Tar. 7740, 
CROCUS ALEXANDRI. 
Native of Servia and Bulgaria. 
Nat. Ord. Inipza.—Tribe SisyRINCcHEA. 
Genus Crocus, Linn. ; (Benth. & Hook. f. Gen. Plant. vol. iii. p. 693.) 
Crocus Alexandri; cormo globoso parvo, tunicis rigidis pallidis ad basin 
circumscentibus, spatha basali nulla, foliis 3-4 synanthiis anguste lineari- 
bus alho-vittatis margine revolutis, spatha propria diphylla, perianthii tubo 
e spatha longe exserto, limbi segmentis oblongis interioribus utrinque 
albis, exterioribus facie albis dorso saturate lilacinis vel albis striis tribus 
lilacinis plumosis ornatis, antheris pallide luteis, filamentis brevibus 
glabris, styli ramis integris fulvis. 
> G. Alexandri, Velen. Fl. Bulgar. Vierte Nachtr. (1894) p. 26. 
©. biflorus, var. Alexandri, Velen. FU. Bulgar. Suppl. (1898) p. 264. 
Crocus Alexandri is, in a broad sense, a variety of 
C. biflorus, nearly allied to the Caucasian and Crimean 
C. Adami, J. Gay. In its extreme form it has larger 
flowers than the type, and the outer segments are flushed 
with bright lilac all over the back, with a narrow band of 
white round the margin; but as our plate shows, they often 
show three feathered lilac stripes on a white ground, as in 
ordinary biflorus. It was first collected by Skopil at 
DPragalera in 1892. It was introduced into cultivation by 
Mr. Max Leichtlin in 1899. Our drawing was made from 
plants that flowered in the Royal Gardens, Kew, in March, 
1900, in the open ground. 
Descr.—Ovrm small, globose; tunics pale, rigid, cut 
‘round the base. Basal spathe absent. Leaves three or 
four, produced at the same time as the flowers, narrowly 
linear, with revolute edges, and a white band down the 
centre. Proper spathe small, membranous, diphyllous. 
Perianth-tube much longer than the spathe, white or tinged 
_ with Jilac; segments of the limb oblong, above an inch 
long, the three inner white on both surfaces, the three 
outer white inside, flashed with lilac all over the back, 
except a narrow, white, marginal band, or marked on a 
Ocrozer Isr, 1900. 
