RANUNCULU8. 179 



through all the shades of reds, yellows, browiM ; 

 and, indeed, all colours, excepting blue, may be 

 found in these gaily-painted flowers — the criterion 

 of whose perfection is, that they should produce a 

 strong, stem, not less in height than from eight 

 inches to a foot, and that they should bear a flower 

 at least two inches in diameter, well filled with con- 

 cave petals, that diminish in size as they approach 

 the centre. The corolla should be of a hemispheri- 

 cal form : its component petals should be imbricated 

 in such a manner as neither to be too close and 

 compact, nor too widely separated, but have rather 

 more of a perpendicular than horizontal direction, 

 to display their colours with better effect. The 

 petals should be broad, and quite free from fringe 

 or indentures at the edges : the beauty of their 

 colouring consists in their being dark, clear, rich, or 

 brilliant; either of one regular colour throughout, 

 or otherwise variously diversified, on white, ash, 

 pale yellow, gold, or fire-coloured ground, either 

 in regular stripes or spots, or marble-mottled. 



The aspect most congenial to these plants is that 

 of the east, where the situation is open, but free 

 from draughts, and sheltered from the violent 

 westerly winds that generally prevail during the 

 early part of their growth. The soil recommended 

 by Maddock, the greatest cultivator we have had of 

 the Kanunculus, is a fresh, strong, rich, loamy 



