MISTAKES IN ROSE PLANTING

Evening Star, Issue 22382, 4 July 1936, Page 23

MISTAKES IN ROSE PLANTING

Oue of the most frequent error# noticed with regard to the preparation of rose beds is the manure sandwich advocated by some authorities (says the ‘ Taranaki _ Herald’) • The advice is sometimes given to fill up the beds after they are excavated with alternate layers of manure and soil. This is' a mistake, as_ the plants will grow quite well when in the soil, but will either become sick when they reach the manure, or make such rampant growth that they will get quite out of hand and produce few flowers. It is far better for the first year to plant in the thoroughly dug ground without ■adding any manure at all. If the soil be hungry, andi the roses want food, as they will do later on, then top feeding is the thing; By feeding in this way the plants get the manure gradually, and at no time will the plants get out of control. Varieties differ greatly in habit and growth, and by top feeding the befit can be obtained from each variety, the results more easily gauged, and the different requirements of the several varieties more accurately determined. Mulching after planting with either stable or farmyard manure is always a mistake. The mulch only acta as « wet and therefore cold blanket around the necks of the young plants. If the ground is of a very loose .or sandy nature and apt to dry. out quickly, or the subsoil is gravelly or sandy, then, this condition can be remedied and the soil made more retentive <jf moisture by the addition of ehopped-up tufts of grass, or semi-clayey soil mixed through the lower layers. If the subsoil is heavy the burnt refuse from th* - garden bonfire will considerably lighten it up,