, full and globular; 
 bright rose color; while not so "mossy" as some others, 
 its ever-blooming character and most exquisite fragrance 
 give it a place in the first rank of its class. Kegarded as 
 the most important addition to this class of Eoses. 
 
 BOURBOK ROSES. (See p. 37.) 
 
 George Peabody. — Medium, full, well formed; pur- 
 plish crimson; fragrant; a moderate grower, but one of 
 the best of its class. 
 
 Jules Jurgensen. — Large and full; magenta, shaded 
 with violet; was awarded a first class certificate at the 
 Lyons Show in 1880. 
 
 Queen of BedderSi — Medium, very full; rich crimson. 
 Few recent roses have been so highly praised as this; evi- 
 dently a useful free-blooming sort. 
 
 NOISETTE ROSES. (See p. 42.) 
 
 A new class. Hybrid Nosiettes, has been proposed to 
 include a group of doubtful origin, but supposed to have 
 come from crosses between the Bourbon and Noisette. 
 The leading varieties are mcluded here, and indicated 
 by(Hyb.). 
 
 Boule de IViege. — Small, very full; white; not a new 
 variety, but valuable for its free blooming. (Hyb. ) 
 10 
 
218 PARSOHS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Bouquet d' Or. — Large, full; yellow, tinged with cop- 
 per-color at center; yery free grower and bloomer. 
 
 Claire Carnot. — Full and of good form; fine yellow; 
 very fragrant; yigorous. 
 
 Coquette des Alpes. — Medium to large, fine form; 
 white, with a slight tinge of carmine; ** a yigorous grow- 
 er and profuse bloomer." (Hyb.) 
 
 Coquette des Blanches* — Medium, flat; pure white, 
 or sometimes with a tinge of blush; yery free in growth 
 and bloom. This and the preceding are in some cata- 
 logues placed with the Hybrid Remontants. (Hyb.) 
 
 Elise Boelle* — Medium, full, of fine form; white, with 
 a delicate pink shading; moderate grower, much es- 
 teemed. (Hyb.) 
 
 Madame Auguste Perrin. — Medium to small, but of 
 fine form; mottled pink; of moderate yigor; regarded as 
 most promising. (Hyb.) 
 
 Madame Caroline Kuster.— Large, full and globular; 
 beautiful yellow, often mottled with rose; free bloomer. 
 
 Madame Noman. — Medium, full, globular; white, often 
 tinted at center; much esteemed. (Hyb.) 
 
 Madame Oswald Kerchove. — Medium; white, tinged 
 with fawn; regarded as of promise; probably a seedling 
 of the next. (Hyb.) 
 
 Madame Recamier. — Medium, well-formed; white, 
 with a blush; a rather old variety, but good. (Hyb.) 
 
 Mar^chal IViel. — At the time of the former edition this 
 rose was generally classed with the Teas, but it is now 
 conceded to belong to the ]N"oisettes. It still retains its 
 position, under proper cultivation, as one of the most 
 valuable of all roses for growing under glass. 
 
 Pumila. — Small; fine salmon-rose; a remarkably free 
 bloomer of unknown origin. 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 219 
 
 W. A. Richardson. — Medium to largo, fine form; 
 oraage-yellow; vigorous and free. 
 
 Washington. — Medium, but flowers rather loose; white; 
 has a certain popularity on account of its name^ but is 
 inferior to many others. 
 
 TEA ROSES. 
 
 Since the former edition of this work, two new subdi- 
 visions have been proposed among the Tea Koses: 
 the "Hybrid Teas," and the "Climbing Teas." The 
 first named results from crossing some variety of the 
 Eemontant Rose (Hybrid Perpetual), with one of 
 the Teas. As a general thing, they combine hardiness 
 and the large size and brilliant coloring of the Eemon- 
 tants, with the exquisite perfume and constant bloom- 
 ing habit of the Teas. Though this class is still in its 
 infancy, there is every reason to expect a great advance 
 in Rose culture from their introduction. 
 
 The " Climbing Teas," and their name describes their 
 peculiarity, are mostly seedlings from Gloire de Dijon, or 
 crosses upon it, though the majority are inferior to that 
 noble rose. As a matter of convenience, these two sub- 
 divisions are here included with the Teas, and are indi- 
 cated by (Hybrid), and (Climbing). 
 
 TEAS. — INCLUDING HYBEID AKD CLIMBIKG. 
 
 Adam. — The proper name for President (see p. 48). 
 
 Adrienne Christophle. — Apricot-yellow, shaded with 
 rosy peach; of moderate growth. 
 
 Alha Rosea. — A synonym for Madame Bravy. — See 
 p. 46. 
 
 Aline Sisley. — Large, with pointed bud; violet red, 
 shaded with maroon; very fragrant. 
 
 Amazone.— Buds long, well-formed; deep yellow, with 
 the exterior of petals veined with rose; moderate growth. 
 
220 PARSON^S 01^ THE EOSE. 
 
 American Banner. — Eather small; bright carmine, 
 dashed with white; free bloomer. A sport of Bon Silene, 
 
 Anna Olivier. — Large and full; flesh-color, shaded 
 with rose; very fragrant. 
 
 Archimede. — Large; rosy-fawn, with darker center; 
 very free grower; a rather old variety, but good where 
 well grown. 
 
 Baron Alexandre de Vrints. — One of the newer varie- 
 ties, of delicate rose color. 
 
 Beauts de PEurope. — A vigorous climber; large; deep 
 yellow, reverse shaded with coppery-yellow. 
 
 Beanty of Stapleford. — (Hybrid). — Very large, good 
 form; pinkish-rose, deeper in center; moderate grower, 
 and apt to mildew. 
 
 Belle Lyonnaise. — (Climbing). — Large, and very 
 double; canary-yellow, tinted with salmon; very vigorous. 
 
 Bon Silene. — Described on p. 48 as Silene, but now 
 generally known by the above name. It is one of the 
 most valuable in the bud state, and is largely forced; 
 the celebrated " Boston Eose-buds," are from this variety. 
 
 Capt. Christy. — Medium to large, full; delicate flesh- 
 color; deeper at center; buds very fine; foliage vigorous; 
 an abundant and frequent bloomer. 
 
 Catharine Mcrmet. —Large, pointed buds, full, and 
 of good form; rosy flesh-color; fine fragrance; moderate 
 grower. Esteemed by those who force roses for the mar- 
 ket, as one of the most valuable. 
 
 Charles Rovolli. — Full; carmine, base of petals yellow- 
 ish; very fragrant; free grower, and incessant bloomer. 
 
 Cheshunt Hybrid. — (Hybrid). — Large, full and fine 
 form; red, with violet shade; somewhat fragrant; very 
 vigorous and free. 
 
 Climbing Devoniensis. — A sport from Devoniensis 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 221 
 
 (see p. 45,) with a climbing habit, and more vigorous 
 growth. 
 
 Comtesse de Labarthe. — Full and well cupped, fine in 
 bud; rose, shaded with carmine; free grower and excel- 
 lent. 
 
 Comtesse de Nadaillac— Large, full, fine in bud; cop- 
 per and salmon, flushed with carmine; highly fragrant; 
 moderate growth. 
 
 Comtesse Riza du Pare— Medium to large, full; 
 coppery-rose, shaded with carmine; full fragrance; free 
 grower and bloomer. 
 
 Coquette de Lyon. — Medium to small, fine bud; 
 canary-yellow; fine tea scent; yery free flowering. 
 
 Cornelie Koch, (also Cornelia Cooh). — Given on p. 43 
 as a Noisette, but now classed with the Teas. It is white 
 with occasional yellow tinge, and has established itself 
 as one of the best of its class. 
 
 Duchess of Connaught.— Very large, globular; delicate 
 silvery-rose, with salmon center; highly scented; excellent 
 foliage. 
 
 Duchess of Westminster.— Large, full, of fine form; 
 bright satiny-pink; buds very handsome. 
 
 Duke of Connaught.— (Hybrid).— Extra large, buds 
 very long; deep, rosy-crimson; moderate growth. 
 
 Fla^ of the Union. — Like the American Bamier, a 
 sport of Bon 8ilene, but has more rose color than white; 
 flowers said to equal the original in size. 
 
 Gerard Deshois. — Good size and form, full; bright-red; 
 vigorous and hardy. 
 
 Henri Lecoq. — Eather small; buds very fine; rosy 
 flesh-color; dwarf, and somewhat delicate. 
 
 Hon. George Bancroft. — Yery large; of fine form, 
 with handsome pointed buds; rosy-crimson, shaded with 
 purple; very fragrant; excellent foliage. 
 
222 PAESOi^S ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Innocente Pirola. — Large, well-formed, with long, 
 pointed buds; white, sometimes clouded with rose; mod- 
 erate to yigorous, abundant summer and winter bloomer, 
 and is expected by those who force roses to supersede 
 NiphetoSy which it much resembles. 
 
 Isabella Sprunt. — When mentioned on p. 45, was 
 comparatiyely new; it is still regarded as one of the most 
 valuable of its class, and is largely used for forcing. 
 
 Jean Ducher. — ^^Large, full, of fine form; salmon-yel- 
 low, with reddish center; moderate or free growth; some- 
 what unreliable, but in perfection one of the best. 
 
 Jean Fernete — Large, with very fine buds; light-yel- 
 low, flushed with salmon; a free grower. 
 
 Jean Slsley, — (Hybrid). — Very large and full; rosy- 
 lilac; not fragrant. Esteemed in England, where it 
 originated, but has generally failed in this country. 
 
 Jules Finj^er. — Julius Finger, — Names too much 
 alike and likely to confuse. The former is a Tea, which 
 is silvery red, and the other a Hybrid Tea, of a salmon- 
 pink color; both highly esteemed. 
 
 La France. — (Hybrid). — Large, very full and globu- 
 lar, with fine pointed buds; peach or silvery-rose; exqui- 
 site fragrance; moderate grower, and constant bloomer; 
 one of the most valuable. 
 
 La Jonquille.— Medium, fine in bud; but sometimes 
 single; deep yellow; valued for forcing to produce buds. 
 
 La Sylphide. — Large, double, buds very long and 
 pointed; blush, with fawn at center; free. 
 
 La Tulipei — Large, often semi-double; white, tinted 
 with carmine; very fragrant. 
 
 Le Waakino — Of good form, especially in the bud; 
 apricot-yellow; fragrant, not very strong. 
 
 Le Pactole. — Is now the more common name for 
 Pactole (p. 48), and is still valued for its buds. 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 233 
 
 Letty Coles. — Large and full, with splendid buds; soft 
 pink, darker at center; free bloomer and fine in summer. 
 
 Louis Barlet. — Large and full; pale-yellow, tinged 
 with salmon; free. 
 
 Louis Richard. — Large, of fine form; rich, coppery- 
 rose, often deep red in the center; free. 
 
 Madame Angele Jacquier. — Large; bright rose, with 
 coppery-yellow at base of petals; a moderate or free 
 bloomer, and regarded as promising. 
 
 Madame B^rard. — (Climbing). — ^Very large, with fine 
 bud; apricot, to golden-yellow; fine fragrance; yigorous. 
 
 Madame Bravy. — (See p. 46). — This was new at the 
 time of the former edition; it has since proved to be one 
 of the most valuable, with exquite fragrance and fine 
 form. Alba Rosea, and Madame 8erat, of some catalogues, 
 are synonyms. 
 
 Madame Francoise Jamin. — The buds, though small, 
 are of fine shape; orange-yellow; with a peculiar fra- 
 grance; of only moderate growth. 
 
 Madame Lambard. — Unusually large and full; sal- 
 mon-pink, darker at center; fine fragrance; vigorous and 
 free; a most useful variety. 
 
 Madame Margottin. — Large and full; dark citron-yel- 
 low, with rosy center; very fragrant; moderate to strong; 
 a bushy grower. A favorite old sort, omitted from the 
 former edition. 
 
 Madame Melaine Willermoz.— Large and full, petals 
 very thick; white, often with a tinge of salmon at center; 
 valued for open air 
 
 Madame Trifle.— (Climber).— Very large and full; 
 salmon -yellow, with outer petals coppery; very vigorous, 
 and much resembles Gloire de Dijon, its parent. 
 
 Madame Welche. — Very large and double; light yel- 
 
224 PARSONS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 low, shaded with orange or copper; free bloomer, and 
 valuable. Given in some catalogues as Madame Welsh. 
 
 Madamoiselle Cyclic Berthod. — Large, full, fine 
 form; bright sulphur-yellow; moderate. 
 
 M'lle Lazarine Poizeau.— Medium, of good form; 
 fine orange-yellow; moderate; regarded as one of the 
 finest yellows. 
 
 M'lle Marie Berton.— (Climbing).— Very large; 
 straw-color, rather fragrant; vigorous, with fine foliage; 
 regarded as the most free bloomer of all the seedlings of 
 Gloire de Dijon. 
 
 Mar^chal Robert. — Large, to very large, full, globu- 
 lar; white, or very pale-lemon, shaded with rose; free. 
 
 Marie Ducher. — Large, full, good form; transparent 
 salmon-rose; sweet fragrance; very free, good habit. 
 
 Marie Guillot. — Large, beautiful in bud, nearly per- 
 fect in form; white, with a faint tinge of yellow; free, 
 and one of the best of the newer light-colored varieties. 
 
 Marie Sisley. — Large, very double; pale-yellow, tinged 
 with rose; moderate growth; distinct, but variable. 
 
 Marie Van Houtte. — Excellent form; the pale-yellow 
 petals, often suffused with rose; free, and highly es- 
 teemed, especially for cultivation in the open air. 
 
 Michael Saunders.— (Hybrid).— Very large, full, 
 petals beautifully reflexed; bronzy-pink, with a darker 
 shade; fragrant; moderate growth; regarded as the best 
 of Bennet's (Eng. ) hybrids, who obtained this by a cross 
 between President, and Madame Victor Verdier. 
 
 Nancy Lee. — (Hybrid). — Medium, very handsome 
 buds; delicate silvery-rose; exceedingly fragrant; moder- 
 ate or dwarf, and not vigorous. 
 
 Xiphetos. — Mentioned on p. 48 as of light straw-color; 
 it is oftener pure white. On account of the beauty of 
 its buds, and great substance of its petals, this has been 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 225 
 
 for a few years a popular forcing rose; in the climate of 
 New York, it is only suited for growing under glass. 
 
 Pearl. — (Hybrid). — Small, but with handsome buds, 
 of fine shape; yery pale flesh-color; rather dwarf, and 
 often mildews. 
 
 Perfection de Monplaisir, — Medium size, with fine 
 buds; dark canary-yellow; of moderate growth, but free- 
 flowering; one experienced grower says : ''A fine rose for 
 any purpose." 
 
 Perle des Jardins. —Large to very large, excellent 
 form, with stiff stem; deep canary-yellow; exquite tea- 
 fragrance; a free grower and bloomer; the foliage is very 
 dark and glaucous, and the five to seven leaflets are 
 strongly serrated. This variety, both in this country, 
 and in Europe, proves to be a formidable rival to Mare- 
 chal Neil. It is largely forced for the New York mar- 
 ket, and it is also excellent in the open ground. Intro- 
 duced by Levet, of Lyons, France, in 1874. 
 
 Perle de Lyon. — Large, very double, and fragrant; 
 deep yellow, with a tinge of saffron at center; excellent 
 fragrance; very vigorous grower, and is much used to 
 train up the pillars of greenhouses, where it flowers 
 freely; mildews in the open air. Like the preceding 
 was raised in that great center of Kose culture, 
 Lyons, France, but by Ducher, in 1872. 
 
 Pierre Guillot. — (Hybrid). — Large, erect, well-formed; 
 bright red; fragrant; moderate to vigorous; free bloomer. 
 
 President. — This name, on p. 48, should be cancelled, 
 and Adam substituted, as that is the proper name of the 
 variety, which is much used for winter forcing. 
 
 Reine de Portugal. — Large and full; salmon or cop- 
 pery-yellow; very good in bud, but opens poorly; a well- 
 marked variety, and moderate grower. 
 
 Reine Maria Pia.— (Climber).— Large, full, double; 
 
226 PAESONS ON THE EOSE. 
 
 deep rose, darker in center; a vigorous grower, obtained 
 from the popular Gen, Jacqueminot, crossed with a Tea. 
 
 Reine Marie Henriette. — (Climber). — Large, good 
 form, double; cerise-red; rather fragrant; very vigorous; 
 this is also a cross from Gen. Jacqueminot, 
 
 Sombreuil.— This, which on p. 49 had a mere mention, 
 has proved to be valuable as one of the hardiest of its 
 class, especially for out-door culture. 
 
 Souvenir de Georges Sand, — Large and full, with 
 handsome buds; salmon and rose. Cultivators differ 
 greatly in their views as to its value. 
 
 Souvenir de Paul Neyron. — Medium to large, fine 
 form; pale-salmon, tinged with crimson; exquisite fra- 
 grance; free bloomer. 
 
 Souvenir d'un Ami. — The high estimate placed upon 
 this variety on p. 49, when it was comparatively new, has 
 since been sustained by rose growers, and it still stands 
 in the front rank. 
 
 Triomphe du Luxembourg. — Large, very double, fine 
 bud; coppery-rose; good habit, and of free growth. 
 
 Viscountess Falmoutli. — (Hybrid). — Very large and 
 full, of fine globular form; delicate, pinkish-rose, exte- 
 rior of petals silvery; highly perfumed; dwarf growth and 
 very showy, but sometimes imperfect. 
 
 GAEDEiq- EOSES. 
 
 By reference to page 52, it will be seen that under 
 '^Garden Eoses," are grouped several classes which some 
 rose growers regard as distinct. 
 
 In the present unsettled state of classification, that of 
 the former edition is conveniently followed, in mention- 
 ing the more recent additions. 
 
 Etienne Dupuy. — Medium, cupped; light rose color; a 
 very vigorous grower with excellent foliage. 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF EOSES. 227 
 
 lU'Ile. Emma Hall. — Medium, semi-globular; fine car- 
 mine-rose; fragrant; a fairly free grower and good sum- 
 mer bloomer, 
 
 Magna Charta. — Large to very large, full and globu- 
 lar; pink, shaded with carmine; very fragrant; a vigorous 
 grower and free bloomer. 
 
 Paul Ricaut. — Medium with good form; carmine-crim- 
 son; though an old variety it was not included in the 
 former edition. It is now regarded as one of the most 
 valuable of its class. 
 
 Paul Verdier. — Large, globular and of good form; rich 
 carmine; of vigorous growth and one of the best. 
 
 Souvenir de Pierre Dupuy. — Large, globular, well- 
 formed flowers; of good red color and very fragrant; a 
 useful, vigorous rose. 
 
 THE POLYAI^^THA KOSES. 
 
 A distinct species of Eose {Rosa poly antha,) was intro- 
 duced from Japan several years ago. This is distin- 
 guished by having numerous very small flowers, borne in 
 panicled clusters. In the hands of the French cultiva- 
 tors, it has produced what promises to be a distinct and 
 popular class, of which the following are regarded as the 
 best. They are probably hybrids, as they remontant, 
 while the original species blooms but once. The English 
 often call them " Daisy Eoses." 
 
 Anne Marie de Montravel. — Small, an inch and a 
 half in diameter, very double; pure white; lasts a long 
 while in perfection; moderately fragrant. Jean Sisley 
 writes: " Each truss will make in itself a splendid bou- 
 quet." Dwarf, but vigorous. 
 
 M'lle. C^cile Briinner.— Very small, full; fine sal- 
 mon-pink; highly fragrant; moderate or dwarf ; flowers 
 freely. Obtained by crossing with a Tea. 
 
228 PAESOKS ON THE ROSE. 
 
 Mignonette • — Very small, double; in clusters of thirty 
 or forty; rose-color, chauging to blush. 
 
 PaquerettCi — Fine form, full, only an inch in diame- 
 ter; pure white; growth moderate. 
 
 CHIN"A OR BENGAL ROSES. — (See p. 41). 
 
 In some catalogues these are classed under China, and 
 in others as Bengal Eoses, the latter name being more 
 generally used. 
 
 Clara Sylvain. — On p. 45 this is classed with the 
 Teas; the catalogues often place it as a Bengal, with a 
 strong cross of Tea. A useful white variety, also called 
 Lady Warrender. 
 
 Douglass. — Medium; full; excellent bud; crimson; 
 very free and popular. 
 
 Due her. — Very full, perfect form; pure white; free. 
 
 Duchess of Edinburgh. — Good size, rather full; crim- 
 son in bud, lighter when open; moderate growth. 
 Crossed with Tea. There is also a Eemontant of this 
 name. 
 
 James Sprunt. — Obtained by a South Carolina clergy- 
 man of this name, from Agrippina (p. 41. ) It is a climb- 
 ing Agrippina with somewhat larger jlowers. Excellent 
 for the greenhouse. 
 
 Queen's Scarlet. — Much like Agrippina, but claimed 
 to be superior to it. 
 
 THE RAMAKAS ROSE. — (Rosa rugoso). 
 
 Since the last edition was published, this rose has been 
 introduced into cultivation, and has become deservedly 
 popular. The plant is very vigorous, forming large 
 clumps, five or six feet in height, with exceedingly thorny 
 
THE LATEST LISTS OF ROSES. 229 
 
 stems. The foliage is remarkably robust, very dark-green, 
 strongly- veined, and of great substance ; it is rarely 
 attacked by insects. The rose-colored, or white single 
 flowers, about three inches across, are borne in large 
 clusters, and have a most delightful fragrance. They 
 continue in bloom for a long time, and are succeeded by 
 large fruits (heps, ) of a bright-red color, which make the 
 bush very showy in autumn. There are in cultivation, 
 a white, and a rose-colored variety. A double variety 
 has been introduced, but it is only partially double, and 
 not preferable to the single. These are most valuable 
 roses for the shrubbery, suckering somewhat, but not to 
 an annoying extent. 
 
 This species was sent to this country from Japan by 
 Mr. Thomas Hogg, about fifteen years ago; it was also 
 introduced into Europe by others. It has been described 
 in French and other journals as Rosa Regeliana and R. 
 Fortmiei, but the much older name R. rugosa must 
 supersede these. The adoption of the Japanese '* Eama- 
 nas" will avoid any confusion as to botanical names. 
 Whether a species so very distinct as this will yield itself 
 to the efforts of the hybridizer remains to be seen, but it 
 offers a most tempting subject. Could the vigorous, al- 
 most leathery foliage, thorough hardiness and powerful 
 fragrance of this be combined with the handsome form 
 and varied tints of roses of the popular classes, it would 
 be a great horticultural achievement. The European 
 journals mention that a new variety of this species was 
 exhibited at Lyons this year, but no description is given. 
 It is however interesting to know that the skilled rose 
 growers of the south of France have taken it in hand. 
 
 The Japanese have long held the Kamanas Rose in high 
 favor. It is recorded that as early as the year 1100, of 
 our era, the court-ladies prepared a favorite perfume 
 from its petals; but it is also stated that they had the bad 
 taste to add to it both camphor and musk. 
 
230 PARSOKS OK THE ROSE. 
 
 THE NEW ROSES OF 1882. 
 
 The professional rose- growers produce and offer to the 
 public new varieties each year. A few new roses are 
 raised in England, but the great majority are produced 
 in the South of France, especially in and about Lyons, 
 which is the headquarters of rose-culture. There are, 
 however, some noted rosarians at Paris and elsewhere in 
 France. While some new varieties are sports and others 
 random seedlings, the greater number are the result of 
 careful hybridizing and crossing, and for most of them 
 the originator can give a pedigree. 
 
 Of the vast number of new varieties annually pro- 
 duced, but a few of the most distinct are offered each 
 year. A grower rarely sends out more than six in one 
 year, while he may have hundreds of varieties in reserve 
 for future testing and comparison. Of French roses 
 the novelties this year are between sixty and seventy. 
 The larger share of these are Eemontants (Hybrid Per- 
 petuals), of which class there are forty. Of Teas there 
 are thirteen; Hybrid Teas, four; Noisettes, three; Bour- 
 bons, two; Perpetual Moss, and Polyantha, one each. 
 
 It will be a few years before the value of these novel- 
 ties to our gardens can be ascertained. Our climate is a 
 very trying one to the Eose, and the varieties often fail 
 to sustain their European reputation. English rose- 
 growers have produced very few novelties this year. The 
 National Eose Society (England) offered a gold medal for 
 a new Eose, but it has not been awarded, none of the 
 flowers shown for it being of sufficient excellence. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Arbor for Eoses 96 
 
 Bedding Roses 100 
 
 Botanical Classification 7 
 
 Diseases— Mildew 140 
 
 Mould 141 
 
 Rust 140 
 
 Eglantine 19 
 
 Forcing 103 
 
 Garden Classification 27 
 
 General Culture 69 
 
 Hybridizing 130 
 
 Insects— Gall-flies 142 
 
 Green-fly 141 
 
 Rose-bug 146 
 
 Rose-slug 143 
 
 Rose Leaf-hopper 151 
 
 Multiplication by Seed 130 
 
 Pillar Roses 94 
 
 Planting 89 
 
 Potting 102 
 
 Propagation — Budding 120 
 
 Cuttings 113 
 
 Grafting 125 
 
 Leaf-cuttings 116 
 
 Layers : . . 117 
 
 Suckers 120 
 
 Pruning 93 
 
 Pyramids of Roses., 95 
 
 Poetry— Flora's Cheice 207 
 
 The Rose 208 
 
 Hosa agrestis 19 
 
 alba 19 
 
 arvensis 20 
 
 atrovirens 22 
 
 Balearica 22 
 
 Banksise 25 
 
 Bdgica 15-17 
 
 Ufer^i 15 
 
 Uanda 17 
 
 bracteata 12 
 
 Burgundiaca 18 
 
 calendarum 15 
 
 canina 20 
 
 cdryophyllea 16 
 
 231 
 
 Rosa centifolia 16 
 
 var. bipinnata 17 
 
 muscosa 17 
 
 pomponia 17 
 
 provincialis 19 
 
 Damascena 15 
 
 diffusa 22 
 
 EglanUria 19 
 
 fiava 22 
 
 Gallica 17 
 
 var. parvifolia 18 
 
 glandulifera 24 
 
 glama 20 
 
 20 
 
 13 
 
 hemispheHca 13 
 
 holosericea 17 
 
 Indica 21 
 
 var. Noisettiana 21 
 
 odoratissima 21 
 
 Indica fragrans 22 
 
 Laurenciana 22 
 
 lutea 13 
 
 flore pleno 13 
 
 microphylla 12 
 
 moschata 24 
 
 multiflora 22 
 
 var. Boursaulti 24 
 
 Grevillei 23 
 
 Russelliana ^4 
 
 nitens 20 
 
 odoratissima 22 
 
 platyphyUa 23 
 
 polyantJios 16 
 
 provincialis 16 
 
 remensis 18 
 
 Boxburghii 23 
 
 rubiginosa 19 
 
 rubra 17 
 
 rugosa 26 
 
 scandens 92 
 
 sempervirens 22 
 
 sempervirens globosa 33 
 
232 
 
 PAESONS ON THE KOSE. 
 
 Bosa senticosa 20 
 
 spiiiosissiina 14 
 
 suavifolia 19 
 
 sulphurea 13 
 
 17 
 
 unguiculata 16 
 
 varians 16 
 
 Kose- -Adornment of Burial-places. 167 
 
 Attar of 187 
 
 Conserve of 199 
 
 Early History of 153 
 
 Early Works on 9 
 
 Electuary of 200 
 
 Geographical Distribution of. 11 
 
 Honey of 201 
 
 In Ceremonies and Festivals. 167 
 
 In ttie Middle Ages 175 
 
 Luxurious Use of 161 
 
 Medical Properties, 198 
 
 Otto of 187 
 
 Perfumes of 185 
 
 Syrup of 300 
 
 Tables Concerning 153 
 
 Tincture of 200 
 
 Vinegar of , 200 
 
 Rose-water 191 
 
 Rose-leaves 196 
 
 Roses, Classes of— Ayrshire 62 
 
 Banksian 63 
 
 Bengal 2j8 
 
 Bourbon 37, 217 
 
 Boursault 64 
 
 Brier 59 
 
 China 41, 228 
 
 Climbing Tea 219 
 
 Damask 52 
 
 Evergreen. 65 
 
 French 52 
 
 Garden 52,226 
 
 Hybrid Bourbon 52 
 
 Hybrid China 52 
 
 Hybrid Climbing .56 
 
 Hybrid Perpetual 30, 212 
 
 Hybrid Provence 52 
 
 Hybrid Tea 219 
 
 Macartney 50 
 
 Microphylla 51 
 
 Moss 56 
 
 Multiflora 67 
 
 Musk 51 
 
 Noisette 42, 217 
 
 Polyantha 227 
 
 Roses, Prairie 68 
 
 Provence 52 
 
 Remontant 30, 212 
 
 Remontant Moss 37, 217 
 
 Remontant Scotch 37 
 
 Rugosa 228 
 
 Scotch 59 
 
 Tea 44,219 
 
 White 52 
 
 Situation 88 
 
 Soil 86 
 
 Sweet Brier 19 
 
 VAEIETIES AND SPECIES. 
 
 Abricote 44 
 
 Achille Goudot 33 
 
 Acidalie 39 
 
 Adam 44,219 
 
 Adam Paul 32 
 
 Adele Mauze 33 
 
 Adrienne Christophle 219 
 
 A Feuilles Pourpres 56 
 
 Agrippina 41 
 
 Aim6e Vibert 42 
 
 Alba odorata 51 
 
 Alba Rosea ..219 
 
 Alfred Colomb 212 
 
 Aline Sisley 219 
 
 Amadis 65 
 
 Amazone 219 
 
 America 43 
 
 American Banner 220 
 
 Anna Olivier 220 
 
 Anne de Diesbach 212 
 
 Anne Marie de Montravel 227 
 
 Antoine Moufcon 212 
 
 Appoline 39 
 
 A quatre Saisons. 15 
 
 Archduke Charles 41 
 
 Archimede 220 
 
 Ardoise de Lyon 32 
 
 Auguste Buchner... 212 
 
 Auguste Mie 32 
 
 Auguste Vacher 44 
 
 Baltimore Belle 68 
 
 Banksia 25 
 
 Barbot 44 
 
 Baron Alexander de Vrints 220 
 
 Baronne de Maynard 33 
 
 Baroness de Rothschild 212 
 
 Baronne de Wassenaer 56 
 
 Baronne Pre- vost 33 
 
 Beaute de I'Europe 223 
 
 Beauty of Stapleford 220 
 
IKDEX. 
 
 233 
 
 Beauty of Waltham 212 
 
 Belle Lyonnaise 220 
 
 BeJle Normande 33 
 
 Blanche Moreau 217 
 
 Blush Boursault 65 
 
 Boioldieu 212 
 
 Bon Silene 220 
 
 Bougere 44 
 
 Boule de Neige 217 
 
 Boursault 24 
 
 Bouquet d'Or 218 
 
 Burgundy, 18 
 
 Cabbage 16 
 
 Capt. Christy 220 
 
 Captain Ingram 56 
 
 Caroline 45 
 
 Caroline de Marinesse , 43 
 
 Caroline de Sansal 33 
 
 Catharine Mermet 220 
 
 Celestial 60 
 
 Celine de Forestier 43 
 
 Cels multiflora , 41 
 
 Charles Darwin 213 
 
 Charles Lawson 54 
 
 Charles Lefebvre 33 
 
 Charles Rorolli 220 
 
 Chen6dole 54 
 
 Cheshunt Hybrid 220 
 
 Chromatella 43 
 
 Claire Carnot 218 
 
 Clara Sylvain , ,45,228 
 
 Clementine Duval 33 
 
 Climbing Devoniensis 220 
 
 Common Moss 56 
 
 Common White 19 
 
 Comte Bobiinsky 39 
 
 Comte de Mortemart 213 
 
 Comte de Paris 45 
 
 Comtesse de Murinais 56 
 
 " la Barthe 221 
 
 " deNadaillac 221 
 
 " Eiza du Pare 221 
 
 Copper Austrian 60 
 
 Coquette de Lyon 221 
 
 " desAlpes 218 
 
 " des Blanches 218 
 
 Cornelia Cook 221 
 
 Cornelie Koch 43, 221 
 
 Countess of Roseberry 213 
 
 Countess of Glasgow 59 
 
 Coupe de H6be 55 
 
 Cristata 56 
 
 Daily Blush 41 
 
 Daily White 42 
 
 Damascus 15 
 
 Damask 15 
 
 David Pradel 45 
 
 Dean of Windsor 213 
 
 De laGrifferaie 67 
 
 Delphine Gaudot 45 
 
 Devoniensis 45 
 
 Diane de Castre 57 
 
 Doct. Hogg 213 
 
 " Hooker 213 
 
 " Sewell 213 
 
 Dog 20 
 
 Double Blush Ayrshire 63 
 
 Double-margined Hip 60 
 
 Double White Banksian 64 
 
 Double Yellow 13 
 
 Double Yellow Banksian 64 
 
 Double Yellow Provence 60 
 
 Douglass 228 
 
 Dremont 45 
 
 Ducher 228 
 
 Duchess of Connaught 221 
 
 " Edinburgh 228 
 
 " Westminster 221 
 
 " Sutherland 33 
 
 Due de Cazes 33 
 
 Due de Magenta 45 
 
 Duchesse de Caylus 33 
 
 Duchesse d'lstrie 57 
 
 Duchesse d'Orleans 45 
 
 Duchesse de Thuringe 39 
 
 Duke of Connaught, 221 
 
 Dundee Rambler. ... 63 
 
 Eglantine 19 
 
 Elise Boelle 218 
 
 Eliza Sauvage 45 
 
 Elizabeth Vigneron 34 
 
 Emerance 55 
 
 Enfant d'Ajaccio 39 
 
 Enfant de Lyon 45 
 
 Enfant de Mount Carmel 34 
 
 Emily Layton 213 
 
 Empress of India 213 
 
 Eponine 52 
 
 Etienne Dupuy 226 
 
 Eugene Beauharnais 42 
 
 Eugene de Savoie 37, 57 
 
 Eugene Desgaches 45 
 
 Eugenie Jovin 45 
 
 Eugene Verdier 218 
 
 Evergreen 22 
 
 Felicif e Perpetuelle 65 
 
234 
 
 PARSOHS ON" THE ROSE. 
 
 Firebrand 213 
 
 Fisher Holmes 213 
 
 Flag of the Union 221 
 
 Fortuniana 64 
 
 French 17 
 
 Gabrielle Tournier 213 
 
 Gem of the Prairie 68 
 
 General Jacqueminot 34 
 
 General Lamoriciere 42 
 
 General Tartas 46 
 
 General Washington 34 
 
 George Baker 214 
 
 George Moreau 214 
 
 George Peabody 217 
 
 George the Fourth 55 
 
 Geiard Desbois 221 
 
 Giant of Battles 34 
 
 Gigantesque , 4tt 
 
 Gloire de Bourg la Reine 214 
 
 Gloire de Dijon 46 
 
 Gloire de Rosamene 39 
 
 Gloire des Mousseuses 57 
 
 Glory of Cheshunt 214 
 
 Grandiflora 46 
 
 Grevillei 67 
 
 Harrisonii 62 
 
 Harrison Weir 214 
 
 Henri Lecoq 221 
 
 Henry IV 34 
 
 Hermosa 40 
 
 Hippolyte Jamain 214 
 
 Homer 46 
 
 Hen. George Bancroft 221 
 
 Hooker's Blush ... 57 
 
 Hortense Vemet 57 
 
 Hundred-petaled 16 
 
 Imperatrice Josephine 40 
 
 Indica major . 66 
 
 Innocente Pirola 222 
 
 Isabella Gray 43 
 
 Isabella Sprunt 46, 222 
 
 Jacques Lafitte 34 
 
 James Sprunt 228 
 
 Jane 69 
 
 Jaune d'Or 46 
 
 Jaune Serin 64 
 
 Jean Ducher 222 
 
 Jean Liabaud 214 
 
 Jean Pernet 222 
 
 Jean Sisley 2-22 
 
 Jeanne d' Arc 43 
 
 Jenny Lind 57 
 
 Joasine Hanet 34 
 
 John Hopper 34 
 
 John Saul 214 
 
 John Stuart Mill 214 
 
 Joseph Gourdon 40 
 
 Jules Finger 222 
 
 Jules Jurgensen 217 
 
 Jules Margottin 34 
 
 Julie d'Etranges 55 
 
 Julie Mansais 46 
 
 Julius Finger 222 
 
 Kate Hausburg 34 
 
 La Brilliante 214 
 
 La France 222 
 
 La Jonquille 222 
 
 La Reine 35 
 
 La Sylphide 222 
 
 La Tulipe 222 
 
 Lady Banks 25 
 
 Lamarque 43 
 
 Laneii 57 
 
 Large-bracted 12 
 
 Laura Davoust 67 
 
 Le Geant 35 
 
 Le Nankin 222 
 
 LePactole 222 
 
 Le Phoenix 42 
 
 Letty Coles 223 
 
 Lion des Combats 35 
 
 Lord Beaconsfield 214 
 
 Lord Clyde 35 
 
 Lord Macauley 214 
 
 Louis Barlet 223 
 
 Louis de Savoy 46 
 
 Louis Richard 223 
 
 Louis Philippe 42 
 
 Louis Van Houtte 35 
 
 Luxembourg 57 
 
 Lybnnais 46 
 
 Mabel Morrison 213 
 
 Macartney 12 
 
 Madame Alfred de Rougemont 35 
 
 " Angele Jacquier 223 
 
 " Auguste Perrin 218 
 
 Berard 223 
 
 Boll 35 
 
 Bravy 46,219,223 
 
 " Br6on 42 
 
 " Caroline Kuster 218 
 
 Chas. Wood 215 
 
 " d'Arblay 66 
 
 " de Rochelambert 57 
 
 de Rothschild 212 
 
 de Tartas , 48 
 
INDEX. 
 
 235 
 
 Madame de Vatry, 46 
 
 EdouardOry 37, 57 
 
 " Falcot 46 
 
 " Francoise Jamin 223 
 
 " Gustave Bonnett 35 
 
 " Halphin 46 
 
 " Jouvin 44 
 
 Knorr 215 
 
 " Lacharme 40 
 
 " Lambard 223 
 
 *' Louise Carique 35 
 
 " Margottin 223 
 
 " Melanie Willermoz 223 
 
 " Morand 35 
 
 " Noman 218 
 
 " Oswald Kerchove 218 
 
 " Plantier 55 
 
 " Recamier 218 
 
 " Serat 223 
 
 " Trifle 223 
 
 " Trotter 35 
 
 " Victor Verdier 215 
 
 " Villermoz ....48, 223 
 
 " Welche 223 
 
 Madamoiselle C6cile Berthod 224 
 
 M'lle. Ci^cile Brunner 227 
 
 " Emma Hall 227 
 
 ' Lazarine Poizeau 224 
 
 ' Marie Berton .224 
 
 " Marie Eady 215 
 
 Magna Charta. 227 
 
 Many-flowered 22 
 
 Mareclial Niel 48, 218 
 
 Marechul Robert 224 
 
 Marguerite de St. Amande 215 
 
 Maria Leonida 51 
 
 Marie Baumann 215 
 
 Marie Ducbcr 224 
 
 Marie Guillot 224 
 
 Marie Sisley 224 
 
 Marquise de Poucault 48 
 
 Matburin Regnler 35 
 
 Maurice Bernardin 36 
 
 Melanie de Montjoie 66 
 
 Menoux . . 66 
 
 Michael Saunders 224 
 
 Micropbylla rubra 51 
 
 Mignonette , 228 
 
 Mons. E. Y. Teas 215 
 
 Mrs. Bosanqiiet , 42 
 
 " Hovey 69 
 
 Moss 17 
 
 Most Spiny 14 
 
 Musk 24 
 
 Myrianthes 66 
 
 Nancy Lee 224 
 
 Niphetos 48, 224 
 
 Noisette 21 
 
 Nuits de Young . 57 
 
 Obscurite 55 
 
 (Eillet Parfait 55 
 
 Ophire 44 
 
 Oxonian , 215 
 
 Paeonia 215 
 
 Pactole 48, 222 
 
 Palais de Cristal 36 
 
 Paquerette 228 
 
 Paul Neyron 215 
 
 PaulRicaut 227 
 
 Paul Verdier 227 
 
 Pearl 225 
 
 Perfection de Monplaisir 225 
 
 Perle de Lyon 225 
 
 Perle des Jardins 225 
 
 Perpetual White 37, 58 
 
 Persian Yellow 62 
 
 Pierre de St. Cyr 40 
 
 Pierre Guillot 225 
 
 Pierre Notting 215 
 
 Pius IX 36 
 
 Poenee 35 
 
 Polonie Bordin 43 
 
 Pompone 17 
 
 President 48, 219, 225 
 
 Pride of Washington 69 
 
 Prince Camille de Rohan 36 
 
 Princesse Adelaide 57 
 
 Princess Mathilde 215 
 
 Princess of Nassau 52 
 
 Princess Royal 58 
 
 Provence 16-17 
 
 Pumila 218 
 
 Queen of Bedders , .217 
 
 " of Lombardy 42 
 
 " of May 59 
 
 " of the Bourbons 40 
 
 " of the Prairies 68 
 
 Queen's Scarlet 228 
 
 Ramanas 228 
 
 Raphael 37 
 
 Reine Blanche 216 
 
 Reine de Portugal 225 
 
 Reine des Violettes 36 
 
 Reine Maria Pia 225 
 
 Reine Marie Henriette 226 
 
 Rev. J. B. Camm 216 
 
236 
 
 PARSONS 01^ THE ROSE. 
 
 Reynolds Hole 36 
 
 Richard Saxton 216 
 
 Rose Angle 62 
 
 Rosy Morn , .216 
 
 Rubens 48 
 
 Russelliana 67 
 
 Rusty -leaved 19 
 
 Safraao 48 
 
 Salet 37 
 
 Sanguinea 42 
 
 Scotch , 14 
 
 Seven Sisters 23, 67 
 
 Silene 48, 220 
 
 Sir John Sebright 66 
 
 Sir Joseph Paxton 40 
 
 Small Leafleted....; 12 
 
 SoKaterre 44 
 
 Sombreuil 49, 226 
 
 Soupert and Netting 217 
 
 Souvenir d' Adolph Thiers 216 
 
 " de Georges Sand 226 
 
 " de La Malmaison 40 
 
 " de Lady Eardley 36 
 
 " de Leveson Gower 49 
 
 " dePaulNeyron 226 
 
 " de Pierre Dupuy 227 
 
 " de Reine d' Angleterre . . . 36 
 
 " d'un Ami 49, 226 
 
 Stanwell 37 
 
 Star of Waltham 216 
 
 Sulphur-colored 13 
 
 Sweet Brier 19 
 
 Sydonie 36 
 
 Tea-scented China 21 
 
 The Garland 67 
 
 Tricolor de Plandre 55 
 
 Thomas Mills 216 
 
 Thyra Hammerich 216 
 
 Triomphe d' Amiens 36 
 
 deBoUwiller 66 
 
 de France 216 
 
 de Guillot Fils 49 
 
 " de TExposition 216 
 
 '• de Luxembourg 226 
 
 " de Rennes 44 
 
 Vicomtesse de Gazes 49 
 
 Victor Trouillard 36 
 
 Victor Verdier 216 
 
 Viscountess Falmouth 226 
 
 W. A. Richardson 219 
 
 Washington 219 
 
 White Baroness 216 
 
 While Tea 49 
 
 William Lobb 58 
 
 William the Fourth 59 
 
 Xavier Olibo 217 
 
 Yolande d'Arragon 36 
 
GARDENING FOR PROFIT: 
 
 A GUIDE TO THE SUCCESSFUL CULTIVATION OF THE 
 
 MARKET AND FAMILY GARDEN. 
 
 By Peter Henderson", 
 
 This work has had a constant and remarkable sale ever since it was issued, and 
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 Men fitted for the Business of G-ardening. 
 
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 "Working Force per Acre. 
 
 Profits of Market Gardening. 
 
 Location, Situation, and Laying Out. 
 
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 Manures, Implements. 
 
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 Formation and Management of Hot-beds. 
 
 Forcing Pits or Greenhouses. 
 
 Seeds and Seed Raising. 
 
 How, "WTien, and "\?iniere to Sow Seeds. 
 
 Transplanting Insects. 
 
 Packing of Vegetables for Shipping. 
 
 Preservation of Vegetables in ^Winter. 
 
 Vegetables, their Varieties and Cultivation. 
 
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 THE "AMERICAN AGBICTJLTUBIST." 
 
 REVISED AND ENIABGED BT 
 
 luETTIS W. A.LIL.E1V, 
 
 «4.XJTH0R OB" " AMERICAN CATTLE," EDITOR OV THE " AMEBIOAN eHOBT>HOBI< 
 HERD BOOK," ETC. 
 
 INTE0DT7CTI0N. — Tillage Husbandry 
 — Grazing — Feeding — Breeding — 
 Planting, etc. 
 
 Chapter I.— Soils — Classification- 
 Description — Management — Pro- 
 perties. 
 
 Chapter II. — Inorganic Manures — 
 Mineral — Stone — Earth — Pkos- 
 phatic. 
 
 Chapter III. — Organic Manures — 
 Their Composition — Animal— Ve- 
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 Chapter IV. — ^Irrigation and Drain- 
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 Chapter V.— Mechanical Divisions 
 of Soils — Spading — Plowing— Im- 
 plements. 
 
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 — Meadows — Pastures — Compara- 
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 Chapter VII. — Grain, and its Culti- 
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 vesting. 
 
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 —The Pea— Bean — English Field 
 Bean — Tare or Vetch — Cultivation 
 — Harvesting. 
 
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 Securing the Crops — Uses — Nutri- 
 tive Equivalents of Different Kinds 
 of Forage. 
 
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 Smaller Fruits— Planting— Cultiva- 
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 Chapter XI.— Miscellaneous Objects 
 of Cultivation, aside from the Or- 
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 Sorghum— Maple Sugar — Tobacco— 
 Indigo— Madder— Wood— Sumach- 
 Teasel — Mustard — Hops — Castor 
 Bean. 
 
 Chapter XH.- Aids and Objects of 
 Agriculture — Rotation of Crops, 
 aad their Effects— Weeds— Restora- 
 
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 Barren Lands— Utility of Birds^ 
 Fences — Hedges — Farm Roads- 
 Shade Trees— Wood Lands— Tim« 
 of Cutting Timber— Tools— Agri- 
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 Chapter XIII. — Farm Buildings- 
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 Chapter XIV.— Domestic Animals 
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 — ^Management from Birth to Milk- 
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 Chapter XXII. — Diseases of Ani- 
 mals — What Authority Shall Wa 
 Adopt ? — Sheep — Swine — Treat- 
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 Chapter XXIIL— Conclusion— Gene- 
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 Lives by his Occupation — The Ama. 
 teur Parmer— Sundry Useful Tables, 
 
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