Evening star., 1940-09-07

'out those that do best in our climate
and soils we must depend upon local
gardens for this information. Par
ticularly should we make an effort to
see how the newer roses, those that
are so glowingly described in the
catalogues are doing in Washington
gardens. Many roses that do we'll
farther north are miserable failures
here and We should avoid planting
them.
There are many varieties of roses
that do well in Washington gardens
besides the well-known radiance
family-radiance pink, red radi-
ance, and Mrs. Charles Bell. One
might say that most roses do well
here and not be stretching the truth.
However, We are interested in those
roses which do not take too much
"pamper1ng." We want roses that
will grow and bloom under average
care. Many of the older varieties fall
IN this group and. no doubt, some of
the newer ones will.
DR.. Whitman Cross of CHEVY
Chase, Md, an outstanding rose
grower and breeder has recently re-
leased a number of his ordinations
and most of them will be available
for planting this fall. They are roses
developed in this area-under our
soil and climatic conditions and
hence can be depended upon to do
well here.
Roses, in spite of our growing con-
dltlons, are one of the most effective
plants for the garden. They are
tolerant OF shade, soils and cultiva-
ton. I am reminded of a painter
who took to DR.. Cross a fine long
stemmed radiance rose and re-
marked that the only care the bush
mad received since planting was an
occasional shower of dish water.
This leads to the thought that per-
maps we pamper our roses too much.
NO doubt there are some roses that
can be grown here successfully only
through exceptional care. However.
When we note the conditions under
which roses are growing in WASH
lngton backyards and the conditions
under which the bushes are sold we
cannot help but admit that they are
tolerant and adaptable. And, that
partially explains why roses are
Americas No. flower. Thus we can
understand why our nurservmen
grow and market some 25 million
rose bushes each year. They produce
the flowers we love so much.
The third reason for our discus
sion is to explain bit about ex-
hloltlng roses at the local flower
shows. We should begin prepara-
tlonS for them at an early date.
The first step is to remove small,
weak growth about the base of the
plant SO that all of the bush's
strength goes into the formation of
towering shoots of strong growth.
The second step is to keep the beds
well cultivated and, if necessary,
Watered. Roses require a tremen-
dous amount of water if they are
to make strong growth. Keep the
plants growing and healthy. A
weak, stunted growth or one that is
disf1gured by disease can hardly be
expected to command the attention
of Judge.
Roses for the show must be dis
budded. Most of our rose varieties
bear their buds in clusters and we
should remove all of the side buds
so as to not only remove disuualify-
ing buds but to throw the plants
strength into the one that will be
large, full of color and full petaled-
a winning bud.
OF course, it is hard to have the
buds on one bush timed to hit the
show. However, this can be done
in many cases. Disbud all of the
new shoots as they appear. Then
as the date for the show draws
near we can tie bud that looks as
though it might open too soon. The
tying is done with soft wool and
consists of wrapping the bud with
two or three turns and then tying
with a very loose knot. A tight knot
will disfigure the bud and ruin it
for exhibition. OF course, the bud
is left on the bush when this
method of retarding its growth is
used. To expedite<the growth of
a bud we can water freely, give it a
little nitrogenous fertilizer land
risk winter injury and we can pro-
tect it from cold nights by wrap
ping or covering.
Continuous shading will retard
the growth if the shade excludes
light. A transparent shade will
often expedite the opening of bud.
Protecting shades will prevent in
jury from weather that is too cold
and from dew, which often causes
the outside petals to be rough.
BY placing buds in containers of
warm water they will open more
quickly than when left on the bush,
while buds placed in deep contain.
ers of cold water open more slowly.
The above comments are given
with the fall flower shows in mind,
but they are fully as useful to the
home gardener whether or not he
intends to exhibit. A few bushes of
roses can be made to provide a
gorgeous bouquet for the home Just
as well as they can provide exfibi-
ton typs blooms for the show.