The common garden flowers “beloved,” according to many garden books, “by our grandmothers,” date beyond our grandmothers to ancestors far too remote to be included in any family tree. We are never going to know who was the first man – or was it a woman? – who snatched an ordinary flower, a rose or a lily perhaps, and stuck it in his or her shaggy hair because it was pretty. But archaeology has evidence to show us that very early indeed, in the history of the human race, there were men who cared enough about flowers to study and draw them.

Usually archaeology shows us evidence from the remote past, scratched on bone or stone, of a thing called a plant, – a stick with a knob at one end which is imaginatively referred to as a blossom or seed pod, and a series of loops down the side which are designated knees. But in prehistoric Crete, in that misty period known as the Bronze Age, flowers were drawn with such sophisticated assurance that it takes no imagination at all to recognize beautiful and naturalistic blossoms of lilies, iris, roses, and crocuses.

Earliest Rose Picture

About three thousand five hundred years ago a petty tradesman of Knossos in Crete had a room in his house decorated with two frescoes, one featuring a blue monkey, the other a blue bird. Patterned around the monkey and bird are clumps of iris and crocuses, some sort of vetch, a few strands of ivy, sprays of papyrus, and – on the blue bird fresco – what the great archaeologist, Sir Arthur Evans, believed to be the earliest picture of a rose extant. Aside from their archaeological value, these pictures are works of art, and it is interesting that a “little man” of that long ago time had the taste to want them in his house and the means to gratify that taste. Looking at those familiar flowers, one wonders what sort of man, woman, and child enjoyed them as part of home three and a half millennia ago.

On another wall in Knossos, in that same period, some lilies were beautifully painted, madonna lilies, their petals intensely white against a dull red background, their anthers yellow, their foliage green.

Saffron was a major industry in Crete so it was natural enough that the great Minoan goddess should have the crocus as one of her attributes. On several faience votive robes of the goddess, crocuses are prominently patterned on those piquantly chic skirts so fashionable in ancient Crete.

Nor were flowers lacking in the royal precincts. An exquisitely-designed game board of some sort has a border of conventionalized marguerites, and in a small store room in the palace were found treasures of the excavations the great lily jars. It is doubtful that lilies have ever been depicted more handsomely than are those tall sprays of white madonna lilies done on a purplish pottery background.

There are many other flowers to be found in this great era of Minoan civilization, but these are sufficient to sum up time period known in archaeology as Middle Minoan HI which runs approximately from 1900 B. C. to 1600-1580 B. C.

Flower-Decorated Pottery

Now to go back in time to Middle Minoan II (2100-1900 B. C.), we still find flowers on jugs and pottery vessels, – fine lily sprays again and more crocuses. Near the beginning of this period is the famous fresco of the Crocus Gatherer, or as it is more often called, the Blue Boy. Crocus Gatherer is the better title because it does not raise time question of sex. For the curiously elongated figure, nude, with the flesh painted blue, is not sufficiently defined for anyone to be entirely sure whether it is a boy or a girl.

We are peering far back in time now and all trace of sophistication has vanished. Whereas the artists of the later Minoan periods knew their technique and knew their flowers so well that they could either draw the flowers “straight” or conventionalize on the basis of their knowledge and assurance, the artists of this earlier day were more tentative. Not only is the figure of the Crocus Gatherer flabby and uncertain, but the crocuses are drawn by a man so anxious for you to know he is drawing crocuses that he exaggerates them a little to underline their crocus-like quality. Still, they are undeniably crocuses and any gardener, across 4,000 years, can cull their creator kin because he so obviously loved what he was doing.

The evidence grows scantier the farther into the past one goes, but even so, in Middle Minoan I (2,400-2,300-2100 B. C.) there is a jug decorated with flowers. This time, no less than 4,200 or 4,300 years ago, human hands fashioned that spouted pottery jar, decorated it with alternate pairs of primitive, but perfectly recognizable, red and white crocuses, fired it. and then turned it over to some customer for domestic use to hold water, wine, or oil.

Varying in its temper, of course, but there for all to see, on the cooking utensils of a vanished race, is the same emotion that sends a modern gardener out into the wind and rain to see that the stakes still hold up the tall blue spires of delphinium. Man cannot live by bread alone.

by E Kirk – 61910

Looking for a barrier hedge or a screen planting, for a decorative way to divide garden areas, or for colorful plants to define a path or drive? Roses can solve any of these landscape problems.

Barrier Hedge Roses

Barrier hedge roses produce impenetrable growth, grow tall, and flower continuously from spring to fall. They are often advertised simply as “hedge” roses. The plants are so inexpensive, you can use them to enclose your entire yard or make a long property-line screen.

In addition to the so-called “hedge” roses, many of the old-fashioned roses (species and species hybrids) often listed under the heading shrub roses in books and catalogs, make good barrier hedges and grow tall enough for property-line screens. With few exceptions they flower only once, in late spring or early summer, but throughout the summer their leaves are a luxuriant green. They cost more than the hedge roses, but are no more expensive than roses for decorative hedges.

Decorative Hedge Roses

Decorative hedge roses, unlike barrier roses, do not grow tall and they deter rather than prevent animals and people from going through them. Most of those suggested are floribunda roses. They reach 2-1/2 to 3 feet in height, are relatively dense, winter hardy, and flower either several times a growing season or continuously from spring to fall. They are your best bet for colorfully defining walks and drives, enclosing terraces, gardens, and the like. Their flowers are excellent for cutting – you get double value from a decorative hedge of roses!

Planting: Soil preparation for hedges of roses is shown in drawings at the bottom of the page. Allow 12 to 18 inches between “hedge” roses and 3 to 4 feet between old-fashioned roses planted as a barrier. It may be necessary to place a temporary fence behind both types for a few years after planting until they reach barrier proportions. For hedges of floribundas, space plants about 2 feet apart. continued on page 48

Caution: Before ordering roses to screen out a neighboring garage or selecting decorative hedge roses to line your walk or patio, note how much sun reaches the area in which you propose to plant. Strong sun for at least half a day is necessary. Otherwise, look to more shade-tolerant hedging plants.

Care: Roses make informal hedges, for with the exception of County Fair they cannot be sheared. Straggly branches of barrier roses may be cut back at any time for a trim appearance, however, and wayward branches of floribundas may be shortened in early spring, when pruning consists almost exclusively of removing dead growth.

Most of the barrier roses are practically insect and disease free, and the decorative hedge roses are relatively pest-free too. In some seasons, however, they may have to be sprayed regularly to keep them free of insect damage and disease.

Fertilizing after planting is not necessary for barrier roses, but for maximum floral displays, the floribundas should be fertilized each spring and once or twice during the summer.

by R John – 61638

Not all of our “Best” ornamentals come from the Orient and this beautiful native American rose is proof of that. A native from Newfoundland to Virginia and westward to Missouri, it will grow almost anywhere if a reasonable amount of nutrients and moisture are in the soil. When roses are mentioned, many gardeners think only of the hybrid teas and perpetuals, overlooking the natives which require far less attention and frequently lend beauty to the garden for a considerably longer period. Such a rose is Rosa virginiana.

Our Virginia rose has to be sprayed or dusted for diseases or insect pests. Although it may grow as high as 6 feet, with a little trimming of the tops, it can be kept to 4 feet, and trimming makes the plant much more dense and robust.

The pink single flowers, which appear in mid-June, are over 2 inches in diameter. There is a white-flowered variety that is almost impossible to find in nursery catalogs, but it is hoped that it will become available soon. The flowers of the Virginia rose are usually borne in the greatest profusion and are followed by small red fruits that are colorful all fall and far into the winter.

But this is not all! Each fall the lustrous green foliage turns to brilliant orange – scarlet. During the winter the vigorous young twigs are red and colorful. Thus the Virginia rose has ornamental interest in the landscape every season of the year.

Although this plant can be grown as a single specimen, the beauty of its flowers is surpassed by other roses. However, if grown in a mass or border, it really comes into its own. A word of caution must be given, for it spreads rapidly by underground stems in a situation where the soil is just right. If planted by a paved walk it can easily be kept within bounds. Sometimes it may he actually improved if it is cut to the

ground with a brush scythe or cycle bar mower. Our border is treated this way every few years, and if the cutting is done early in the spring before the leaves appear, the plants will have sufficient time to produce a few flowers that same year.

by W Donald – 64343

Propagating roses from cuttings is not at all difficult. In fact, it’s a rather fascinating experiment. Cuttings may be taken any time during the growing season. Shoots with flower buds just about to open are fine but experience shows us that stems taken after the petals have fallen are also satisfactory.

The best cuttings are of hardened green wood, intermediate between soft and hard wood. Cut the stem 6 to 8 inches long so there will be two or three eyes or buds and about the same number of leaves. Plunge the slips in cold water for a half hour or more.

Sand and fine gravel are favorite mediums in which to root soft-wood cuttings but for the last few years we have had good results with peatmoss and humus worked into the propagating bed. We feel, then, that nourishment is supplied to the cuttings as soon as the roots form and the need for disturbing the roots by early transplanting is eliminated.

Remove the lower leaf but retain the upper ones. Dip the base of the stem in a rooting hormone before inserting in the rooting medium. Make a hole in the soil with a stick and insert the cutting so that it is about 3 inches deep and one or two nodes (junction of the leaf and stem) are buried. The soil should be pressed firmly about the slip and given a thorough watering.

In about six or eight weeks some of the cuttings will have new shoots. The jar cover may be removed at this time but we prefer to leave it on until the following spring when the tiny plant is moved to its permanent location.

It is important to protect the cutting from direct sunlight. An adequate supply of moisture is another “must;” never permit the soil to dry out.

Propagating roses from cuttings is slow for it takes several years before a reasonably good plant can be grown. If, however, you don’t mind waiting, try your skill at starting a few – you may find it quite fascinating.

The polyantha rose over the years of modern rose development, have received their share of attention from hybridists. This group and its derivatives have gained popularity in many areas with home gardeners who enjoy potted roses but have small patios or spaces.

Polyanthas and their progeny merit this success in every way. No other hardy shrubs furnish a comparable display of bloom from early summer to frosts. They possess all the beauty of hybrid teas and hybrid perpetuals without their shortcomings.

Gardeners who have found it strenuous and expensive to follow the elaborate schedule of attentions required to keep roses in good condition will welcome a very beguiling remedy in the superb polyanthas that have made their debut over the years.

The group has been developed along several lines by hybridizers and a majority of introductions are more accurately called “hybrid polyanthas”. In order to make a more definite separation from the original group, these varieties with parentage involving additional species besides Chinese and multiflora roses are usually called floribundas in the US. The larger flowers in more diversified colorings, with more fragrance and more continuous bloom and with glossy foliage have been obtained by crosses with teas, hybrid teas, rugosas, and memorial roses.

Polyanthas have obtained their sturdiness from one original parent, Rosa multiflora. This rampant cluster-flowered species from Asia was sent from Japan to Lyon, France, in 1862. In 1868, a cross occurred between one of the original plants and pink Chinese rose (Rosa chinensis), a favorite in French gardens. The first-generation seedlings of the cross were all climbers with bloom in early summer, but seedlings from these showed segregation of very important traits. Some were markedly dwarf and developed into compact bushes about 2 feet high. Furthermore, after the muss of early summer bloom, these dwarf roses flowered on through much of the growing season.

Rose-breeders around Lyon were soon producing exciting new varieties of polyanthus, and in the 1880′s crosses with tea roses (R. odorata) brought forth such delicately fragrant ones as Cecile Brunner and Marie Pavic. Early selections of the polyanthus, such as Mignonette, Orleans Rose, Marechal Foch, were generally known as baby ramblers when they were brought to America. This is not an appropriate name and it is well that polyantha (meaning many-flowered) displaced it.

Polyantha roses are fortunate in their generally accepted common name, but their course in scientific nomenclature has been troubled. As a specific name in the genus, polyantha is a synonym of the older name Rosa multiflora and under the botanical rules this cannot be used again for a different rose. In Bailey’s Cyclopedia of American Horticulture, published in 1902, the treatment of the genus Rosa was the work of Alfred Rehder of the Arnold Arboretum, prepared with his characteristic meticulous attention to accuracy and detail.

This new group of small bush roses has no legitimate name, and Rehder represented the polyanthas by their formula as hybrids between two species – Rosa multiflora x chinensis. Such a formula never seems acceptable to gardeners as a plant name and this one has never come into general use. In addition, it does not comply with the present rules and has been replaced with the binomial name of Rosa Rehderiana.

It seems singularly appropriate that Professor Rehder is commemorated in this way, in the Latin he used so precisely in designating a favorite group of roses whose origin and greatest development were accomplished in his lifetime. Rehder died in July of 1949, but his vast contributions to the literature of woody plants stand as a permanent guide and influence.

Roses of Simple Culture

These small shrub types of roses are of simplest culture in any well-drained soil and abundant sunlight. If considerable shade must be accepted, sunlight is desirable at least during the morning. Competition from tree roots is just as fatal to good results as too much shade. Details of soil preparation, planting, and care can be found at – “How To Grow Winning Roses.”

Gardeners who wish to grow fine roses in very light loam or sandy soils can take fresh hope, however, if they modify the traditional methods of culture and use a heavy sawdust mulch. This must be accompanied by generous applications of organic or high-nitrogen fertilizers. Lavish bloom during the hot and dry weather of summer and autumn, even in very light sandy soil, is effective proof of this technique.

Polyantha and floribunda roses may be used in the same ways as hybrid teas, and they give a much better account of themselves in the landscape picture. The true polyanthas are mostly compact and low, but hybrid polyanthas or floribundas are often more diversified in habit. Many of the latter make upright slender growth similar to hybrid teas and require strong pruning to keep them in shape. The new varieties are handsomely pictured in catalogs.

Is there a climbing rose in your garden? If the answer is no, look around. Nearly every home property has room fon at least one climbing rose bush. And, there are many locations where no other plant is quite as effective.

Climbing roses may be used to relieve the plainness of a bare wall, partially conceal an unattractive view, serve as a hedge or fence and, if planted closely, have winter value as a snow fence. If given adequate support, climbing roses will make a satisfactory barrier, and can be substituted for an all wood fence. If proper varieties are selected, the roses will outlast most conventional fences.

Training Climbing Roses

When trained on posts, the pillar type roses relieve the monotony of formal gardens by adding height and, for this purpose they are more satisfactory and less expensive than tree roses.

The value of climbing roses would probably be more generally appreciated by rose-lovers if catalogs described the plants more specifically in regard to vigor, habits, and usage. These vitally important matters are considered to be of less-commercial value than color, form and period of bloom and are rarely included in the catalog description of a variety.

As climbing rose types range in growth from 6 to 25 feet and are usually grouped under one general heading, a buyer quite often discovers that they ordered a variety unsuited to their garden or the purpose intended. Some climbing roses are particularly valuable for covering walls or fences, others for forming a rambling mass of rose beauty and some are ideal subjects for training on posts. Few, if any, are adaptable for all of these purposes and many are definitely unsuited for more than one.

3 Groups of Climbing Roses: Climbers, Ramblers and Pillars

The variance in vigor and habit makes it advisable to separate the group into three somewhat distinct subgroups:

• Climbers
• Ramblers
• Pillars

The Climber

The term “climber” refers to a variety of somewhat stiff growth that produces new shoots at or near the top of the previous year’s growth if the plant is given adequate support and is winter hardy. As the blossoms are produced on short branches which grow from two- or three-year wood, pruning should be held to a minimum. Remove dead wood and shorten canes so as to induce production of side branches.

The Rambler

A “rambler” has long, thin, pliable and less rigid canes which. if not supported, are of more or less procumbent habit of growth. New shoots issuing from old canes are rarely vigorous or floriferous. Continued growth is dependent on the annual production of shoots from the base or the development of new plants where older canes conic in contact with the soil. Pruning should be severe and consist of removal of all canes that have borne flowers as soon as the blossoms fade.

The Pillar

A “pillar” rose is an intermediate type that is not sufficiently vigorous to be recognized as a climber and has wood that is too short and rigid to ramble. The climbing hybrid teas are representatives of this group which requires only corrective pruning.

Most of the more vigorous members of the class were derived by crossing the two Asiatic species. Rosa multiflora and Rosa wichuraiana with various garden roses. This fact may seem unimportant to many rose growers but it does have some influence on the proper method of training to induce maximum production of bloom. As Rosa wichuraiana, the parent from which most of these roses was derived, is of trailing or creeping habit, its descendants will invariably bloom more profusely if the flowering wood is trained in a somewhat horizontal position. The less vigorous climbing hybrid teas prefer vertical training as they are, in most instances, sports of upright growing roses.

Climbing Roses and Winter Protection

The numerous varieties of the entire group of climbing roses vary considerably in degree of hardiness but none are dependably hardy, without protection, in all parts of our country. The small cluster flowering types are generally the most hardy. Their blossoms denote a closer affinity to the moderately hardy species than they do to the more tender roses. The climbing hybrid teas are the most susceptible to winter injury and are of value only in areas of widerate temperatures. Protection, when required, is afforded by laying the canes on the ground and covering them with burlap or soil as the severity of the weather demands. Climbing roses should not be fertilized except in early spring. Later feeding encourages fall growth susceptible to winter damage.

As a rose will usually outlast the post or fence on which it is trained, it is important that the support be as nearly permanent as possible. Wooden posts should be treated below the soil level with a wood preservative and should be painted above to prevent too rapid decay. Metal posts will last for many years if they are embedded in concrete which is brought above the ground line.

Consider The Support Color

Some consideration should be given to the color of the rose and its support as quite often the colors will clash and the general appearance will be unpleasing. A few years ago a visitor to our garden whose home was on a lot adjoining a small ravine, conceived the idea of covering a fence with closely planted climbers so as to conceal the ravine. His plan was a good one and varieties and sources were suggested.

Three years later I was asked to visit his garden to see his “patriotic fence.” This intrigued and puzzled me and as no other description was given, his invitation was accepted. I was surprised to find that the fence consisted of alternate plantings of red, white and deep violet roses. It was not a pleasing combination but it was surely a unique one and attracted considerable attention and probably some criticism. They were not the varieties I had suggested.

Another group of roses which should be associated with the climbers or ramblers are varieties adapted for use as groundcovers. Rosa wichuraiana, the pure white single-flowered species with glossy leaves, is probably the most satisfactory member of this group. It is winter hardy where temperatures drop to – 10 degrees and farther north if there is ample snow cover. Place plants about 6 feet apart for ground coverage.

by R Shephard

In most cases people have a tendency to follow to the ninth degree culture directions that they read or hear about that are given by others. This growing method may work in that particular persons locality. Remember there are different growing conditions in even a radius as close as your next door neighbor. She may have more humidity in her house, or a dryer growing condition and so naturally she waters her plants more often than you would do so.

Don’t try following other peoples schedules… experiment for yourself. We only try to give you basic reasoning as do others that try to help you with your plants. If you will follow these basic instructions and experiment with the detail culture I’m sure you will find you too can grow plants that are the envy of your friends.

Moving Plants Without Planning

I can give you one such example… A good friend of mine loves roses. She put in a rose bed. These roses grew quite well for her and then she decided she wanted her rose bed in a different location. She didn’t use her head or follow nature’s rules (which after all are the best set of rules anyone could follow) she dug up these rose bushes after they had put on an abundance of new growth, moved them and of course this set them back and she did not have any choice roses.

When her other friends and neighbors had beautiful roses in bloom she couldn’t understand why they should have such beautiful roses and she practically none. She decided that she couldn’t grow roses (as she is quite stubborn she would not believe others when they told her that she had moved her roses at the wrong time of the year.) This runs true to so many plants and so many people. If nature wants a plant of yours to rest let it rest and don’t try to force it by feeding it. All plants must have a rest if they are going to succeed indoors or outdoors in the landscape.

One glance at the perfect form, good color, large size, strong stems and healthy foliage at a Rose show is enough to convince many visitors the “this grower” really knows how to grow roses. Truth is each growers method of caring for their rose plants is as interesting as it is different.

I don’t believe it is necessary to follow all the hard and fast rules of planting as set down by experts. Find out what works for you, then use your own judgment. The elaborate methods of soil preparation so often advocated are rarely necessary. If the soil is average, loosen and work it up with a garden fork to a depth of 12 to 18 inches. Mix in a cupful of bonemeal per plant. If the soil is sticky or heavy with clay, add a liberal amount of peatmoss or compost and some sand.

Plenty of organic matter in the soil is essential for producing good blooms, but I think it is a mistake to use a lot of fertilizer at planting time. Plants come to us from nurseries with their roots pruned back to about 6 inches. During the first season myriads of tender roots must be formed. These are easily burned by contact with any unusual plant food, especially of a chemical nature.

I remove enough soil to accommodate the full spread of the roots of each plant and make a soil mound at the bottom of the hole; the plant is set on this. I place the plant so that, when planting is complete, the bud-union is an inch or two above the bed level. In due time the soil will settle and the bud will rest at about ground level.

The roots are carefully covered with earth until the hole is nearly filled, then a bucket or two of water is poured in. When this has drained off, the hole is filled with soil and a mound of earth, 8 inches high, is formed around the base of the plant. I do not advocate foot-tramping of the soil after the hole is half-filled as so many rosarians do.

If you want roses to give their best performance don’t start them off by coddling them. My preference is to space plants 24 inches apart in rows 30 inches apart, but because of limited space my plants are about 18 inches apart. I must admit that this compact planting, together with the shade produced by the trees, does create a high horizon which coaxes the plants upwards to produce somewhat longer flower stems than they would otherwise. exhibiting fads favor long stems.

Afternoon shade is generally appreciated by most rose plants. Large trees in the proximity of rose beds should have the ground trenched between their trunks and the rose beds. All roots directed toward rose plantings should be completely severed.

With the approach of spring, the protective earth mound is gradually removed from each plant and the crowns hosed off with water. Pruning is then done with an eye to retaining as much vigorous healthy wood as possible. To make sure of having blooms at the proper time, the pruning operation is staggered so that one third of the bushes are trimmed at intervals of one week. All cuts are covered with a “tree paint.”

I feel it’s a crime to cut down healthy canes which the plants put forth with such great effort the previous summer. Healthy stems are a valuable source of food supply which helps to produce first blooms of better grade. Small mature canes about the size of a lead pencil, normally snipped out right at the crown by many rose growers, often produce the best blooms.

During the entire growing season, a certain amount of summer pruning is carried out. Where new basal shoots arrive and top growth flourishes, it is permissible to remove a certain amount of the older and weaker growth, thus favoring the remaining structure. With the advent of winter and dormancy, the tall canes are topped a bit to protect them against wind-whipping and to facilitate winter handling.

I have no special formula or practice when it comes to feeding rose plants. In fact, I have not followed the same practice any two years in succession.

My annual cycle goes about like this: Late each fall I dispose of about two tubs of soot and ashes from my stoker furnace by placing a shovelful here and there in the spaces between roses.

About the first of the year I get out the gypsum and sprinkle it over all the rose beds until the ground has the appearance of a light snowfall. Around February 1, a tablespoonful of sulphate of iron for each bush is evenly scattered over the surface.

A month later I give each rose bush a cupful of steamed bonemeal. During the latter part of April, a cubic yard of the best manure possible is obtained. This is not too fresh nor so old that it is leached out — about four to six months old is fine.

With a standard tined garden fork I dig out the soil to about 4 inches and the size of a poor man’s wash basin, equidistant between two bushes. A good forkful of the manure is thrown in, spread out and covered with soil. I call this the “hidden force.”

The first all-purpose spraying is done about one month after pruning when the flowering shoots are off to a good start. No exact schedule is followed in spraying. It is done about every ten days, I would say. Still, there are certain periods when things look all right in the garden and no spraying is done for as long as three weeks.

I prefer spraying to dusting and aim to get complete coverage with emphasis on the underside of the foliage.

Cleanliness and good housekeeping in the garden reduce the problem of controlling rose enemies to a minimum. It is essential to pick off not only the diseased leaves but those near the bottom of the plant which have yellowed, discolored or become spotted. All fallen leaves should be removed from the ground and all blossoms picked as soon as they have passed their zenith.

Insect life can be discouraged and dislodged with water. I direct the full volume of the hose at the crown of the bushes to wash away the insects that have chosen to make a breeding place of the lower part of the plant or the surrounding ground.

As winter approaches and new growth starts to let up, all spraying and insect control ceases, Shortly after that the weak and twiggy growth on each plant is cleared out and the beds raked clean. Then the bud union and the ground directly around the base of the plant is given a light sprinkling with naphthalene flakes and the crown is hilled up with soil about four inches above the union.

Dormant spraying with the conventional 1 to 10 solution of lime sulphur is done about a month before the spring clean-up and pruning begins.

Summer care starts immediately after the cyclone of the June Rose show has taken its toll. Plants are badly out of balance with their root system after having the long-stemmed blooms cut off for exhibiting.

The No. 1 requirement of rose plants during July and August is plenty of water. It is also advisable to let up on the fertilizing. Exhibitors’ gardens are loaded with ample remains of food to carry the plants through the season. A diligent program of proper spraying or dusting to keep foliage in healthy condition is an important part of summer care.

To further favor the plants during this rebuilding period we rarely cut any blooms. Where a bush is attempting to flower rather profusely we nip out most of the buds as soon as they appear, to preserve the vitality of the plant.

by E Burke

Almost every month in the year someone is moving from one home to another, or moving rose plants from one garden to another. Many plants are left behind but many more are killed because they were not moved properly. While there are several lines of thought about how to grow and move bushes, everyday I find people growing roses and other plants with NO thought at all.

Some think the rose is a God given, delicate, weak, but beautiful plant which must be coddled like a baby, and that only the well-versed or lucky, green thumber can grow it. Others believe this gorgeous thing is kin to a weed and can be pulled up and reset any time of the year without ample care or watering. These two examples are the extremes, but the rose is one of the most versatile of all the semi-deciduous shrubs grown that produces high quality blooms. It is true that even without care this plant will do its utmost to survive and produce seed and is most likely to do so for several years, but there would not be many flowers, no quality and poor plants. Thus, some thought should be given before moving plants.

Dormant Moves

When possible it is much better to move a rose plant while completely dormant. This would be after all blooms are frozen in the fall, any time from then on till new growth begins to appear in the spring, providing of course the ground is not frozen too hard.

We often find roses must be moved when in full bloom. This is the time to use common sense.

First prepare the spot in which you want to plant the bush, get the soil all mixed with peat moss, compost or some type of humus and dig a hole so you can lift the plant from the old bed and when you arrive at the new garden just slide it into the hole.

But we cannot just dig that plant up; blooms, leaves and all and move it even if we get some of the soil with the roots. (It’s very hard to get much soil to hang onto the roots.) Cut the plant back, perhaps two or three eyes above the hard, mature stems, remove all foliage (your plants should look like the ones purchased in the spring). Have an old burlap sack or piece of plastic handy in which to wrap the newly dug plant. Do Not Dig and Allow Roots To Be Exposed to the Sun and Wind for More Than a Few Moments.

Now remove all mulch as well as topsoil about 1/2 to one inch from the top. Next start digging the plant with a ball of soil on it by digging around the plant about eight inches from the stem and throwing the soil away from the plant, just as if you were digging a small ditch around the ball of soil and the plant.

When this ditch is dug about ten inches deep you may take your spade and trim the ball of soil down to about ten inches across. Trim or shave off a small slice at a time working around the ball, then trim the bottom off round and cut under the plant with the spade. Do not try to lift the plant out of the hole yet, take that old piece of burlap or plastic. work it around and under the ball of soil, tie it tight and lift plant from the hole by the burlap or plastic (not picking it up by the stems).

Do not remove the plastic or wrapping from around the soil until it is set in the new hole, then carefully unwrap the soil filling the hole nearly full of the loose, mixed soil and fill the balance of hole with water three to four times before finally filling it full of soil. Mound plant just as in the spring but remove mound in eight or ten days. Even if part of the soil breaks off the roots when unwrapping the plant will not die. The more soil you lose the greater the setback in the summertime but the plant will not die.

I have taken roses up nearly bare root in July, wrapped them in wet sphagnum moss, hauled them 600 miles and planted them with no loss whatsoever. I did put up some sticks at four foot intervals stretching thin screening over the plants for two weeks. The thin material lets enough light through but prevents the sun from causing too much dehydration. The covering must be at least 12 inches above the top of the plant.

What my busy family likes most about floribundas is that they are practically as easy to grow and to maintain, in our southern Michigan landscape as common hardy shrubs. (Actually, floribundas are hardy shrubs in every sense of the word.) And who could ask more of a plant that blooms all season, beginning the first spring and continuing year after year.

Their hardiness and ease of planting and culture make floribundas a good bet for any gardener who has been discouraged from rose growing because of the laborious planting and growing techniques they thought necessary. Roses do deserve good care to assure vigorous, well-balanced growth, but undue pampering with excessive feeding and watering is quite often the unsuspected cause of disappointment.

As a matter of fact, floribundas will do very well, indeed, in any sunny spot having well-drained soil that is good enough to grow good crop of vegetables. You may be reassured to know that I plant floribundas in a hole dug only a shovel deep and a little more than a shovel wide. My “rose garden” has moderately well-drained, medium-heavy, clay soil, so I mix some compost or some granulated peat with the topsoil before replacing it in the hole. Only rarely have I lost any of my roses, their only protection being a mound of earth drawn up around the canes in late autumn.

Floribundas were developed by breeders to provide an easier to grow, hardier, longer and more free-blooming rose than available in the hybrid teas. Their ancestry consists mainly of the hybrid tea with its large, finely turned blooms, and the polyantha, with its free blooming habit and high degree of hardiness. Occasionally a wild rose has been introduced in the parentage of a floribunda to increase hardiness.

In addition to being more hardy, the floribunda tends to make somewhat bushier and more compact growth than its hybrid tea parent. Its blossoms tend to be a little smaller than those of the hybrid tea and a little larger than those of the polyantha. They combine the exquisite form, brilliant color and much of the size and aroma of hybrid teas with the free flowering clustered habit of bloom of the old polyantha class.

Not only are floribundas suitable to the formal garden but they have an even wider use as color accents in the landscape, in small random groupings or large, massed plantings.

Floribundas are available in a wide range of colors. Award-winning newcomers and many others equally outstanding swell the variety lists each year.

by G Morrison