GENTIANA 



GENTIANA 



633 



the rootstock is so stoloniferous that the plant has to 

 be cut back, every year when used for edgings in Eng- 

 lish gardens. In France it is easily grown in a com- 

 post of one-half hunms or leaf-soil and oue-half good 

 vegetable mold, to which may be added a iittle sand. Cor- 

 revon writes; "It can be multiplied by means of offsets, 

 but it is infinitely better to raise it from seed, and, in 

 doing this, it should not be forgotten that the seeds of 

 this group of Gentians are very tedious, and, more espe- 

 cially, very capriQious in germinating. I have sown seeds 

 of G. acaulis, some of which did not germinate for 12 

 months, while others (which I must say were more re- 

 cently gathered) germinated in a few weeks. The seed- 

 lings should be potted as soon as possible and while 

 they are very young. They will begin to flower in about 

 'A years from the time of sowing, rarely sooner." Except 

 G. A7idr€wsii, G. Sapottaria and G. puberula, ami per- 

 haps a few others, Gentians do not thrive as well in 

 America as in England. Our seasons are too hot and 

 dry. Whenever possible, give a damp atmosphere. 



It is rash to generalize on Gentian culture, because 

 some plants are tall, others dwarf, some found on mouu- 

 tains, others in lowlands, some in moist soil, others in 

 dry lands, while some like limestone and others cannot 

 endure it. The annual kinds are of interest only to the 

 expert. Alpine plants in general are unique in rrquir- 

 ing an extremely large water supply, comliiind with ex- 

 tremely good drainage. Another difficult in-oMmi is to 

 keep the plants as cool as they are on tliu jni)unt:iins 

 without shading them more than nature does. Gentian 

 seeds are small, and in germination slow and uncertain. 

 They should be sown as soon as gathered, for the thor- 

 ough drying out of small seeds is, as a rule, soon fatal, 

 (ientians are difficult to establish, and dislike division 

 of the root, but are well worth patient years of trial, for 

 they are very permanent when once established. Nature- 

 like alpine gardens are one of the latest and most re- 

 fined departments of gardening, and Gentians are one 

 of the most inviting groups of plants to the skilled 

 amateur. ConHuXt Alpine Gardens. 



There are several Fringed Gentians, but ours {G. cri- 

 vifa, Pig. 897) is perhaps the most beautiful of Gentians, 

 and one of the choicest and most delicate of American 

 wild flowers. It has been proposed as our national flower, 

 and, while sought after less than the trailing arbutus, 

 it is in even greater danger of extermination in certain 

 states because it is a biennial, and because it has never 

 been successfully ciiltivated. Seeds of G. criuita have 

 long been advertised by one American dealer, but at the 

 Cornell Experiment Station these have never been ger- 

 minated. The Fringed Gentian is, however, firmly rooted 

 in American literature, and from the time of Bryant's 

 ode many tributes in verse have been paid to its unique 

 beauty. The daily unfolding of its square-ridged and 

 twisted buds has been watched in thousands of homes. 

 By the artists its blue is often considered the nearest 

 approach to the color of the sky, but it must be con- 

 fessed that a shade of purple often appears in the older 

 flowers. 



The Gentian enthusiast should hasten to procure a 

 copy of "The Garden " for Aug- 24, 1895, which contains 

 Correvon's fine cultural monograph of Gentians trans- 

 lated from R.H. 1893, p. 525, and 1894, p. 42. Correvon 

 cultivates his Gentians at Geneva, Switzerland. The 

 writer of the present article has searched Correvon's 

 monograph for facts concerning season of bloom, hab- 

 itat and cultural directions, which are scattered below. 



Corx-evon makes 4 cultural groups of Gentians: 



I. Tall Gentians for general cnlfiire: species whose 

 roots are more or less stout, which are of relatively easy 

 culture, and therefore suitable for borders, rockwork 

 and landscape gardening. Typical plant, 6^. liifea: others 

 are G. affinis, alba, Andrewsii, aselepiadea, Bigelovii, 

 Burseri, Crueintn, drcumbens, Fetisowi,geHda , Kessel- 

 ringi, nnimipliifUa, Olivieri, Pneumona nthe , Porphyrio, 

 Saponaria , tirei>fnini , septemfida and Walnjewi. 



II. Loir-groiving Gentians: species whose roots being 

 less stout are adapted to rockwork, and for the open 

 ground only when a special compost is provided. In- 

 cludes G. acaulis and the species into which it is some- 

 times divided. 



III. Tufted Gentians : species with sessile flowers 

 growing little above the level of the ground, and suited 



for the same positions as Group II. Tyjiical plant, 6^. 

 verna : others are G. Bavarica, imbricata, Oregana, 

 ornata, Pyrenaica, and pmnila. 



IV. Mare Gentians: species which cannot be grown 

 without sqpie special knowledge and practical experi- 

 ence. Typical plant, G. purpurea; others are G. ciliata, 

 Prcelichii, punctata, and presumably all the rest. 



The two most popular Gentians in American cultiva- 

 tion seem to be G. acaulis and Andmrsli . These are, 

 perhaps, followed by G. Crucld/n, pnhmihi and Sapo- 

 naria. The plant which King (imtiu'^ kinw is probably 

 G. lutea, the root of which furnishes thu Gentian of drug 

 stores. From the same sources comes the liqueur or 

 cordial called "Gentiane." 



Index of names : those marked with an asterisk {*) 

 appear in American trade catalogues; the rest are cult, 

 abroad. The plants are perennials and mountain-loving, 

 unless otherwise stated. 

 *aca«lis, 51. *Cruciata, 45. Panuonica, 42. 



adscfndens, 3. Dinarica, 56. *Parryi, 36. 



affinis. '2'J. *deeumbens, 3. Pneiimonanthe, 20. 



*alba, 7. detonsa, 16. Porphyrio, 31. 



algida. 10 and 11. Fortuni, 27. pseudo - Pueumo- 



alpina, 55. frigida, 9, 10. nanthe, 23. 



*Audrewsii, 22. Frcelichii, 18. prostrata, 25. 



angidosa, 48. Gaudini, 43. *puberula, 41. 



*aiigustifolia,52and gelida, 11. pnmila, 50. 



31. imbricata, 47. *punctata, 6. 



*asclepiadea, 19. incarnata, 8. *purpurea, 4. 



barbata, 16. intermedia, 8. Pyrenaica, 24. 



Bavarica, 49. Kochiana. 53. qidnqueflora, 17. 



*Bigelo\'ii, 39. Kurroo, 37. *Quinquefolia, 17. 



Burseri, 2. *linearis, 23. rubra. 5. 



*ealyeosa. 35. *lutea, 1. *Saponaria, 21. 



eampestris, 12. *macrophylla, 44. *scabra, 26. 



Carpatiea. 46. Moorcroftiaua, 13. *sceptrum, 34. 



C«^f5ft«'?,21and22. *Newberryi. 38. *septemfida, 28. 



ciliata, 15. ochroleuca, 8. serrata, 16. 



*Clusii, 54. OUvieri. 30. Thomasii, 4. 



cordifolia, 28. *Oregana, 40. triflora, 33. 



*eriiiita, 14. ornata, 32. verna, 48. 



A. Calyx spathe-Uke, split in two. 

 B. Color of fls. yellowish. 



c. Form of corolla wheel-shaped. . . 1. lutea 

 cc. Form of corolla club-shaped, at 



least in bud 2. Burseri 



BB. Color of fls. blue or purple, at 

 least above. 



c. Corolla plaited W. decumbenB 



cc. Corolla not plaited. 



D. A nthers grown together 4. purpurea, 



DD. Anthers free 5. rubra 



AA. Calyx with a tubular portion, and 

 nsually 5 lobes. 

 B. Color of fls. yellowish, or green- 

 ish white. 

 o. Style distinct : capsule not 



stalked 0. punctata 



cc. Style none or very short: capsule 

 stalked. 



D. ffeight 2 ft 7. alba 



DD. Height 9-12 in 8. ochroleuca 



DDD. Height 6 in. or less. 



E. Lobes of calyx longer than the 



calyx tube ' 9. frigida 



EE. Lobes of calyx shorter than the 

 calyx tube. 



F. Lvs. lanceolate-linear 10. algida 



FF. Lvs. ovate-lanceolate 11. gelida 



BB. Color of fls. blue or piirple. 

 c. Corolla not plaited. 

 D. Glands found at the base of the 

 filaments. 



E. Calyx 4-cut 12. eampestris 



EE. Calyx 5-cut 13. Moorcroftiana 



DD. Glands not found at the base of 

 the filaments. 

 E. Fringed Gentians: calyx4-cut. 

 F. Capsule raised on a distinct 



stalk. 

 Q. Apex of lobes fringed, the 



sides less so 14. crinita 



(JG. Apex of lobes not fringed, 



base fHnged 15. ciliata 



FF. Capsule on a very short stalk.W. serrata- 



