7° 



IRISH GARDENING 



Native Primulas. 



By W. H. Paine. 



OWING to the near relation of some species 

 a botanical survey will not be out of 

 place, and of course cultural particulars 

 will form the most important part o( our obser- 

 vations, while it is proposed to divide them by 

 locality and not into botanical sections and sub- 

 sections. It is not the writer's intention to pose 

 to know all the species whicn will be spoken ot 

 in the following- articles, rather is it that he is 

 collecting information from the sources where 

 certain species are well grown, and to diffuse it 

 to a wider public than perhaps it would otherwise 

 reach. It would, of course, be presumption to 

 state that the cultural notes below are the only 

 way to grow the various species, but, speaking 

 generally, they will form a sound basis for 

 proper culture by varying according to one's own 

 particular locality and needs. I propose to deal 

 with the species that inhabit our islands first, 

 and to deal with the most common as well as 

 the most rare. 



P. vulgaris (.viv/. acaulis), Europe. — Flowers 

 usually pale yellow, rarely pinkish in nature, 

 numerous, large, aromatic, with flat limb, five 

 lobes, calyx tube inflated ; umbels sessile, so as 

 to resemble scapes, spring ; leaves obovate- 

 oblong, somewhat hairy, deeply veined, three 

 to six inches long. P. vulgaris gives nianv 

 g.irden forms, in fact few plants have recei\ed 

 more attention from h\bri(lists. Perhaps the 

 most notable success was the introduction of 

 Wilson's Blue, which has given rise to manv 

 others that are improvements on the original. 

 Other noteworthy offsprings of this species are 

 the old Double White and Double Lilac, and of 

 more recent date a most delightful plant 

 has been given us in the Double Pompa- 

 dour. This plant is rather harder to manage 

 than any of the species ; personally I find it 

 does best if subjected to annual splitting up of 

 the crowns. It likes limestone soils or reten- 

 tive situations, for on sandy soils it fails to live 

 very long. .Another beaut}', and yet rather 

 difficult meinber of this section, is the Double 

 Yellow, a plant at one time much more common 

 than now. It is a deep clear yellow, and is often 

 confounded by nurserymen with the Double 

 Sulphur, which is by no means as good a plant. 

 Evelyn Arkwright, a glorified form of the com- 

 mon Primrose, is a truly delightful plant when 



well grown. Mr. M. Prichard showed this 

 plant at the Royal Horticultural Society meeting 

 last season, on April nth, in very fine form, 

 and he states that it is easy to grow when 

 plenty of leafy soil is given to it. 1 have foiuid 

 that it loves more shade than the type, and its 

 true magnificence is fully shown when planted 

 against a dark background. Others of impor- 

 tance in a horticultural sense are Croussei, a 

 double rosy plum ; purpurea plena, a violet- 

 coloured form. Carnea plena is a beautiful 

 .Salmon old rose variety which is rare, and when 

 planted in full shade gives a colour otherwise 

 LUiknown to the Primrose family. Botanically 

 there is one other which should find note here — 

 a variety, " bracteata," which is a remarkable 

 plant. The petals are green and leaf-like on 

 the outer margin, while the tube of the flower 

 retains the original Primrose colour and form. 

 I found this plant in a hedgerow near Kildarc 

 last season, and I think this is a rare ex- 

 perience. The culture of this species and its 

 varieties is easy ; excepting those above men- 

 tioned they do not like exposure to the sun in 

 the hot summer months, as the root stock 

 becomes dry and hardened, giving as a result 

 weaker growth later on. A good sign of health 

 is when the old leaves are quite green when the 

 new ones have made their full growth, after 

 which they may be expected to die away, and 

 can be cut oft' when cleaning up the borders, 

 but it is a fatal mistake to cut off the leaves 

 during the summer months, as a new growth 

 sets in and the all annual duties of the plant are 

 upset and no floral satisfaction is obtained. 

 They like decayed leaves mixed with a fairl\ 

 retentive soil. When the root stock gets above 

 the soil tlic\ should he taken up, divided and 

 replanted. This operation should take place 

 early after llowering', in rainy weather. 



P. farinosa (Bird's-eye Primrose). — Elowers 

 light purple or rosy lilac, with yellow eye, about 

 half an inch across, in compact umbels, corolla 

 lobes, wedge shaped, notched, calyx oblong- 

 obvoid, leaves one and a half inch long, ovate- 

 oblong, roundly toothed, smooth upper surface, 

 mealv powdered under surface ; the whole plant 

 is somewhat mealy, from which it obtains its 

 naine. — April and May. 



This species is the most widely distributed oi 

 all Primulas --it is conmion in the .\lps ol 

 Switzerland and the Pyrenees. 1 lia\e seen 

 vast carpets ot this little gem in full llower in 



