ROSE CULTURE ON THE PEGGING-DOWN SYSTEM

Waikato Times, Volume V, Issue 304, 23 April 1874, Page 3

ROSE CULTURE ON THE PEGGING-DOWN SYSTEM

Great improvements are impending in our rose culture. One of the most marled is the pegging-dov\n system, whereby we get a distinct advance a' to the aspect of tho rose gnrden, and other advantages. Tl c system is easily understood. The shoots made last summer are in spring pegged down to pear the surface of tho eirth, while those that flowered test summer are cut cle m away. In like manner, the peggeddown shoots that will (lower throughout the coming season will be cut away at next pruning time, and the young shoots made this year from the central part* of tho plant will be pegged-down in their turn. Bj this system flowers and shoots seem to spring from the leaf-covered earth, and no* from the end of an ugly itick— the stem of the itandard rose. The shoots are not so much exposed to tho wind, graceful masses, and isolated tufts of roses on the turf become as beautiful objects as any in our flower gardens ; whereas the old standard and half-standard roses were such ridiculous embellishments that the less obtuse landscape gardeners recommended the rosary to be always placed bv itself, as roses looked so very uninviting when not in flower. So they did, poor things! All this will soon pass away and the rose when cut of bloom and in leaf will not be by nnv means an un»raceful object ; and, when bare of leaves, will not be le-s atlnctive than any other deciduous shrub. The pruning is simplified by this system : we bare simply to cut an ay the old shoots that flowered in the past year and thinning these last as each variety may require. This gives us a totally new set of fresh, vigorous flowering shoots every year. My the old system we had no such advantage, and it was quite common to so bfcdlj prune rosei, by hacking away at old and new wood alike, that they hardly paid for root room. Wo have just seen a very good example of this kind of culture in Mr Vertegans' nursery at Birmingham j the shoots are not pegged down quite to the ground, but within from four to five inches of it. They are fixed by attaching ono end of about 18 inches of thick tarred twine to the apex ; of the shoot to be pegged down, and tying a knot at the other. As this knot lies on the ground the operator places the point of n stick upon it, and Ibrnstsit a foot or so into the ground. This Mr Vertegans finds to be the best kind of peg, and it certainly is a strong and simple one. The ro9es »re grafted low on tho manetti stock, and so treated grow and flower superbly Bjfore the pegging clown system with hybrid perpetuala on the manetti stock was adopted, rose culture had been given up as almost hopeless by many persons in tho neighbourhood of Edgebaston, now it is carried on with the most satisf. otory results. Eoses on their own roots accommodate themselves perfectly to this system, wh eh is likely to help in the adornment of every kind of ornamental g.irrten. Ai art altogether, however, from its merits as a mode of culture for the production of a Jsucces'im of fine blooms, we regard its highest merit to be in enabling us to use the rose in any position in the ornamental garden, either as single tufts, groups, masses, and borders. — Field.

The Slar and Herald of Panama extracts from the Boston Official of Honduras of the stk ult., that copy of a note lioin the Minister of Foreien Affairs of Guatemala to Don Cirlos G-utierrez, Minister Plenipotentiary of Honduras in London. The purport of this note ia to call attention to the bombardment of Omoa by the English man-of-war Xiobe, qualifying it as a very grave abuse of forco against a weak notion. After entering into the history of the expedition of Pnlncios up to his defeat in Chnmelecon, the Note traces him to Belize in the G-eneral Sherman, where ho went to get the arms left lor him there by parties hostile to Guatemala The Government of Belize refined to give up the arms, but did nothing farther, although the constant changes of flag on the Sherman showed! her to be piratical or fililustero, inasmuch as she belorged to no recognized Government. The Niobe, on the contrary, according to the Note, protected Palncios indirectly, going to far as to jr>pose to the Con.n>andnnt of the Fort of Omo* thnt he should deliver it up for a certain sum to Palacios. Not succeeding in this, the Captain of the Ntobe aTailed himself of any pretext ho could find, and on account of certain trifling claims whioh lie made use of, bombarded the fort for 14 hour», while PaIncios had on shore troops in the expectation of getting pos* session of tho fort after the bombardment ceased. Tho Note nsscrta that these events fully prove the complicity of the Commnnder of tho Niobe with Palacios. TheGovernj inent of Guatemala thereon declare that no matter what acts the authorities of Honduras may have committed even jiu.uiT-t international law and treaties with England, they could (,'ito rise only to diplomatic claims, and in no way to the nbu-e of force. Notes of a similar tenour were also ciespntehed to the representatives of Guatemala in London nnd the United Stnte*. Tho correspondence which passed bet w era Captain L. Loraine, of Her Britnnnic Mnjesty's chip Niobe, and Colonel Streber, accusing the hitter of Living violated by his orders the territory of British Hondurns, it appears, »m founded on the I'act. that a party of noluieis under an officer lnnded on the Nicholas City ef the Zipotiilo group ef islands, and there took prisoners Luis, Elms, Spnnish Vice Consul, and Miguel Serra, Portuguese Consul, who had gone there to be under British protection ; nnd, fm thcr, that the snid Colonel Streber had threatened the inhabitants of said city with punishment if they had an\ dealings with the invader* of Trujillo. Colonel Streber replied that ho was not awaro that the Zipotiilo Cays belonged to England, but rather to the Republic of Honduras, ami in this conviction hud acted ns he did and with no intention of violating British territory. Cup tain Loraine replied that the snid Cays had belonged to England since 1796 until to-day, and ho should like to see proof to the contrary. Colonal Streber in reply, after giving his own opinion as to the preen? limits between British and Spanish Honduras, and differing from tho riewof the limits laid down bv Capt. Loiaine, begs to refer the matter to his Government to be settled between Honduras and Great Britain.