April Showers 



wanted to show whether these flowers are fertile and 

 whether this is a cleistogamous line of development of 

 service to the plant, or a useless variation. One of the. 

 best of the family is F. pallidiflora, and if it has a fault it 

 lies in the shortness of stem, which seems insufficient for 

 the large bunch of soft yellow flowers. It grows well 

 here in semi-shade, and I wish I could say the same of 

 pudica, recurva, and the latifolia forms, all of which have 

 left me. v, 



Why does one so seldom see good patches of San- 

 guinaria canadensis ? It seems to ask nothing more than 

 planting and leaving alone, but I rather expect suffers 

 from being lifted and stored, as is almost necessary for pur- 

 poses of sale, and so is difficult to obtain in robust health. 



I have found it good-tempered enough if divided 

 when in full growth, and it is one of the plants I am over 

 generous with, as I do so enjoy lifting a piece and seeing 

 the realistic imitation of bleeding given by a broken root. 

 It does this in the manner of a grazed wound, a gradual 

 oozing of blood from several pores, and not a gushing out, 

 which might upset some who watched the process. 



A good clump in full flower is one of the joys of 

 April. The thick white petals have a wonderful brilliancy, 

 while the anthers are of a soft yellow, rather unusual with 

 a white flower. It is a very variable plant, and its varieties 

 have borne many names. That known as grandiflora is 

 the best, but I see by Das Pflanzenreich that it ought to be 

 known as var. Dilleniana, a pretty compliment to Dillenius 

 and his beautiful figure of it in the Hortus Elthamensis. 

 He also figures the minor form, and one he calls flore 

 pleno, but which is hardly worthy of the name, having only 

 169 



