Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1884-01-18
HOW NEW ROSES ARE PRODUCED
Something OF lntercst to Flower
Lovers.

HOW NEW ROSES ARE PRODUCED.
Something of lntercst TO Flower
Lovers.
Where do the new roses come from
Who discovers or makes them? If they
are made, how are they made? Does it
pay to make them? What is the reason
that of late years roses generally seem to
be getting larger than they used to be?"
These and several other related ques-
tions were asked by Sun reporter of
George Wilson, an acknowledged author
ity on roses.
"New roses, he replied, "come from
England and France mainly, although
some are produced in other European
countries, and few, very few, may claim
to be American. When you see O rose
that you have not been accustomed to
seeing it is by no means safe however, to
assume that it is an altogether new one.
1t may be simply one that has disappear
ed from public view for a number of
years, and during that time has been kept
in existence by some individual grower
who has had a particular liking for it.
Look at the Bon Silene and the Niphetos,
for instance. Both are old roses The
first named was once discarded in this
country, and went entirely out of popular
knowledge for Is years. When it reap
peared it came from France to Boston,
thence to this city, and from here spread
everywhere. 1t is now generally pop
ular favorite. 1t is not large, its bud
are perfectly formed, and it has a charm
ing tint. The long, white, beautiful buds
of the Niphetos we're grown here 40 years
ago, but, through some chance, nobody
seems to know exactly how, the variety
became entirely lost, and 20 years elapsed
before it reappesred When it did reap
pear it WAS introduced into the trade in
France by man named Granger.
Where he got it is a mystery, He called
it by its original name, but claimed that it
was an entirely new rose. Old growers,
however, knew it was not new. 1t is uni
versally admired and now that we have
learned far more than we used to know a.
bout the cultivation of this sort of roses.
gardeners find it profitable variety. II
and it is difficult to bring it into fine
Nice produces finer Niphetos buds thar
are grown anywhere else, and has almos
monopoly of the supply for Paris, where
they IRE popular.
But, you ask me how new roses ar,
Patient men with mildly specnlativ,
bent of mind, in France and Germany
give their whole minds to it, and thei
work begins even before the formation o
the seed. To explain The large ney
roses-about which you, as l understand
particularly wish to know-are techni
cally known as hybrid perpetuals, ant
are crosses between, or descendants from
the June rose and certain varieties of tn
remontant roses. The remontants ar
those commonly and incorrectly known a
monthly roses. They are not monthly
any more than their children are perpet
ual. Their French name signifies re
mounting, or continuing to ascend, and
given to them from their habit of sendin
up new shoots and putting forth ne
bloom almost continuously through
great part of the year, without any def
nitely prescibed towering season. Th
flower of one Of those roses, choice ont
ripe, fully open, and perfectly developed
is used to impregnate another rose, ais
as perfect ms can be selected of the hardiC
variety, and the seed from the impregna
ed flower is carefully saved and, in du
time, sown. Acres upon acres the grove
fills with the experimental plants TIN
spring from these seeds, which occasion
ally reproduce the parent plants, but al
far more likely to develop into an infini
number of varieties, good, bad and indii
erent. These young plants have to !
carefully tended for three years before
is known what they will be. Then, if Il
grower gets two OF three new varieti
that are really fine he is content, and
he obtains half dozen he considers hi
self in great luck Tor getting so many o
of 10,0 600 seedlings, to which he has Civ,
three years of patient care and skilful Gu
tivation. The remaining 9694 are on
brush, fit merely to burn. Sometime
when they ale all in bloom, he sees til
he might Just as well burn the whole II
00O but that is exceptionally bad luc
He ought to get one out OF the lot, an
way. Suppose that he does-the wo
has just begun. In order to get back
investment in the experiment and ma
anything by it, he must have 5000 or /
ct at once. Then he springs his M
lose as a surprise upon the trade, and
commands good prices, like the Ant
Schwartz for instance, good plants
which at present brng So each. All tn,
plants must be produced from his c
solitary little Seeding. 1t has to be kt
in constant heat in the greenhouse,
rapidly making new wood being snipr
off and propagated as fast as possible, q
the plants so produced being used to st
others, and so on for two years before
discoverer of the new rose can venture
say to the public. How do you like
new beauty?'
"But, even then, do not suppose t
the subsequent cultivation of that rose
all plain sailing. Many roses that hi
been great successes in England {
France have been entire failures o.
here, the great change in climatic cor
tions preventing their developme
Very often they will not bloom at all he
or, if brought to flower the results is
bad that it does not pay to cultivate the
But this cannot be determined until al
two years of trial No prudent garde
would discard plant because itfailed
first year. 1t must get acclimated. ~
the development Of the second year Il
be Just enough to encourage him to G
it third years trial and after all, it n