PRATIA. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN, 



PRIMULA. 731 



Purpurea lutea plena, scarlet - crimson 

 slightly tipped with yellow. 



Among the dwarf alpine species there 

 are some very beautiful plants for the 

 rock-garden. Of these the following are 

 the best : 



P. alba ( White Cinquefoil\1}\t leaves 

 of this pretty plant from the Alps and 

 Pyrenees are quite silvery and have a 

 dense silky down on the lower sides. 

 It is very dwarf, and not rampant ; its 

 white Strawberry-like flowers nearly i in. 

 across, with a dark orange ring at the base. 

 Easily grown in ordinary soil, and on bor- 

 ders or for the rock-garden. It blooms in 

 early summer, and is increased by division. 



P. alpestris (Alpine Cinque foil}. A 

 plant closely allied to the spring Potentilla 

 (P. verna) forming tufts nearly I ft. high, 

 with bright yellow flowers about I in. 

 across. While enjoying a moist deep soil, 

 it cares little how cold the position is. 

 Though not very common, it is found on 

 rocks and dry banks in several parts of 

 the country. 



P. amblgua, from the Himalayas, is a 

 dwarf compact creeper, with in summer 

 large clear yellow blossoms on a dense 

 carpet of foliage ; is perfectly hardy, re- 

 quiring only a good deep well-drained soil 

 in an open position in the rock-garden. 



P. calabra (Calabrian Cinquefoil\ A 

 very silvery species from Italy and South- 

 ern Europe. It has prostrate shoots, and 

 bears in May and June lemon-yellow 

 flowers nearly i in. across. It flourishes 

 freely in sandy soil, in the rock-garden. 



P. fruticosa (Shrtibby Cinquefoil}.^ 

 pretty neat bush, 2 to 4 ft. high, and bears 

 in summer clusters of showy golden- 

 yellow flowers. It is suited for the rock- 

 garden or the dry bank. 



P. nitida (Shining Cinque foil}. A 

 beautiful little plant from the Alps, a 

 couple of inches high, its silky silvery 

 leaves seldom with more than three leaf- 

 lets each. The flowers are pretty and 

 delicate rose. It is well worth a good 

 place in the rock-garden, and is of the 

 easiest culture and propagation. 



P. pyrenaica (Pyrenean Cinquefoif). 

 This dwarf vigorous and showy kind has 

 fine deep golden-yellow flowers. It will 

 grow in the rock-garden or in the mixed 

 border without particular attention. H igh 

 valleys in the Central and Southern 

 Pyrenees. Division or seeds. The 

 shrubby kind P. fruticosa and its varieties 

 are worth naturalising and growing among 

 small shrubs in rougher parts of the 

 rock-garden. 



VRA!EIA..P.angulata is a pretty plant 

 for the rock-garden, creeping over the soil 



like the Fruiting Duckweed ; the flowers 

 white, and like a dwarf Lobelia, numerous 



Pratia angulata. 



in autumn, giving place to violet-coloured 

 berries about the size of Peas. It is hardy. 

 New Zealand. Syn., Lobelia littoralis. 



PEIMULA (Primrose]. There is so 

 much charm and beauty among Primroses 

 that no garden is complete without them, 

 and there is scarcely a species not worth 

 cultivating. They have a great diversity 

 of habit and growth. Some are at home 

 on the sunny slopes of the rock-garden, 

 others in shade, many make excellent 

 border flowers, and a few exotic species 

 are at home in the woodland with our 

 common Primrose. The family contains 

 nearly a hundred different sorts ; and \ve 

 have therefore confined ourselves to the 

 most distinct and desirable kinds. There 

 is so much confusion among certain 

 sections, particularly in the alpine and 

 the Himalayan species, that we have not 

 attempted to deal with these exhaustively ; 

 while others, such as P. nivalis, are too 

 little known in gardens to render it neces- 

 sary for us to speak of them. 



P. amcena (Caucasian Primrose] is 

 allied to our common primrose, but is 

 quite distinct. The corolla is purplish 

 lilac in bud or when recently expanded, 

 but turns bluer after a few days. The 

 umbel is many-flowered, and the blooms, 

 which are larger than those of P. denticu- 

 lata, are borne about 6 or 7 in. high ; the 

 leaves are rather large and are woolly 

 beneath and toothed. The blooms come 

 out before the snow has left the ground. 

 It is so much earlier than the common 

 Primrose, that while that species is in full 

 flower, amcena has quite finished bloom- 

 ing, and has sent up a strong tuft of leaves 

 very much like that sent up by the common 

 Primrose after its own flowers are faded. 

 A sheltered position slightly shaded will 

 be best for the perfect health and develop- 

 ment of the plant. It flourishes quite 



