WILD FLOWEES OF MAT. 



CHAP. IX. 

 SEASONAL VARIATIONS IN THE FLOWERING OP BRITISH 



PLANTS. SIX FLOWERING PERIODS DESCRIBED IN DE- 

 TAIL, THE PRIMAVERAL, VERNAL, SOLSTITIAL, .^STIVAL, 

 AUTUMNAL, AND HIBERNAL. FLORAL SYMPATHIES OF 

 POETS AND BOTANISTS. 



" Let mother Earth now deck'd with flowers be seen, 

 And sweet breath'd Zephyrs curl the meadows green." 



DRUMMOND OF HAWTHORNDEN, 



" Methought fresh May before my bed upstude, 



In weed depaint of mony diverse hue, 

 Sober, benign, and full of mansuetude, 



In bright attire of flouris forged new, 

 Heavenly of colour, white, red, brown, and blue, 



Balmy in dew, and gilt with Phoebus bemys." 



CHAUCER. 



Before gathering " May Flowers," it will be con- 

 venient to subdivide the garland of the year into 

 characteristic FLOBALIAS, or FLOEAL EEIGNS, which 

 may perhaps be made more intelligible by the peculiar 

 flowers comprised within them, than the mere artificial 

 divisions of the months. They will also be more na- 

 tural, as these Floralias will of course remain the same 

 whether the seasons be earlier or later ; for even in 

 successive years there is often a very considerable dif- 

 erence in the dates of flowering of many plants, accord- 

 ing to mildness or severity of the weather. Thus in 

 the stormy and ungenial springs of 1837 and 1839 ? 



