CLARKIA, Nat. Ord. Onagracea. 

 When once in the County of Essex, in England, wandering about in search of flowers and 



their intelligent cultivators, we neared an old-fashioned village, called St. Osyth, and in it 



neighborhood we saw immense 

 fields ablaze with bright colors, 

 acres each of pink, red, white, 

 purple, lilac, and which a closer 

 view proved to be masses of 

 Clarkia, being grown for the 

 seed. Wherever a mass of bright 

 colors is desired, the Clarkia is 

 the most effective annual in the 

 hands of the English florist. It 



suffers with us in hot dry weather. Seed sown in auiumn will give good early spring flowers. 



COLLINSIA, Nat. Ord. Scrophulariaceez. 

 The Collinsia is a very pretty, free blooming, hardy annual, that we always liked, but never so 



well as since we saw it growing wild in California, and which 



we mistook when at a distance for some new species of Lupin. 



The marbled, or many-colored, 



flowers are in whorls of five or six 



blossoms, and three or more of these 



whorls on each flower stem. The 



upper lip of the flower is white or 



pale lilac, and the lower one dark 



purple. About eighteen inches in 



height. We have had very good suc- 

 cess with fall planted seeds in a dry soil, but would hardly like to advise this plan generally. 



CONVOLVULUS, Nat. Ord. Convolvulacea. 



Every one knows the Convolvulus major, the old and loved Morning Glory, which will be 

 found described among the Climbing Plants, but all are not conversant 

 with the Dwarf Convolvulus, C. minor. It is a dwarfish plant, of a 

 trailing habit, each plant covering a circle per- 

 haps two feet in diameter, or more. The 

 flowers are about two-thirds the size of those of 

 the Morning Glory, and a bed of the Dwarf 

 Convolvulus forms beautiful mass; and were 

 it not that the flowers are closed during the latter 

 part of the day, the same as Convolvulus major, 

 few plants would give more satisfaction. The engraving shows the flower one-half natural size. 



CREPIS, Nat. Ord. Composite. 



The Crepis are pretty plants that almost every one would like in a large collection, but which 

 we would not recommend to those who cultivate but few 

 flowers, except once for trial or acquaintance. There is great 

 pleasure in forming a personal acquaintance with strange 

 flowers by culture, just as much as in 

 traveling among new scenes in strange 

 lands; at least, so we think. There are 

 several varieties of the Crepis, yellow, pur- 

 ple, pink and white, all hardy annuals, 

 about one foot in height, and bearing deli- 

 cate, pretty flowers. The engraving shows 

 the full size of the flower. Plants should 

 be about eight or ten inches apart. Seed 

 will germinate if sown in the open ground, but we generally put a pinch or two in the hot-bed. 



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