138 THE FLORIST. 



MIMULUS. 



FIGURED FROM A PLANT EXHIBITED AT WORTOX COTTAGE. 



Ii has been truly said, that "public taste, as regards certain classes 

 of plants, is very capricious." I well remember the time when al- 

 most every flower-garden could boast of its Mimulus bed, and when 

 every fresl'i addition to this really pretty genus was hailed with no 

 ordinary interest. I shall not soon forget the satisfaction which 

 beamed in the face of our " Andrew Fairservice" when he was 

 she\^^l the beautiful M. cardinalis, which was a great novelty some 

 fifteen years ago. It was introduced, about the year 1835, by the 

 late lamented David Douglas, who, as most of our readers no doubt 

 know, '' lost his life in the pursuit of his art, and than whom no 

 man of science has left a higher name behind him." Cultivated in 

 the open ground, in moist rich soil, this fine plant flowered abund- 

 antly with Andrew from July to the end of September. About the 

 same year, Mr. Smith, a nurseryman in Islington, raised a pretty 

 seedling, which he called " Smithii," between M. variegatus and M. 

 luteus rivularis. It was something in the way of that represented by 

 your plate, but much smaller, and far more starry. Andrew obtained 

 this ; Luteus and Rcseus he had before, if my memory serves me 

 rightly. And now little was purchased in the way of Mimuluses 

 for some time. A few years afterwards, an Irish seedling called 

 iMaclainii, a great improvement on Pvoseus, made its appearance ; 

 and with this, Luteus variegatus, 'and others, tolerably good beds 

 were formed. In the present day, however, even after the lapse of 

 some dozen years, and with our improved garden-hybrids, one rarely 

 meets with a clump of Mimuluses in the flower-garden. This may 

 partly be attriljuted to the great number of good bedding-plants of 

 so many colours that we now possess ; and partly to most of the 

 Mimuluses being found to be too coarse for beds. But if unsuitable 

 for masses, they are very effective in small patches, scattered here 

 and there " with careless hand" in American borders or in damp 

 comers, where they can receive partial shade, and perhaps a little 

 protection in the most severe weather. The finer kinds are well 

 worth cultivating in pots for greenhouse or conservatory decoration. 

 When grown in this way, the pots should be roomy, and the plants 

 should be liberally supplied with water. 



The common Musk (Mimulus muschatus) planted here and there 

 by the sides of the shrubbeiy among Rhododendrons, or in Rose- 

 beds, is much admired for its cheerful yellow flowers, and delightful 

 fragrance. When it and R,oses bloom together, the whole has a 

 very pleasing effect. 



A small neat species of Mimulus called " Tricolor" was intro- 

 duced by the Horticultural Society from California, about a year 

 since. Its general colour is delicate pink, with a deep crimson spot 

 at the base of each lobe, and a yellow stain along the lower lip. 



