THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 311 



together, almost as close as Crocuses in a nurseryman's flower-bed. 

 Of this variety, therefore, we may say with Marc Antony, " Let this 

 fellow be nothing of our strife. If we contend — out of our question 

 ■wipe him." 



3. E. grandiflorum var. albiflorum. Hook. ; flower white, only 

 one on the stem ; stigmas 3-cleft, with the lobes entire at the apex ; 

 leaves green and not blotched. 



This variety has lately been flowered by Dr. Eegel, of St. Peters- 

 bnrgh, and described and figured in the Gartevflora (Abgust, 1873, 

 p. 227), and the characters above given are taken from his description. 



4. E. grandiflorum var. maculatum. Flowers same as last variety ; 

 leaves blotched. 



I add this as another variety on the strength of the description 

 given in their Catalogue for 1873 by Messrs. Backhouse, of York, 

 who have introduced it and flowered itinEnglond They describe 

 it under the name of Erythronium giganteum, Liudl. — the gigantic 

 Dog's-tooth Violet — as follows : — 



" Think of a Dog's-tooth Violet growing 9 to 18 inches high, and 

 bearing three to ten large flowers on one stalic, and a fair idea may 

 be formed of this noble species. Our collector states that it forms a 

 branching somewhat confluent spike of flowers, usually of a creamy- 

 white, shaded with delicate pink or purple ; others are quite white, 

 and others again of a light lemon yellow. In some districts it is of a 

 clear red purple. The blossoms are individually 3 inches or more 

 across, and very handsome, the petals being broad and well expanded. 

 Foliage blotched and marbled with purplish brown. Months of 

 flowering, February, March, and April." 



I incline to thii:k that in their native country April and May 

 would best express the flowering months. Of all the varieties this 

 seems to have differences of the greatest value. Generally speaking, 

 one would feel disposed to admit as distinct two varieties which, in 

 addition to other specialities, have such a remarkable distinction in 

 green leaves and blotched purple leaves, but here all the differences 

 seem to be unstable, while the main characters are constant ; thus 

 the bulb, which is peculiar, is,I believe, the same in them all. It is of 

 a peaked oval shape, and the rootlets spring out, not at the termi- 

 nation, but at about a third from the bottom. I do not think, there- 

 fore, that we can avoid coming to the same conclusion as Hooker 

 and the American botanists, and regarding them all as mere varieties 

 of one species. 



Besides the above we have — 



5. E. grandiflorum var. Smithii, Hook., of which the flowers are 

 rosy purple, and one on a stem ; and 



6. E. grandiflorum var. multiflorum, Torrey in Pac. R.R. Eep. 

 iv., p. 146. Flowers, bright lilac, yellow at the base on the inside; 

 flowers one to fifteen on the stem. Stigma club-shaped ; leaves not 

 spotted. 



It is obvious that these differ from the common yellow type in 

 little but the colour. 



October, 



