I 



THE ALPINE PRIMULACEiE. 71 



flat, massed condition, the leaves practically hidden by the 

 numerous almost stalkless flowers. On the grassy slopes of the 

 Engadine 8,000 feet up, Androsace Chamcejasme, Host., is found 

 growing luxuriously. In this species the leaf-stalk, calyx, and 

 margins of the leaves are covered with woolly hairs. The corolla 

 is white, with a yellow throat, and the leaves are arranged in 

 open rosettes. 



Another species frequently found on mountain pastures is 

 A. carnea, L., with piuk corolla, the long stem, flower pedicel, 

 and calyx slightly hairy, while still more frequent is A. lactea, 

 L., which is white, and the whole plant glabrous. Many hybrids 

 are found, but on the whole the genus is noted by its very 

 distinct species. 



SOLDANELLA. 



This genus comprises five distinct species on the Swiss and 

 Austrian Alps, and they are generally found growing and pro- 

 fusely blooming along the edge of the melting snows. If the 

 ground be fairly damp, the plants will be robust and very 

 handsome; if the ground become rapidly dry, the plants shrivel 

 and are small. They are popularly known as " The Snow Bells." 

 The most common species is Soldanella alpina, L., found grow- 

 ing from 5,000 to 7,000 feet high. The leaves are reniform, 

 entire, thick, glabrous, dark green. The flower stem, from 

 3 to 6 inches in length, is rough with sessile glandular hairs. 

 The flowers are arranged in an umbel of two to five, and are 

 of a rich blue or pink, the corolla being divided half-way down 

 with linear segments. 



Very like it is S. pyrolcefolia, Sch. In this species the leaves 

 resemble alpina, but they are more crenate and incised at 

 the base, having distinct veins on the upper surface. The leaf 

 and flower stalks are glabrous. The other species closely re- 

 sembling these two is S. montana, Willd. It is rather diflicult 

 to find any very distinctive characteristics in this plant. The 

 leaves, however, have a striking violet colouring on their under 

 surface. The peculiarity which ranks and places these three 

 species by themselves is the long style and the umbellated 

 inflorescence. The other two species are known by the short 

 style and the solitary flowers. They are Soldanella pusilla, 

 Baumg., and S. minima, Hoppe, and are small plants, with 



