With all the rose's hardiness and adaptability to extremely diverse conditions of soils and climates some varieties do not thrive. In the case of new plants this is usually due to the grower's lack of knowledge; in established plants it results much more commonly from over-attention than from neglect.

The chief causes of failure are loose planting, insufficient water at planting time, planting too deeply, manuring at planting time, allowing roots to become dry after unpacking, soil being too acid or too alkaline, poor drainage, rose-sick soil, diseases, excessive manuring at any time, deep cultivation, excessive watering, heavy frost, sunburn, excessive shade, droughts, proximity to established big plants, unduly heavy pruning, use of artesian water, arsenic in sheep manure, and plants of poor quality or in poor condition when purchased. Most of these problems are discussed elsewhere, from the aspect of correct gardening. They .are grouped here to direct attention to the possible results of incorrect work, but unfortunately this arrangement makes some repetitions and many cross-references unavoidable.

Loose planting is more fully discussed in Chapter 11. It is most common in heavy soil, where firmer pressure is needed to obliterate air pockets. If the holes are dug from heavy soil, and light loam is used round the roots when planting, the soil will be more compact, but there is apt to be a type of pit in which water will stagnate, with fatal results to the rose. The neighbouring soil should have some light soil mixed in with it as well.

Air Pockets

Insufficient water at planting time will make for persistence of air pockets. They may be very small, as in light soils, but nevertheless they are very harmful to a plant in attempting to make root-growth. The new rootlets, essential to re-establishment of any transplanted rose, depend for their development on the presence of ample soil moisture (see Chapters 6 and 11).

Deep Planting

Planting too deeply is a common cause of failure in roses on dwarf stocks. It is probably most detrimental to those budded on R. fortuniana and least harmful to those on R. indica major. Standard roses are rarely planted too deeply. It is very noticeable that roses that have been heeled in and, for some reason or other, left there for a year or more, never die (see Chapter 11).

Manuring At Planting Time

Manuring at planting time is a common mistake, and, of course, arises from over-enthusiasm. The young rootlets are burnt immediately they begin growth because the concentration of the soil moisture is too high. Roses form roots most quickly in sand (see Chapters 6 and 11)

Dry Roots

Allowing roots to become dry after unpacking the bundle of plants received from the nurseryman must always be carefully avoided. Means of doing this are described in Chapter 11. Roses budded on R. fortuniana seem most resentful of drying and those on R. multiflora least so.

Excessive Acidity Or Alkalinity

Excessive acidity or alkalinity of garden soil may seem a highly technical consideration, but is a very real problem. It rarely occurs in virgin soil. Over-acidity usually results from continued use of organic manures for a number of years. These were the only manures used by our forefathers, and so came the practice of heavily liming rose beds each third or fourth year in May or early June, two or three months before the spring manuring was due. (For more details, see Chapter 17). Excessive alkalinity results from overliming or, occasionally, the use of too little acid-forming organic manure. These two conditions are most harmful to newly planted roses, but can also kill established plants. Experience is a wonderful guide in manuring, but small soil-testing outfits are now available. They are inexpensive, easy to use, and well worth while if you want to cultivate intensively. Never put on your rose garden water containing chemical preparations used in washing clothes, and, in unsewered areas, beware of soakage of it from your own drains or from your neighbours', for all these compounds are very alkaline, and roses will not do well in their presence.

Inadequate Drainage

Inadequate drainage can be fatal to any garden plants, established or newly planted. It results in stagnation and putrefaction, with the death of helpful soil micro-organisms, the breeding of harmful bacteria, and the formation of toxic chemical compounds in the soil. It is impossible to lay too much emphasis on this aspect of gardening as one of the most common causes of failure (see Chapters 9, 10, and 17).

Rose-Sick Soil

Rose-sick soil becomes a big problem to the person who lives in the same home for many years and endeavours to grow roses in the same soil all the time. In his early years, when he was less experienced, he will have had his greatest opportunity, for probably he had virgin soil then. In his later years his soil seems rich. It will grow phenomenal dahlias, chrysanthemums and cabbages, but it will no longer grow vigorous rose plants. Manuring with compost and planting in virgin soil when replacements become necessary are helpful. This subject is more fully discussed in Chapter 12.

Diseases are not a common cause of complete failure. They are dealt with in Chapter 18.

Excessive Manuring

Excessive manuring at any stage of a plant's life can kill it. This most frequently happens when chemicals are used for fertilizing, for few people realize either the potency of the chemical or the small amount needed by the plant. Frequent small feedings are safest and best (see Chapter 17).

Deep cultivation is discussed in Chapter 15. Direct and indirect root damage is inevitable if the soil is disturbed deeper than three to four inches in established rose beds.

Excessive watering, especially too frequent heavy watering, interferes with soil aeration and washes away from the reach of plant roots vast quantities of plant foods, especially if the readily soluble chemical fertilizers are used. This matter is dealt with in Chapter 15. Arsenic from excessive use of one of the arsenates in spraying or, more commonly, from manure from sheep that have recently been through an arsenic dip, can cause widespread damage.

Frosts

Heavy frosts, particularly if late in the spring, can be very harmful. Young plants are sometimes killed, and in established plants immature wood and the whole crop of buds for the spring blooming can be destroyed. They become semi-transparent and then wither, blacken, and fall. Early pruning forces early growth and so increases the danger of frost injury. The loss of young growth represents the loss of great quantities of plant energy and stored plant foods. Frost injury is always worst in dry seasons. It can be lessened by prophylactic measures in the form of maintenance of soil moisture, keeping the surface-soil loose or mulching with organic matter, such as straw, compost, cow manure, or horse manure. Deficiency of potash in previously applied manures will predispose plants to frost injury.

Sunburn is most apt to occur in hot, dry inland areas.

Shade

Fine rose plants in shady parts of the garden are occasionally seen producing excellent blooms, but these are exceptions to a rule that roses need several hours of sunlight daily. Some do best with less shade than others (see Chapter 11).

Roses and most other plants strongly resent draughty positions, such as driveways. Exposure to wind from all directions in open beds will seldom cause much harm. Draughts and shade are usually partners in animosity to plants.

Proximity Of Large Plants

When roses and shrubs or trees of large types are all planted at the same time and in proximity to one another they all develop their root systems at the one time, and usually they all do well. If the roses or small shrubs are later removed and replaced by others, the new plants seldom prosper. This is because the root systems of the established plants vigorously invade the areas formerly occupied by the discarded plants, and the new plants are starved. This incursion is, in fact, encouraged by any new soil used and by extra watering of the new plants. Often one sees a row of roses planted in front of a row of shrubs. They do very well, but in five, ten, or even fifteen years there comes a decision to replace some of them with newer or more favoured varieties. The new plants never do well. It may be possible to lessen this cause of failure by cutting back the roots of the shrubs and trees on that side by several feet.

Heavy Pruning

Unduly heavy pruning may arise from necessity or from ignorance of the best pruning methods for a temperate climate such as that of Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Any necessity will be due to the roses having been planted too close to paths or driveways or to their having grown into un expectedly big plants. In Australia no rose should be pruned hard as in the cold climates of England, Canada, and the northern portion of the United States of America. In any case, most modern roses do best if cut lightly (see Chapter 13). If pruning is done only to the extent of removing old or weak growths and young branches that are too crowded, better results will be obtained than by cutting back to old wood which lacks virility.

Artesian Water

Artesian water has sometimes caused disastrous losses amongst roses in country districts. Many of these waters are so heavily impregnated with sodium, magnesium, and other salts as to be toxic to many plants. Continued use of some types of artesian water will increase the toxicity by increasing the concentration of the soil-moisture solution as the water evaporates, leaving the harmful salts behind. Efficient artificial drainage, together with heavy mulches of compost, old animal manure, and straw are the best counter-measures. Use waste water from the house in preference to artesian water on all occasions when good tap-water is not available.

Plants of poor quality are never sold by reputable nurserymen, but they are blamed, nevertheless, in many instances. It should be remembered that only their best plants are sold. After all orders are filled, the remaining plants are transplanted in the nursery under very poor conditions. They are simply heeled in with little or no care, and are seldom watered more than the once at planting time. The loss amongst them rarely exceeds one per cent, despite this lack of attention and their being the poorest of the plants. Rose plants may become dry in transit despite careful packing; it is rare but possible. I once saw a consignment of valuable novelties from one nurseryman to another arrive in a very shrivelled state. The recipient buried them in very sandy soil for a week and watered them frequently; when he dug them up they all looked fresh again. I bought two of them and they grew well. Good nurserymen value their reputation too much to sell inferior rose plants.

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