PLANTING ROSES

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 394, 30 June 1928, Page 26

PLANTING ROSES

POSITION IS EVERYTHING Although some situations are naturr ally more favourable to successful rose ] culture than others, there are very , few places which cannot be used for - growing this most valuable of all gari den flowers provided sufficient care 1 and thought are bestowed upon the , preparation of the soil and upon the t plants. It is hardly too much to say i that the Queen of Flowers may be • successfully cultivated in any garden, , no matter what its position. Briefly, the principal needs of the • rose are good, rich soil and abundance of light, air and moisture. Given ; these, ordinary care and attention are all that are required for the raising of the collection of plants, which will : give generously of beautiful blooms. Principal Needs of the Rose When a fairly large space is at the ’ j disposal of the gardener and it is possible to select the position for the rose beds, the sunniest and most sheltered situations should be chosen. In any case the plants should always be . placed well away from the straggling : roots of trees and large bushes, for . such would otherwise rob the roses of much of the food supplied for their especial benefit. To Shelter the Rose Garden Hedges are useful in giving protection from violent winds and storms, but unless the roots on the side of the rose garden are cut through and thus prevented from pillaging the food stores in the soil, the roses will suffer far more from their presence than they will benefit. Privet is a notorious soil robber, and hedges of these plants should not be used near the rose beds If it be deemed advisable in very exposed positions to plant a shelter hedge or make use of one already in existence, in order to form a screen against wind, Holly and Tecoma are those recommended. Walls of buildings have much to recommend them in preference to hedges, since they send out no robbing roots, drop no leaves and do not spread "drip” over a wide area. Artificial Manures For the Bed For dressing the top soil, whether animal manure, patent animal manure substitutes, or rotted garden refuse have been used, basic slag and kainil are both valuable. From 2 to 3 ounces of each should be distributed over the soil as it is being turned into a trench and mixed well in with it. If the soil is sour, it will be preferable to give a dressing of lime instead of basic slag, using ground quicklime in the case of heavy soils and finely powdered chalk on light, sandy ones. It should be used at the rate of 4 ounces of the former and 8 ounces of i,he latter per square yard. ARUM LILY DECEPTION In the beautiful white arum lily, the large white object usually called the flower is really nothing of the kind. The real flowers are tiny, and situated at the base of'the thick, yellow, spike-like body, which may be seen projecting from the top of the white portion. The latter is a special structure called a spathe, and forms a covering envelope, or sheath, to the flower proper. It serves to attract insects, and thus in this sense takes the place of the conspicuous petals of other plants. The stamens may also operate as organs of attraction, besides carrying out their more usual work as pollen bearers. The acacias and mimosa are examples of plants in which, in the absence of either brightly coloured petals or sepals, the male sexual parts perform the duties of advertising agents.