[Illustration: 006]
[Illustration: 007]
THE BOOK OF ROSES
By Francis Parkman
Boston
J. E. Tilton And Company.
1871.
INTRODUCTION
|IT IS needless to eulogize the Rose. Poets from Anacreon and Sappho,
and earlier than they, down to our own times, have sung its praises; and
yet the rose of Grecian and of Persian song, the rose of troubadours
and minstrels, had no beauties so resplendent as those with which its
offspring of the present day embellish our gardens. The "thirty sorts
of rose," of which John Parkinson speaks in 1629, have multiplied to
thousands. New races have been introduced from China, Persia, Hindostan,
and our own country; and these, amalgamated with the older families by
the art of the hybridist, have produced still other forms of surpassing
variety and beauty. This multiplication and improvement are still
in progress. The last two or three years have been prolific beyond
precedent in new roses; and, with all regard for old favorites, it
cannot be denied, that, while a few of the roses of our forefathers
still hold their ground, the greater part are cast into the shade by the
brilliant products of this generation.
In the production of new roses, France takes the lead. A host of
cultivators great and small--Laffay, Vibert, Verdier, Margottin,
Trouillard, Portemer, and numberless others--have devoted themselves to
the pleasant art of intermarrying the various families and individual
varieties of the rose, and raising from them seedlings whose numbers
every year may be counted by hundreds of thousands. Of these, a very few
only are held worthy of preservation; and all the rest are consigned to
the rubbish heap. The English, too, have of late done much in raising
new varieties; though their climate is less favorable than that of
France, and their cultivators less active and zealous in the work. Some
excellent roses, too, have been produced in America. Our climate is
very favorable to the raising of seedlings, and far more might easily be
accomplished here.
In France and England, the present rage for roses is intense. It
is stimulated by exhibitions, where nurserymen, gardeners, landed
gentlemen, and reverend clergymen of the Established Church, meet in
friendly competition for the prize. While the French excel all others
in the production of new varieties, the English are unsurpassed in
the cultivation of varieties already known; and nothing can exceed
the beauty and perfection of some of the specimens exhibited at
their innumerable rose-shows. If the severity of our climate has its
disadvantages, the clearness of our air and the warmth of our summer
sun more than counterbalance them; and it is certain that roses can be
raised here in as high perfection, to say the very least, as in any part
of Europe.
The object of this book is to convey information. The earlier
portion will describe the various processes of culture, training, and
propagation, both in the open ground and in pots; and this will be
followed by an account of the various families and groups of the rose,
with descriptions of the best varieties belonging to each. A descriptive
list will be added of all the varieties, both of old roses and those
most recently introduced, which are held in esteem by the experienced
cultivators of the present day. The chapter relating to the
classification of roses, their family relations, and the manner in
which new races have arisen by combinations of two or more old ones, was
suggested by the difficulties of the writer himself at an early
period of his rose studies. The want of such explanations, in previous
treatises, has left their readers in a state of lamentable perplexity on
a subject which might easily have been made sufficiently clear.
Books on the rose, written for the climates of France or England,
will, in general, greatly mislead the cultivators here. Extracts will,
however, be given from the writings of the best foreign cultivators, in
cases where experience has shown that their directions are applicable
to the climate of the Northern and Middle States. The writer having been
for many years a cultivator of the rose, and having carefully put in
practice the methods found successful abroad, is enabled to judge with
some confidence of the extent to which they are applicable here, and
to point out exceptions and modifications demanded by the nature of our
climate.
Among English writers on the rose, the best are Paul, Rivers, and
more recently Cranston, together with the vivacious Mr. Radclyffe, a
clergyman, a horticulturist, an excellent amateur of the rose, and a
very amusing contributor to the "Florist." In France, Deslongchamps
and several able contributors to the "Revue Horticole" are the
most prominent. From these sources the writer of this book drew the
instructions and hints which at first formed the basis of his practice;
but he soon found that he must greatly modify it in accordance with
American necessities. There was much to be added, much to be discarded,
and much to be changed; and the results to which he arrived are given,
as compactly as possible, in the following pages.
Jan. 1,1866.
[Illustration: 0018]
[Illustration: 0019]
CHAPTER I. OPEN AIR CULTURE
[Illustration: 0021]
|THE ROSE requires high culture. This belle of the parterre, this "queen
of flowers," is a lover of rich fare, and refuses to put forth all her
beauties on a meagre diet. Roses, indeed, will grow and bloom in any
soil; but deficient nourishment will reduce the size of the flowers,
and impair the perfection of their form. Of all soils, one of a sandy or
gravelly nature is the worst; while, on the other hand, a wet and dense
clay is scarcely better. A rich, strong, and somewhat heavy garden loam,
abundantly manured, is the soil best adapted to all the strong-growing
roses; while those of more delicate growth prefer one pro-portionably
lighter.
Yet roses may be grown to perfection in any soil, if the needful pains
are taken. We will suppose an extreme case: The grower wishes to plant
a bed of roses on a spot where the soil is very poor and sandy. Let him
mark out his bed, dig the soil to the depth of eighteen inches? throw
out the worst portion of it, and substitute in its place a quantity
of strong, heavy loam: rotted sods, if they can be had, will be an
excellent addition; and so, also, will decayed leaves. Then add a
liberal dressing of old stable manure: that taken from a last year's
hot-bod will do admirably. It is scarcely possible to enrich too highly.
One-fourth manure to three-fourths soil is not an excessive proportion.
Now incorporate the whole thoroughly with a spade, level the top, and
your bed is ready.
Again: we will suppose a case, equally bad, but of the opposite
character. Here the soil is very wet, cold, and heavy. The first step is
to drain it. This may be done thoroughly with tiles, after the approved
methods; or, if this is too troublesome or expensive, simpler means may
be used, which will, in most situations, prove as effectual. Dig a
hole about five feet deep and four feet wide at the lower side of your
intended bed of roses: in this hole place an inverted barrel, with the
head knocked out; or, what is better, an old oil cask. In the latter
case, a hole should be bored in it, near the top, to permit the air to
escape. Fill the space around the cask or barrel with stones, and then
cover the whole with earth. If your bed is of considerable extent, a
drain, laid in stone or tile, should be made under or beside the bed,
at the depth of three feet, and so constructed as to lead to the sunken
barrel. Throw out, if necessary, a portion of the worst soil of the bed,
substituting light loam, rotted leaves, and coarse gritty sand. Then add
an abundance of old stable manure, as in the former case.
In the great majority of gardens, however, such pains are superfluous.
Any good garden soil, deeply dug, and thoroughly enriched, will grow
roses in perfection. Neither manure nor the spade should be spared.
Three conditions are indispensable,--sun, air, and exemption from the
invasion of the roots of young growing trees. These last are insidious
plunderers and thieves, which invade the soil, and rob its lawful
occupants of the stores of nutriment provided for them.
A rose planted on the shady side of a grove of elm or maple trees is in
one of the worst possible of situations. If, however, the situation is
in other respects good, the evil of the invading roots may be cured for
a time by digging a trench, three feet deep, between the trees and the
bed of roses; thus cutting off the intruders. The trench may then be
filled up immediately; but, if the trees are vigorous, it must be dug
over again the following year. It is much better to choose, at the
outset, an airy, sunny situation, at a reasonable distance from growing
trees; but, at the same time, a spot exposed to violent winds should be
avoided, as they are very injurious and exhausting.
[Illustration: 0024]
Roses may be planted either in spring or in autumn. In the Northern
States, the severity of the winter demands some protection, when planted
in autumn, for all except the old, hardy varieties. Plant as early as
possible, that the roots may take some hold on the soil before winter
closes. October, for this reason, is better than November. The best
protection is earth heaped around the stem to the height of from six
inches to a foot. Pine, cedar, or spruce boughs are also excellent. When
earth alone is used, the top of the rose is often frost-killed; but
this is usually of no consequence, the growth and bloom being only more
vigorous for this natural pruning. Dry leaves heaped among or around the
roses, and kept down by sticks or pieces of board, or by earth thrown on
them, are also good protectors. In spring, plant as early as the soil
is in working order; that is to say, as soon as it is dry enough not to
adhere in lumps to the spade.
In planting, prune back the straggling roots with a sharp knife, but
save as many of the small fibres as possible. If you plant in spring,
prune back the stem at least half way to the ground; but, if you plant
in autumn, by all means defer this operation till the winter is over.
The ground around autumn-planted roses should be trodden down in the
spring, since the plant will have been somewhat loosened in its place
by the effect of frost; but this treading must not take place until the
soil has become free from excessive moisture. Budded roses require a
peculiar treatment in planting, which we shall describe when we come to
speak of them.
[Illustration: 0025]
Next to soil and situation, pruning is the most important point of
attention to the rose-grower. Long treatises have been written on it,
describing in detail different modes applicable to different classes
of roses, and confusing the amateur by a multitude of perplexing
particulars.
One principle will cover most of the ground: _Weaklygrowing roses
should be severely pruned: those of vigorous growth should be pruned but
little_. Or, to speak more precisely, _roses should be pruned in inverse
proportion to the vigor of their growth._
Much, however, depends on the object at which the grower aims. If
he wishes for a profusion of bloom, without regard to the size and
perfection of individual flowers, then comparatively little pruning is
required. If, on the other hand, he wishes for blooms of the greatest
size and perfection, without regard to number, he will prune more
closely.
The pruning of any tree or shrub at a time when vegetation is dormant
acts as a stimulus to its vital powers. Hence, when it is naturally
vigorous, it is urged by close pruning to such a degree of growth, that
it has no leisure to bear flowers, developing instead a profusion of
leaves and branches. The few flowers which it may produce under such
circumstances, will, however, be unusually large.
The most vigorous growers among roses are the climbers, such as the
"Boursaults" and the "Prairies."
These require very little pruning: first, because of their vigor; and,
secondly, because quantity rather than quality of bloom is asked of
them. The old and dry wood should be cut wholly away, leaving the
strong young growth to take its place, with no other pruning than a
clipping-off of the ends of side-shoots, and a thinning-out of crowded
or misshapen branches. In all roses, it is the young, well-ripened wood
that bears the finest flowers. Old enfeebled wood, or unripe, soft, and
defective young wood, should always be removed.
Next in vigor to the climbers are some of the groups of hardy June
roses; such, for example, as those called the Hybrid China roses. These
are frequently grown on posts or pillars; in which case they require a
special treatment, to be indicated hereafter. We are now supposing them
to be grown as bushes in the garden or on the lawn. Cut out the old
wood, and the weak, unripe, and sickly shoots, as well as those which
interfere with others; then shorten the remaining stems one-third,
and cut back the side-shoots to three or four buds. This is on the
supposition that a full mass of bloom is required, without much regard
to the development of individual flowers. If quality rather than
quantity of bloom is the desideratum, the pruning both of the main stems
and of the side-shoots must be considerably shorter.
Roses of more moderate growth, including the greater part of the June,
Moss, Hybrid Perpetual, and Bourbon roses, require a proportionally
closer pruning. The stems may be cut down to half their length, and
the side-shoots shortened to two buds. All the weak-growing roses, of
whatever class, may be pruned with advantage even more closely than
this. Some of the weak-growing Hybrid Perpetuals grow and bloom
best when shortened to within four or five buds of the earth. The
stronggrowing kinds, on the contrary, if pruned thus severely, would
grow with great vigor, but give very few flowers.
The objects of pruning are threefold: first, to invigorate the plant;
secondly, to improve its flowers; and, thirdly, to give it shape and
proportion. This last object should always be kept in view by the
operator. No two stems should be allowed to crowd each other. A mass of
matted foliage is both injurious and unsightly. Sun and air should have
access to every part of the plant. Six or seven stems are the utmost
that should be allowed to remain, even on old established bushes; and
these, as before mentioned, should be strong and well ripened, and
should also be disposed in such a manner, that, when the buds have grown
into shoots and leaves, the bush will have a symmetrical form. In young
bushes, three, or even two, good stems are sufficient.
Pruning in summer, when the plant is in active growth, has an effect
contrary to that of pruning when it is in a dormant state. Far from
increasing its vigor, it weakens it, by depriving it of a portion of its
leaves, which are at once its stomach and its lungs. Only two kinds of
summer pruning can be recommended. The first consists in the removal of
small branches which crowd their neighbors, and interfere with them:
the second is confined to the various classes of Perpetual roses, and
consists merely in cutting off the faded flowers, together with the
shoots on which they grow, to within three or four buds of the main
stem. This greatly favors their tendency to bloom again later in the
summer.
When old wood is cut away, it should be done cleanly, without leaving
a protruding stump. A small saw will sometimes be required for this
purpose; though in most cases a knife, or, what is more convenient, a
pair of sharp pruning-shears, will be all that the operator requires.
[Illustration: 0029]
When roses are trained to cover walls, trellises, arches, or pillars,
the main stems are encouraged to a strong growth. These form the
permanent wood; while the side-shoots, more or less pruned back, furnish
the flowers. For arbors, walls, or very tall pillars, the strongest
growers are most suitable, such as the Prairie, Boursault, and Ayrshire
roses. Enrich the soil strongly, and dig deep and widely. Choose a
healthy young rose, and, in planting, cut off all the stems close to the
earth. During the season, it will make a number of strong young shoots.
In the following spring cut out half of them, leaving the strongest,
which are to be secured against the wall, or over the arbor, diverging
like a fan or otherwise, as fancy may suggest. The subsequent pruning
is designed chiefly to regulate the growth of the rose, encouraging the
progress of the long leading shoots until they have reached the required
height, and removing side-shoots where they are too thick. Where a
vacant space occurs, a strong neighboring shoot may be pruned back in
spring to a single eye. This will stimulate it to a vigorous growth,
producing a stem which will serve to fill the gap. Of the young shoots,
which, more or less, will rise every season from the root, the greater
part should be cut away, reserving two or three to take the place of the
old original stems when these become weak by age. When these climbing
roses are used for pillars, they may either be trained vertically, or
wound in a spiral form around the supporting column.
Roses of more moderate growth are often trained to poles or small
pillars from six to twelve feet high. Some of the Hybrid China roses
are, as before mentioned, well adapted to this use; and even some of
the most vigorous Moss roses, such as _Princess Adelaide_, may be so
trained. Where a pole is used, two stems are sufficient. These should be
examined, and cut back to the first strong and plump bud, removing the
weaker buds always found towards the extremity of a stem. Then let the
stems so pruned lie flat on the earth till the buds break into leaf,
after which they are to be tied to the pole. If they were tied up
immediately, the sap, obeying its natural tendency, would flow upward,
expanding the highest bud, and leaving many of those below dormant, so
that a portion of the stem would be bare. (The same course of proceeding
may be followed with equal advantage in the case of wall and trellis
roses.) The highest bud now throws up a strong leading shoot, while the
stem below becomes furnished with an abundance of small side-shoots.
In the following spring, the leading shoot is to be pruned back to the
first strong bud, and the treatment of the previous year repeated. By
pursuing this process, the pillar may, in the course of two or three
years, be enveloped from the ground to the summit with a mass of leaves
and blossoms.
These and all other rose-pruning operations are, in the Northern States,
best effected in March, or the end of February; since roses pruned
in autumn are apt to be severely injured and sometimes killed by the
severity of our winters.
[Illustration: 0032]
Nothing is more beneficial to roses than a frequent digging and stirring
of the soil around them. The surface should never be allowed to become
hard, but should be kept light and porous by hoeing or forking several
times in the course of the season. A yearly application of manure will
be of great advantage. It may be applied in the autumn or in the spring,
and forked in around the plants. Cultivators who wish to obtain the
finest possible blooms sometimes apply liquid manure early in the
summer, immediately after the flower-buds are formed. This penetrates at
once to the roots, and takes immediate effect on the growing bud.
[Illustration: 0033]
The amateur may perhaps draw some useful hints from an experiment made
by the writer in cultivating roses, with a view to obtaining the best
possible individual flowers. A piece of land about sixty feet long by
forty wide was "trenched" throughout to the depth of two feet and a
half, and enriched with three layers of manure. The first was placed at
eighteen inches from the surface; the second, at about nine inches; and
the third was spread on the surface itself, and afterwards dug in. The
virgin soil was a dense yellow loam of considerable depth; and, by the
operation of "trenching," it was thoroughly mixed and incorporated with
the black surface soil. Being too stiff and heavy, a large quantity of
sandy road-scrapings was laid on with the surface-dressing of manure.
When the ground was prepared, the roses were planted in rows. They
consisted of Hardy June, Moss, Hybrid Perpetual, Bourbon, and a few of
the more hardy Noisette roses. They were planted early in spring, and
cut back at the same time close to the ground. Many of the Perpétuais
and Bourbons flowered the first season, and all grew with a remarkable
vigor. In November, just before the ground froze, a spadesman, working
backward midway between the rows, dug a trench of the depth and width of
his spade, throwing the earth in a ridge upon the roots of the roses
as he proceeded. This answered a double purpose. The ridge of earth
protected the roots and several inches of the stems, while the trench
acted as a drain. In the spring, the earth of the ridge was drawn back
into the trench with a hoe, and the roses pruned with great severity;
some of the weak-growing Perpetuals and Mosses being cut to within
two inches of the earth, and all the weak and sickly stems removed
altogether. The whole ground was then forked over. The bloom was
abundant, and the flowers of uncommon size and symmetry. Had the pruning
been less severe, the mass of bloom would have been greater, but the
individual flowers by no means of so good quality.
[Illustration: 0034]
Of budded roses we shall speak hereafter, in treating of propagation.
There is one kind, however, which it will be well to notice here. In
England and on the Continent, it is a common practice to bud roses
on tall stems or standards of the Dog Rose, or other strong stock,
sometimes at a height of five feet or more from the ground. The head
of bloom thus produced has a very striking effect, especially when the
budded rose is of a variety with long slender shoots, adapted to form
what is called a "weeper."
[Illustration: 0035]
In France, standard roses are frequently planted near together in
circular or oval beds, the tallest stems being in the centre, and the
rest diminishing in regular gradation to the edge of the bed, which is
surrounded with dwarf roses. Thus a mound or hill of bloom is produced
with a very striking and beautiful effect.
Unfortunately, the severe cold and sudden changes of the Northern
States, and especially of New England, are very unfavorable to standard
roses. The hot sun scorches and dries the tall, bare stem; and the
sharp cold of winter frequently kills, and in almost every case greatly
injures, the budded rose at the top. It is only by using great and very
troublesome precaution that standards can here be kept in a thriving
condition. This may be done most effectually by cutting or loosening the
roots on one side, laying the rose flat on the ground, and covering it
during winter under a ridge of earth. Some protection of the stem from
the hot sun of July and August can hardly be dispensed with.
With regard to the mounds of standard roses first mentioned, it is
scarcely worth while to attempt them here; but a very good substitute
is within our reach. By choosing roses with a view to their different
degrees of vigor,--planting the tall and robust kinds in the middle, and
those of more moderate growth in regular gradation around them,--we may
imitate the French mounds without the necessity of employing standards.
Of course it will require time, and also judicious pruning, to perfect
such a bed of roses; but, when this is done, it will be both a beautiful
and permanent ornament of the lawn or garden.
[Illustration: 0038]
A new mode of growing roses, so as to form a tall pyramid instead of a
standard, has been recently introduced in England. Instead of inserting
buds at the top of the stem only, they are inserted at intervals
throughout its whole length, thus clothing it with verdure and flowers.
By this means it is effectually protected from the sun, and one of
the dangers which in our climate attend standard roses is averted. The
following directions are copied from a late number of the "Gardener's
Chronicle:"--
"Some strong two-years-old stocks of the Manetti Rose should be planted
in November, in a piece of ground well exposed to sun and air. The soil
should have dressings of manure, and be stirred to nearly two feet in
depth. In the months of July and August of the following year, they
will be in a fit state to bud. They should have one bud inserted in each
stock close to the ground. The sort to be chosen for this preliminary
budding is a very old Hybrid China Rose, called Madame Pisaroni; a rose
with a most vigorous and robust habit, which, budded on strong Manet-ti
stocks, will often make shoots from six to seven feet in length, and
stout and robust in proportion. In the month of February following,
the stocks in which are live buds should be all cut down to within six
inches of the bud. In May, the buds will begin to shoot vigorously:
if there are more shoots than one from each bud, they must be removed,
leaving only one, which in June should be supported with a slight stake,
or the wind may displace it.
"By the end of August, this shoot ought to be from five to six feet in
height, and is then in a proper state for budding to form a pyramid.
Some of the most free-growing and beautiful of the Hybrid Perpetual
roses should be selected, and budded on these stems in the following
manner: Commence about nine inches from the ground, inserting one bud;
then on the opposite side of the stock, and at the same distance from
the lower bud, insert another; and then at the same distance another and
another; so that buds are on all sides of the tree up to about five feet
in height, which, in the aggregate, may amount to nine buds. "You will
thus have formed the foundation of a pyramid. I need scarcely add that
the shoots from the stock must be carefully removed during the growing
season, so as to throw all its strength into the buds. It will also be
advisable to pinch in the three topmost buds rather severely the first
season, or they will, to use a common expression, draw up the sap too
rapidly, and thus weaken the lower buds. In the course of a year or two,
magnificent pyramids may thus be formed, their stems completely covered
with foliage, and far surpassing any thing yet seen in rose culture."
[Illustration: 0040]
Another new method of culture is put forward in recent French and
English journals, and is said to have proved very successful, increasing
both the size of the flowers and the period of bloom. I cannot speak of
it from trial; but, as it may be found worth an experiment, I extract
from the "Florist and Pomologist" the account there given of the process
by a Mr. Perry, who was one of the first to practise it. He says,--
"As I have now spoken of the advantages attendant upon this mode of
training, I will proceed to explain the method of carrying it out. I
will suppose that the plants are well established, and are either on
their own roots, or budded low on the Manetti (the former I prefer). The
operation of bending and pegging-down should be performed in the month
of March, or early in April. All the small growth should be cut clean
away, and the ends of the strong shoots cut off to the extent only of
a few inches. These shoots should then be carefully bent to the ground,
and fastened down by means of strong wooden pegs, sufficiently stout to
last the season, and to retain the branches in their proper positions.
Care must be taken that the branches do not split off at the base; but
the operator will soon perceive which is the best and easiest mode of
bending the tree to his wishes. Many shoots will spring up from the base
of the plants, too strong to produce summer blooms; but most of them
will gratify the cultivator will such noble flowers in the autumn that
will delight the heart of any lover of this queen of flowers. These
branches will be the groundwork for the next year. I have recently been
engaged in cutting all the old wood away which last season did such good
duty, and am now furnished with an ample supply of snoots from four to
eight feet high, which, if devoid of leaves, would strongly remind me of
fine raspberry-canes, and which, by their appearance, promise what they
will do for the forthcoming season. I would suggest that these long
shoots should now be merely bundled together, and a stake put to each
plant, so as to prevent their being injured by the wind. In this state
let them remain until the latter end of March, and then proceed as
I have before mentioned. I feel convinced, that, when this method of
pegging-down and dwarfing stronggrowing roses becomes generally known,
many of the justly esteemed and valuable robust show varieties will
occupy the position in our flower-gardens they are justly entitled to."
[Illustration: 0042]
A good soil, a good situation, free air and full sun, joined with good
manuring, good pruning, and good subsequent culture, will prevent more
diseases than the most skilful practitioner would ever be able to cure.
There are certain diseases, however, to which roses, under the best
circumstances, are more or less liable. Of these, the most common, and
perhaps the worst, is mildew. It consists in the formation on the
leaves and stems of û sort of minute fungus, sometimes presenting the
appearance of a white frost. Though often thought to be the result
of dampness, it frequently appears in the dryest weather. Many of the
Bourbon roses, and those of the Hybrid Perpétuais nearest akin to the
Bourbons, are peculiarly liable to it. In the greenhouse, the best
remedy is sulphur, melted and evaporated at a heat not high enough to
cause it to burn. In the open air, the flour of sulphur may be sifted
over the diseased plants. English florists use a remedy against mildew
and other kinds of fungus, which is highly recommended, but of which I
cannot speak from trial. It consists in syringing the plants affected
with a solution of two ounces of blue vitriol dissolved in a largo
stable bucket of water.
The worst enemies of the rose belong to the insect world. Of these there
are four, which, in this part of the country, cause far more mischief
than all the rest combined. The first is the aphis, or green fly; the
second is the rose-slug, or larva of the saw-fly; the third is the
leaf-hopper, sometimes called the thrip; and the fourth is the small
beetle, popularly called the rose-bug. The first three are vulnerable,
and can be got rid of by using the right means. The slug is a small,
green, semi-transparent grub, which appears on the leaves of the rose
about the middle of June, eats away their vital part, and leaves nothing
but a brown skeleton, till at length the whole bush looks as if burned.
The aphis clings to the ends of young shoots, and sucks out their sap.
It is prolific beyond belief, and a single one will soon increase to
thousands. Both are quickly killed by a solution of whale-oil soap, or
a strong decoction of tobacco, which should be applied with a syringe in
the morning or evening, as the application of any liquid to the leaves
of a plant under the hot sun is always injurious. The same remedy will
kill the leaf-hopper, which, being much more agile than the others, is
best assailed on a cold day, when its activity is to some degree chilled
out of it. Both sides of the leaves should be syringed, and the plant
thoroughly saturated with the soap or tobacco-water.
Two thorough and well-timed applications will suffice to destroy the
year's crop of slugs.
The rose-bug is endowed with a constitution which defies tobacco and
soap; and, though innumerable remedies have been proposed, we know no
better plan than to pick them off the bushes by hand, or, watching a
time when they are chilled with cold, to shake them off upon a cloth
laid on the ground beneath. In either case, sure work should be made of
them by scalding or crushing them to death.
The following account of the rose-bug and the slug is from Dr. Harris's
work on "Insects Injurious to Vegetation:"--
"The saw-fly of the rose, which, as it does not seem to have been
described before, may be called _Selandria Rosae_, from its favorite
plant, so nearly resembles the slug-worm saw-fly as not to be
distinguished therefrom except by a practised observer. It is also very
much like _Selandria barda, Vitis_, and _pygmaea_, but has not the
red thorax of these three closely-allied species. It is of a deep and
shining black color. The first two pairs of legs are brownish-gray, or
dirty white, except the thighs, which are almost entirely black.
The hind legs are black, with whitish knees. The wings are smoky and
transparent, with dark-brown veins, and a brown spot near the middle of
the edge of the first pair. The body of the male is a little more than
three-twentieths of an inch long; that of the female, one-fifth of an
inch or more; and the wings expand nearly or quite two-fifths of an
inch. These saw-flies come out of the ground at various times between
the 20th of May and the middle of June, during which period they pair,
and lay their eggs. The females do not fly much, and may be seen, during
most of the day, resting on the leaves; and, when touched, they draw up
their legs, and fall to the ground. The males are now active, fly from
one rose-bush to another, and hover around their sluggish partners.
The latter, when about to lay their eggs, turn a little on one side,
unsheathe their saws, and thrust them obliquely into the skin of the
leaf, depositing in each incision thus made a single egg. The young
begin to hatch in ten days or a fortnight after the eggs are laid. They
may sometimes be found on the leaves as early as the 1st of June, but
do not usually appear in considerable numbers till the 20th of the same
month. How long they are in coming to maturity, I have not particularly
observed; but the period of their existence in the caterpillar state
probably does not exceed three weeks. They somewhat resemble young
slug-worms in form, but are not quite so convex. They have a small,
round, yellowish head, with a black dot on each side of it; and are
provided with twenty-two short legs. The body is green above, paler at
the sides, and yellowish beneath; and it is soft and almost transparent,
like jelly. The skin of the back is transversely wrinkled, and covered
with minute elevated points; and there are two small, triple-pointed
warts on the edge of the first ring, immediately behind the head.
"The gelatinous and sluggish creatures eat the upper surface of the
leaf in large, irregular patches, leaving the veins and the skin beneath
untouched; and they are sometimes so thick, that not a leaf on the
bushes is spared by them, and the whole foliage looks as if it had been
scorched by fire, and drops off soon afterwards. They cast their skins
several times, leaving them extended and fastened on the leaves: after
the last moulting, they lose their semi-transparent and greenish color,
and acquire an opaque yellowish hue. They then leave the rose-bushes;
some of them slowly creeping down the stem, and others rolling up and
dropping off, especially when the bushes are shaken by the wind. Having
reached the ground, they burrow to the depth of an inch or more in the
earth, where each one makes for itself a small oval cell of grains
of earth, cemented with a little gummy silk. Having finished their
transformations, and turned to flies within their cells, they come out
of the ground early in August, and lay their eggs for a second brood of
young. These, in turn, perform their appointed work of destruction in
the autumn: they then go into the ground, make their earthen cells,
remain therein throughout the winter, and appear in the winged form
in the following spring and summer. During several years past, these
pernicious vermin have infested the rose-bushes in the vicinity of
Boston, and have proved so injurious to them as to have elicited the
attention of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, by whom a premium
of one hundred dollars, for the most successful mode of destroying these
insects, was offered in the summer of 1840. In the year 1832, I
first observed them in the gardens in Cambridge, and then made myself
acquainted with their transformations. At that time they had not reached
Milton, my former place of residence; and they did not appear in that
place till six or seven years later. They now seem to be gradually
extending in all directions; and an effectual method for preserving our
roses from their attacks has become very desirable to all persons who
set any value on this beautiful ornament of our gardens and shrubberies.
Showering or syringing the bushes, with a liquor made by mixing with
water the juice expressed from tobacco by tobacconists, has been
recommended: but some caution is necessary in making this mixture of a
proper strength; for, if too strong, it is injurious to plants; and the
experiment does not seem, as yet, to have been conducted with sufficient
care to insure safety and success. Dusting lime over the plants, when
wet with dew, has been tried, and found of some use; but this and all
other remedies will probably yield in efficacy to Mr. Haggerston's
mixture of whale-oil soap and water, in the proportion of two pounds of
the soap to fifteen gallons of water.
"Particular directions, drawn up by Mr. Haggerston himself, for the
preparation and use of this simple and cheap application, may be found
in the 'Boston Courier' for the 25th of June, 1841, and also in most
of our agricultural and horticultural journals of the same time. The
utility of this mixture has already been repeatedly mentioned in this
treatise, and it may be applied in other cases with advantage. Mr.
Haggerston finds that it effectually destroys many kinds of insects; and
he particularly mentions plant-lice, red spiders, canker-worms, and a
little jumping insect, which has lately been found quite as hurtful
to rose-bushes as the slugs or young of the saw-fly. The little insect
alluded to has been mistaken for a Thrips, or vinc-frettor: it is,
however, a leaf-hopper, or species of _Tettiyonia_, and is described in
a former part of this treatise.
"The rose-chafer, or rose-bug as it is more commonly and incorrectly
called, is also a diurnal insect. It is the _Melolontha subspinosa_ of
Fabricius, by whom it was first described, and belongs to the modern
genus _Macrodaclylus_ of Latreille. Common as this insect is in the
vicinity of Boston, it is, or was a few years ago, unknown in the
northern and western parts of Massachusetts, in New Hampshire, and in
Maine. It may, therefore, be well to give a brief description of it.
This beetle measures seven-twentieths of an inch in length. Its body
is slender, tapers before and behind, and is entirely covered with
very short and close ashen-yellow down; the thorax is long and narrow,
angularly widened in the middle of each side, which suggested the
name _subspinosa_, or somewhat spined; the legs are slender, and of a
pale-red color; the joints of the feet are tipped with black, and are
very long; which caused Latreille to call the genus _Macrodactylus_:
that is, long toe, or long foot.
"The natural history of the rose-chafer, one of the greatest scourges
with which our gardens and nurseries have been afflicted, was for a
long time involved in mystery, but is at last fully cleared up. 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 forty 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. The grape-vine, in particular, the cherry, plum, and apple
trees, have annually suffered by their depredations: many other
fruit-trees and shrubs, garden vegetables and corn, and even the
trees of the forest and the grass of the fields, have been laid under
contribution by these indiscriminate feeders, by whom leaves, flowers,
and fruits are alike consumed. The unexpected arrival of these insects
in swarms at their first coming, and their sudden disappearance at the
close of their career, are remarkable facts in their history. They come
forth from the ground during the second week in June, or about the time
of the blossoming of the damask-rose, and remain from thirty to forty
days. At the end of this period the males become exhausted, fall to the
ground, and perish; while the females enter the earth, lay their eggs,
return to the surface, and, after lingering a few days, die also.
"The eggs laid by each female are about thirty in number, and are
deposited from one to four inches beneath the surface of the soil: they
are nearly globular, whitish, and about one-thirtieth of an inch in
diameter, and are hatched twenty days after they are laid. The young
larvæ begin to feed on such tender roots as are within their reach. Like
other grubs of the Scarabæians, when not eating they lie upon the side,
with the body covered, so that the head and tail are nearly in contact:
they move with difficulty on a level surface, and are continually
falling over on one side or the other. They attain their full size in
the autumn, being then nearly three-quarters of an inch long, and about
an eighth of an inch in diameter. They are of a yellowish-white color,
with a tinge of blue towards the hinder extremity, which is thick, and
obtuse or rounded. A few short hairs are scattered on the surface of
the body. There are six short legs; namely, a pair to each of the first
three rings behind the head: and the latter is covered with a horny
shell of a pale rust color. In October they descend below the reach
of frost, and pass the winter in a torpid state. In the spring they
approach towards the surface, and each one forms for itself a little
cell of an oval shape by turning round a great many times, so as to
compress the earth, and render the inside of the cavity hard and smooth.
Within this cell the grub is transformed to a pupa during the month of
May by casting off its skin, which is pushed downwards in folds from
the head to the tail. The pupa has somewhat the form of the perfected
beetle, but is of a yellowish-white color; its short, stump-like wings,
its antennæ, and its legs, are folded upon the breast; and its whole
body is enclosed in a thin film, that wraps each part separately.
During the month of June, this filmy skin is rent: the included beetle
withdraws from its body and its limbs, bursts open its earthen cell,
and digs its way to the surface of the ground. Thus the various changes,
from the egg to the full development of the perfected beetle, are
completed within the space of one year.
"Such being the metamorphoses and habits of these insects, it is evident
that we cannot attack them in the egg, the grub, or the pupa state: the
enemy in these stages is beyond our reach, and is subject to the control
only of the natural but unknown means appointed by the Author of Nature
to keep the insect tribes in check. When they have issued from their
subterranean retreats, and have congregated upon our vines, trees,
and other vegetable productions, in the complete enjoyment of their
propensities, we must unite our efforts to seize and crush the invaders.
They must indeed be crushed, scalded, or burned, to deprive them of
life; for they are not affected by any of the applications usually
found destructive to other insects. Experience has proved the utility
of gathering them by hand, or of shaking them or brushing them from
the plants into tin vessels containing a little water. They should be
collected daily during the period of their visitation, and should be
committed to the flames, or killed by scalding water. The late John
Lowell, Esq., states that, in 1823, he discovered on a solitary
apple-tree the rose-bugs 'in vast numbers, such as could not be
described, and would not be believed if they were described, or at least
none but an ocular witness could conceive of their numbers. Destruction
by hand was out of the question,' in this case. He put sheets under the
tree, shook them down, and burned them.
"Dr. Green of Mansfield, whose investigations have thrown much light on
the history of this insect, proposes protecting plants with millinet,
and says that in this way only did he succeed in securing his
grape-vines from depredation. His remarks also show the utility of
gathering them. 'Eighty-six of these spoilers,' says he, 'were known to
infest a single rose-bud, and were crushed with one grasp of the hand.'
Suppose, as was probably the case, that one-half of them were females:
by this destruction, eight hundred eggs, at least, were prevented from
becoming matured. During the time of their prevalence, rose-bugs
are sometimes found in immense numbers on the flowers of the common
white-weed, or ox-eyed daisy (_Chrysanthemum leucanihemum_); a worthless
plant, which has come to us from Europe, and has been suffered to
overrun our pastures and encroach on our mowing-lands. In certain cases,
it may become expedient rapidly to mow down the infested white-weed in
dry pastures, and consume it, with the sluggish rose-bugs, on the spot.
"Our insect-eating birds undoubtedly devour many of these insects, and
deserve to be cherished and protected for their services. Rose-bugs
are also eaten greedily by domesticated fowls; and when they become
exhausted and fall to the ground, or when they are about to lay their
eggs, they are destroyed by moles, insects, and other animals, which
lie in wait to seize them. Dr. Green informs us that a species of
dragon-fly, or devil's-needle, devours them. He also says that an
insect, which he calls the enemy of the cut-worm (probably the larva of
a Carabus or predaceous ground-beetle), preys on the grubs of the common
dor-bug. In France, the golden ground-beetle (_Carabus auratus_) devours
the female dor, or chafer, at the moment when she is about to deposit
her eggs. I have taken one specimen of this fine ground-beetle in
Massachusetts; and we have several other kinds equally predaceous, which
probably contribute to check the increase of our native Melolonthians."
[Illustration: 0052]