Spring Crocuses 



It may be more conspicuous to insect visitors among 

 withered grass and stones or bare earth, while the lilac and 

 white of autumnal species form a greater contrast with the 

 browns and tawny reds of fallen or dead leaves. 



I have before alluded to the way external stripes, after 

 the manner of those of the zebra and tiger, render the 

 buds and closed flowers inconspicuous, and it is worth 

 noting that these stripes are particularly well developed on 

 Spring Crocuses, and in the yellow species ; in fact only 

 three, gargaricus, Olivieri, and Suterianus, have so far 

 never been found with stripes or feathered markings, for 

 ancyrensts, which has been described as never varying in 

 this way, has of late years given me seedlings with 

 featherings and suffusions of dark brown. The most 

 extreme of all in this respect is C. Balansae, one form of 

 which has the three outer segments externally of a deep 

 mahogany colour, and in bud looks nearly black and is 

 very hard to see, but the moment these deep-coloured 

 segments part, the rich orange of the inner segments 

 makes a most conspicuous and beautiful object of the 

 flower. A half-expanded one forms as striking a colour- 

 contrast as any flower I can think of. Every one who sees 

 it for the first time is astonished at its beauty, and can 

 hardly believe it is real, like the little girl at the Zoo, who 

 after gazing at the Anteaters said, " But there aren't really 

 such animals as those, are there, Nurse ? " Other forms 

 of C. Balansae are pretty, especially those well feathered 

 with bronze on the orange ground, but they are quite 

 credibly tame and dull after the mahogany one. It has 

 never borne a varietal name, so it is not possible to buy 

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