Samuel Browne Parsons

“ The ambitious inhabitants of the land watered by the Nile have sent thee, O Cæsar, the roses of winter, as a present valuable for its novelty. But the boatman of Memphis will laugh at the gardens of Pharaoh as soon as he has taken one step in thy capital city—for the spring, in its charms, and the flowers in their fragrance and beauty, equal the glory of the fields of Pæstum. Wherever he wanders or casts his eyes, every street is brilliant with garlands of roses. And thou, O Nile, must now yield to the fogs of Rome. ”

“ Roses, and when open, it is merely a variety of that rose; but when in bud, it is more properly a Moss, although its calyx is not covered with a fine moss, but has more of a crested appearance. In a rich soil this fringe-like crest most beautifully clasps and surmounts the bud, and gives the rich clusters a truly elegant appearance. Its form is globular, and its color rose. It is one of the few that do not grow well on their own roots, but require to be budded on some strong-growing stock. ”

“ Exclusive of the delight afforded visitors by this very pleasant addition to a dwelling, it affords a delightful promenade for the ladies of the family, where, while all is wintry without, and walking is unpleasant, even when the ice-bound trees are glittering in the clear sunlight, they may luxuriate amid roses and jasmines, breathing air fragrant with the perfume of daphne and orange flowers, and surrounded with everything that can remind them of the beauty and bland climate of the sunny south. ”

“ Indeed, I believe that in no country in the world does the rose grow in such perfection as in Persia; in no country is it so cultivated and prized by the natives. Their gardens and courts are crowded by its plants, their rooms ornamented with roses, filled with its gathered branches, and every bath strewed with the full-blown flowers, plucked with the ever-replenished stems. ”

“ General Jacqueminot.—A strong grower, and when in bud, one of the most beautiful of roses. Its open flower, not being perfectly double, is surpassed by others. Its color is a scarlet crimson, with a soft velvety sheen, and a few thousand of them in full bloom is a sight to be remembered. ”

“ In these days, as in those of antiquity, it is par excellence, the Queen of Flowers, because it is always the most beautiful, and because no other flower can furnish half its charms. To elegance and beauty of form it unites the freshness and brilliance of the most agreeable colors, and, as if nature had showered upon it all her most precious [Pg 207] gifts, it adds to its other qualities a delightful perfume, which alone would suffice to entitle it to a distinguished place among the beautiful and pleasant things of the vegetable kingdom. ”

“ As roses were so frequently propagated from the seed by the Moors, they must have known quite a number of varieties, exclusive of all those they had brought or obtained from the East. The Yellow Rose, unknown to us until recently, was apparently familiar to them; and the Blue Rose, of which their manuscripts speak, is now extinct, if it indeed ever existed; for amid the infinite variety of roses, of every color and shade, produced from seed in modern times, no one has yet obtained a purely Blue Rose, and its former existence may well seem to us incredible. ”

“ There may, also, be a mistake in the species of roses; for experienced gardeners inform me that the Musk Rose will, if it be a lusty plant, bear flowers in autumn without cutting; and, therefore, that may unjustly be ascribed to art, which is the bare production of nature.” Thus, in quaint and ancient style, discourses the wise and pious philosopher on our favorite flower, and also mentions the fact, that a red rose becomes white on being exposed to the fumes of sulphur. ”

“ The competition excited by their numerous horticultural exhibitions causes great attention to be given to correct nomenclature and to symmetrical habit of growth. We can imagine nothing more beautiful than some of the plants that we saw at the exhibitions of the London Horticultural Society at Chiswick; every plant was pruned, trained and grown, after an ideal, but perfect model, with its close and luxuriant foliage, its thrifty, symmetrical habit, and the thick, leathery petals of its well-cupped flower. ”

“ The name of “Queen of Flowers,” has been given to the Rose, almost from time immemorial; but this name is particularly applicable to the R. centifolia and the hybrids from it. Yet the little, modest wild rose, found only in woods and hedges, adorns the solitude where it grows, and possesses for many a charm not surpassed by that of any of the cultivated varieties: its regularly formed corolla, of a soft and delicate color, combines in its simplicity many an attraction not found in the most beautiful flowers of the garden ”

“ To this class we would especially commend the Rose; as thriving under simple treatment, as possessing, more than any other flower, the elements of beauty, and tending, like other flowers, to keep alive in a crowded city that freshness and purity of feeling that distinguished their country life, and which, unless there exists an unusual perversion of the moral faculties, must always result from an intimate acquaintance with natural objects. ”

“ In the United States the culture of the Rose has been very much neglected, until within a few years. Tulips and dahlias have successively been the rage, and although there has long existed a great variety of roses, comparatively few of them have been cultivated, even in the best gardens of the United States. Now the tide is turning. Dahlias are going out of repute, and the Rose is resuming its ancient empire in the queendom of Flora. ”

“ The modern Romans have not only lost many of the good qualities of their early ancestors, but they have also escaped much of the effeminate softness which characterized the Romans under some of the later emperors; and, as belonging to this state of luxury, the cultivation of the Rose has, in modern times, been much neglected. The homage of the Romans is now reserved for art, and the beautiful products of nature are, in their opinion, worthy only of secondary consideration. ”

“ When properly cultivated, few objects can be more beautiful than these roses, either singly or in masses. Without making so brilliant a show as some other classes, the moss which envelops them imparts a touch of graceful beauty belonging to no other flower. ”

“ This room could then be kept constantly filled with roses from the pit, and through the most dreary winter, amid rain, snow, and storm, would present a bright array of the living reminders of spring and summer. It is a matter of much surprise, that, among all the beautiful country residences in the vicinity of our large cities, surrounded by all the appliances of luxury and comfort that taste and wealth can afford, so few instances are found in which the drawing-room or parlor opens into a green-house or conservatory. ”

“ The prevalence of this insect on the rose, and its annual appearance, coinciding with the blossoming of that flower, have gained for it the popular name by which it is here known. For some time after they were first noticed, rose-bugs appeared to be confined to their favorite, the blossoms of the rose; but within thirty years, they have prodigiously increased in number, have attacked at random various kinds of plants in swarms, and have become notorious for their extensive and deplorable ravages. ”

“ It is much to be regretted that in circles where fashion reigns supreme, nature is gradually giving way to art, and instead of the fresh and natural beauty of a newly gathered Rose, various forms of artificial flowers are found [Pg 175] upon the center table, or in the hair of those whose quick discernment and refined taste should lead them to perceive the great inferiority of these artificial toys to the delicate beauty and welcome fragrance of a Rose just from its parent plant. ”

“ We have occupied so much space with the peculiarities of culture for the forcing-house, that we had almost forgotten that more humble, but no less pleasure-giving mode of Window culture. As this culture is practiced chiefly by those who cannot spare the time nor incur the expense of previous preparation, the best mode is that given for late forcing of roses, taken up the autumn previous, placing the plants in pots seven inches in diameter, and using a soil composed of equal parts of sand, loam, and manure, or peat, loam, and manure. ”

“ The French are constantly searching for improvements in horticultural science and practice, with an enthusiasm rarely found in the more cold Englishman, whose skill seems to consist less in the creation of new varieties, than in growing perfectly those already known. None, indeed, can surpass the English in the art of growing fine plants, but we are chiefly indebted to the French for the finest new varieties of the Rose.
In Great Britain, although comparatively little attention has been paid to the obtaining of new varieties, the culture is more careful and the nomenclature more correct. ”

“ At first they procured their winter’s supply from Egypt, but subsequently attained themselves such skill in their culture as to produce them in abundance, even at the coldest season of the year; and, according to Seneca, by means of green-houses, heated by pipes filled with hot water. During the reign of Domitian, the forcing of roses was carried to such perfection, and flowers produced in winter in so great abundance, that those brought from Egypt, as before mentioned, excited only the contempt of the citizens of the world’s metropolis. ”

“ The old gentleman replied that the mode could be described in three words, “cultivate, cultivate, cultivate.” After the same manner, we would impress the importance [Pg 99] of these three words upon all those who love well-grown and beautiful roses. They are, indeed, multum in parvo—the very essence of successful culture. The soil cannot be plowed, dug, or stirred too much; it should be dug and hoed, not merely to keep down the weeds, but to ensure the health and prosperity of the plant. Cultivation is to all plants and trees manure, sun, and rain. ”

“ Moss Roses, was one with a most peculiar habit, even when very young; this has since proved a hybrid rose, partaking much more of the Scotch Rose than of any other, and until the plant arrived at full growth, I thought it a Scotch Rose, the seed of which had by accident been mixed with that of the Moss Rose, although I had taken extreme care. To my surprise it has since proved a perfect hybrid, having the sepals and the fruit of the Provence Rose, with the spiny and dwarf habit of the Scotch Rose; it bears abundance of hips, which are all abortive. ”

“ If there exists, then, this doubt of the proper class to which many roses belong, we think it would be better to drop entirely this sub-classification, and adopt some more general heads, under one of which every rose can be classed. It may often be difficult to ascertain whether a rose is a Damask, a Provence, or a Hybrid China; but there can be no difficulty in ascertaining whether it is dwarf or climbing, whether it blooms once or more in the year, and whether the leaves are rough as in the Remontants, or smooth as in the Bengals. ”

“ The insects which infest the Rose are quite numerous, and their attacks are more or less injurious. The majority of those which are found on the plant in the state of perfect insects are comparatively harmless. The most injurious are those whose larvæ feed on the leaves and pith of the trunk and limbs, and thus destroy the plant; while the perfect insect, like the Green-fly, will simply stop the growth and impair the health of the tree, by fastening upon the green and tender bark of the young shoots, and devouring the sap. ”

“ Cuttings of the Everblooming Roses will all strike at any time during the summer, but they succeed much better either in the autumn, or after their first bloom. The heat of our midsummer sun is so great upon plants forced in the house, that cuttings often fail at that time. When a cutting is made near the old stem, it is better to take with it a portion of the old wood, which forms the enlarged part of the young branch. Where the cuttings are scarce, two buds will answer very well—one below the surface; and, in some cases, propagation has been successful with only one eye. ”

“ Like all other roses, and even in a greater degree, the Moss Rose requires a light and very rich soil, with a dry bottom. Many of them make very beautiful beds and patches, when planted in rich soil, and kept well pegged down. A good supply of stable manure should be given them in the autumn, to be washed down about their roots by the winter rains. They do not generally require or bear so much pruning as other roses, but their bloom may sometimes be prolonged by shortening part of the shoots close, and only the tips of the remainder. ”

“ Little bouquets of violets were numerous, and the air was thick with them, as our eyes, nose, and mouth, could bear striking witness; and we recollect, too, the contemptuous curl of the lip, and rush of the aristocratic blood into the face of a fair English girl in one of the carriages whose blue eyes had been nearly closed by an awkward cast of one of these little bouquets from the hand of a plebian performer. ”