3<'; GAKDEN FLOWERS. 



emetic pioperty. Botanists have stated that a 

 larger number of species of violets are found in 

 North America, than in any other portion of 

 the globe. 



Besides the tufts of violets of various kinds 

 which are found in our spring gardens, we 

 might enumerate the large tribe of heartsease 

 or pansy, which flower is, in fact, a violet, and 

 is the Viola iricolov of the botanist. A. few 

 only of these flowers are found within the 

 tropics. Many are from America, and several 

 from Siberia. Some very pretty pansies grow 

 on the cliffs of Northern Europe. Linnajus, in 

 his work on the flowers of Lapland, says, 

 " Here and there, among the rocks, small 

 patches of vegetation were to be seen, full of a 

 variety of herbaceous plants ; among others, 

 Viola tricolor^ of which some of the flowers 

 were white ; others, with the upper petals blue 

 and yellow, and the lateral and lower ones blue ; 

 while others, again, had a mixture of yellow in 

 the side petals. All these were found within a 

 foot of each other, sometimes on the same 

 stalk." 



The striped flowers of the Chalcedonian iris 

 {Iris Susiana) now wave gaily over the borders. 

 Its flowers are the largest and handsomest of 

 this most beautiful genus, and it was called by 

 the old writers, the Turkey flower de luce. 

 The various species of iris are chiefly European. 

 Several are from different parts of Asia, and a 

 few from America. The pretty Persian iris, {Iris 

 Persica,) with its fragrant and bright-coloured 



