Indica odorata_.

THE popular fallacy which universally prevailed forty to fifty years ago
with regard to the extreme delicacy of Tea roses, has happily been
exploded by the experience of later years. It was then supposed that no
Tea rose could possibly stand the English winter if planted out of
doors. And so firmly was this belief fixed in the minds of all amateurs,
that if they were so reckless (in their own eyes) as to plant a Tea rose
anywhere except in a greenhouse, the careful treatment they bestowed on
the unfortunate specimen went far to prove the rule. For not only was it
pruned in the autumn: but so coddled and smothered up in straw and
matting that it could not breathe; and as every bud was made doubly
tender by this means, when at last it saw the light again it was pretty
sure to die of absolute anaemia. The older gardeners of the fifties would
look in amaze on our glorious beds of Tea roses, flowering in some cases
up to Christmas, and beginning again as happily as ever the next June.
While to us of the present day, a rose garden without Tea roses would be
no garden at all.

It is not that the modern Tea rose is hardier than its ancestors; for
some of the old ones, such as _Souvenir d'un Ami_, grow as cheerfully in
the garden as a Hybrid Perpetual. But experience has shown that Tea
roses, with a very few exceptions, may be safely grown in the open
ground, if a few simple precautions are observed in their treatment.

The first of these is, of course, that no pruning should be done till
April.

The second, that a few fronds of bracken should be drawn through the
branches. This in most cases will be found quite sufficient to ward off
frost. But as an extra precaution in the event of very severe weather,
the earth may be drawn up some four or five inches round the stems, so
that if by chance a hard frost should cut the upper part of the shoots,
the base may still be kept alive. Great care, however, must be exercised
in uncovering the plants, the protecting material being removed
gradually, so that growth may not be unduly forced on--only to be cut by
the first cold wind--or, on the other hand, that the plant may not
receive a shock by sudden and complete exposure.

Standard Tea roses may be protected by straw tied lightly round the
heads, care being taken not to break the shoots by tying them in too
tightly.

The history of the Tea rose in Europe began just 100 years ago. The
original "Blush tea-scente