PRIMULA. 



they can never attain in the dull grandeur of a pocket to themselves 

 with nothing to interest, stimulate, or support their growth. I feel 

 sure that comradeship is the answer to the problem of many uncertain 

 or impish treasures, such as Oentiana verna ; and is especially to be 

 commended in the case of Primula farinosa. This should be planted 

 among kindred spirits in a heavy rich and sticky loam, on a slope, 

 well drained, and with abundance of water from March to June. Sow 

 among it then some fine perennial grass, such as Festuca ovina tenui- 

 folia, and take no more care ; for the Primula should soon be estab- 

 lished, and there abide from year to year. It is not a marsh-plant, 

 and is independent of water after the flowering-period, so long as it has 

 the copious wet of the alpine spring, when the melting snows turn 

 all the ranges into a sop of moisture. But prescriptions for such a 

 rover can only be approximate, and my suggestions need only be 

 understood as offering themselves to gardeners who may hitherto have 

 failed to grow or keep the Bird's-eye Primula. The typical Bird's- 

 eye varies greatly hi depth of colour and shape of flower. I have 

 found deep-red forms, and once a beautiful precocious blue one ; but, 

 as a rule, though round-flowered stout forms should be secured, there 

 is no point in naming or specially marking out the varieties of a 

 species so elusive and impermanent. There is, however, a stemless, 

 cushiony form, now very rare, but always most desirable (P.f. acaulis) ; 

 and there is the true lovely albino, P. farinosa alba Saundersae — the 

 final possessive being applied no less to commemorate its enthusiastic 

 discoverer and guardian as to differentiate this special and superb 

 form from the ordinary albino, an extremely " sometime person," but 

 not so good, which I have only seen myself near the Grindelwald 

 Glacier, and in Sulber Nick under Ingleborough. Mrs. Saunders' 

 albino is a stout and stalwart variety, perfectly pure, large -flowered, 

 and breeding true, whenever it condescends to produce seed at all, 

 instead of the fine soot with which it too often fills its capsules 

 instead. 



Of the innumerable geographical forms and sub-species of P. 

 farinosa notice will be found in due course under each name that 

 covers them (and occasionally, in catalogues, deludes the unwary with 

 hopes of a striking strange Primula). Such are P. groenlandica ; 

 P. Hornemanniana, a mealless alpine and Pyrenean form ; P. magellanica 

 from antarctic South America ; P. borealis, North America ; P. modesta, 

 Japan ; P. davurica. Russia. Siberia, North Mongolia, &c. (this is the 

 one true and original P. altaica, Lehm.— a name so clouded with error 

 and confusion that now it has lapsed by general consent) ; with its 

 little frail Bulgarian variety P. denudata (or exigua) ; and finally 



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