Democratic Sentinel, Volume 20, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 May 1896 — A Magnificent Rose Bush. [ARTICLE]

A Magnificent Rose Bush.

There is in Ventura, Cal., a magnlflcent specimen of a white La Marque rose. It was planted from a cutting in November, 1876, and has been trained over a large arbor. Its main stem, immediately above the ground, measures two feet nine inches in circumference. Two branches start from it, and each is two feet one inch in circumference. It has been cut back and pruned heavily each year, and last year over a wagon load of prunings was taken away from it. For several years the girls and boys of Ventura have counted the number of blossoms every March and April. In five years they have annually been over 14,000, and last April they numbered 21,640. Botanists say they can discover no signs of degeneracy due to old age or rare fecundity in the wonderful plant.