510 PRIMULACE^J. 



and are raised several inches out of the water. After 

 flowering the bladders become filled with water, and the 

 whole plant sinks to the bottom. Fl. June, July. Per- 

 ennial. 



* U. minor (Lesser Bladderwort) is a rare species, 

 with small yellow flowers, and a short blunt spur ; it is 

 most frequent in Scotland : U. intermedia (Intermediate 

 Bladderwort) is also a rare species, distinguished from 

 the common one by having the upper lip of the corolla 

 much longer than the lower, and by bearing its air- 

 bladders on branched stalks distinct from the leaves. 



ORD. LXY.PEIMULACE^E. PRIMROSE TRIBE. 



Calyx 5-cleft, rarely 4-cleft (in Trientdlis 7-cleft), 

 regular, not falling off; corolla of as many lobes as the 

 calyx (in Glaux wanting) ; stamens equalling in number 

 the lobes of the corolla, and opposite to them ; ovary 

 1 -celled ; style 1 ; stigma capitate ; capsule 1 -celled, 

 opening with valves ; seeds numerous, attached to a 

 central column. Herbaceous plants, mostly of humble 

 growth, inhabiting, principally, the colder regions of the 

 northern hemisphere, and in lower latitudes ascending 

 to the confines of perpetual snow. In this order are 

 found several of our most favourite British plants. The 

 Primrose, as its name indicates (prima rosa, the first 

 rose), is the most welcome harbinger of spring ; the 

 Cowslip is scarcely less prized for its pastoral associations 

 than for its elegance and fragrance ; Pimpernel, or " Poor 

 man's weather-glass," is as trusty a herald of summer 

 weather as the Primrose of spring. Nor is it only as 

 Flowers of the Field that the plants of this tribe are 

 valued. The Polyanthus and Auricula equally grace 

 the cottager's garden, and the collections of the florist ; 

 and several species of Cyclamen are commonly found in 

 conservatories. Some species possess active medicinal 

 properties ; the flowers of the Cowslip are made into a 



