32 THE PLANT WORLD 



discovered in perfection of frond in winter thickets, where a leaf tangle 

 screened it from view at other seasons. Two rare smilaxes of southern 

 New Jersey, which may be sought in vain in summer, are sometimes 

 disclosed to the view of ramblers in the snow. These are Smilax Walkeri 

 and Smilax laurifoUa, the former made conspicuous by its strings of 

 bright red berries, and the latter by its rich green foliage overspreading 

 thickets stripped of deciduous leafage by the cold. 



A PRIMROSE AT HOME. 



By F. H. KnowlTon. 



TO my mind the genus Primula affords some of the most beautiful 

 and attractive plants that are to be found in the whole range of the 

 vegetable kingdom. Attractive in foliage, bright and dainty in 

 coloring of jflowers and delicate in fragrance, they are always objects 

 of interest. Since the cultivation of the more showy exotic species has 

 become so general, primulas have come to be ranked among the choicest 

 of flowering plants, but quite as beautiful are certain of our native 

 species when seen in the full setting of nature. 



The genus Primula is large and widely distributed, occurring mainly 

 in the northern hemisphere, with a few extending to Java and the 

 Straits of Magellan. The number of species is placed by Pax, the latest 

 monographer of the genus, at 145, but even these figures probably 

 fall short of the actual truth. Of this number North America possesses 

 about 15 species, three of which are found in the northeastern portion 

 of the continent and the remainder in the high mountains of the west 

 and northwest. 



Of all the species found in North America, perhaps none is more 

 attractive than Primula Parry i, the subject of our plate. This species, as 

 its name implies, was discovered by Dr. C. C. Parry, in the Rocky 

 Mountains of Colorado in 1862. 



It is a very abundant species, in suitable situations, along alpine 

 brooks, from Colorado to Arizona and Nevada. It is a large species, 

 with rather succulent, spatulate-oblong or oblanceolate leaves, and a 

 scape 6 to 12 inches high, bearing a cluster of from 5 to 12 large crim- 

 son-purple flowers, each with a yellow eye, 



I well recall my first introduction to Primula Parryi. We had been 

 encamped for some days at Little Spring, near the base of San Fran- 

 cisco Mountains, Arizona, waiting for a favorable opportunity to make 

 the ascent of San Francisco peak. This mountain, a huge pile 

 of volcanic rocks, rises to a height of 12,147 feet, and from our camp we 



