LYCHNIS 



LYCHNIS 



955 



[Some of the species of Lychnis are amongst the best 

 hown of old-fashioned flowers, as the Mullein Pink, 

 laltese Cross and Ragged Robin. These are essentially 

 [>wer-garden subjects. Others, as L. alpina, are bet- 



r known as border or rockwork plants. All species 

 l-e easily grown from seeds, the biennials and peren- 



als blooming the second year. The perennials are 

 ''ten propagated by division. 



\grostemma, 



0. 7. 



IpiiiH. 4. 

 halcedonica, 

 'oeli-rosa, 7. 

 loronaria, 5. 

 oronata, 12. 

 ioica, 8. 

 /'/mm, 8. 



1, 5, 



INDEX. 



elegans, 10. 

 flrubriata, 7. 

 Flos-cuculi, 11. 

 Flos-Jovis, 6. 

 fulgens, 3, 12. 

 Githago, 1. 

 grandiflora, 12. 

 Haageana, 13. 

 oculata, 7. 

 plenissima, 11. 



semperflorens, 11. 

 Senno, 14. 

 Sieboldii, 12. 

 Silene, 7. 

 speciosa, 12. 

 splendens, 10. 

 Suecica, 4. 

 tomentosa, 5. 

 vespertina, 9. 

 Yiscaria, 7, 10. 



A. Calyx lobes long and leafy: petals not crowned. 



1. Githago, Scop. (Agrostemma Githago, Linn.). 

 CORN-COCKLE. Figs. 1329-30; also 825. An annual weed 

 n wheat-fields, and difficult to eradicate because the 

 eeds are not readily screened from the wheat in the 

 hresher or f anning-mill : plant strict, 2-3 ft. tall, white- 

 lairy: Ivs. nearly linear: fls.long-peduncled, red-purple 

 and showy, the obovate 

 entire petal limbs ex- 

 ceeded by the narrow 

 calyx lobes these lobes 

 falling when the fruit is 

 ripe. Eu. Rarely cult, 

 in old gardens. 



AA. Calyx lobes not pro- 

 longed and leafy : 

 petals usually 

 crowned. 



B. Fls. 1 in. or less 

 across, in dense, ter- 

 minal cymes or um- 

 b ell ate heads, 

 (forms of No. 12 

 may be sought here.) 

 2. Chalceddnica, Linn. 

 MALTESE CROSS. JERU- 

 SALEM CROSS. SCARLET 

 LIGHTNING. Fig. 1331. 

 Perennial 2-3 ft. tall, 

 usually loose-hairy, the 

 stems simple or nearly 

 so: Ivs. oblong or cor- 

 1330. Flower of the Corn-cockle date-lanceolate, clasping 

 (Lychnis Githago) in bud. (upper ones often nar- 

 Natural size. row and tapering) , short- 



pointed, hairy: fls. 1 in. 



long, with narrow upward-enlarging ribbed calyx 

 and spreading, obcordate-notched limb. June. B.M.257. 

 Probably Japanese, but long in cult., and one of the 

 best of all old-fashioned flowers. The fls. are usually 

 brick-red to scarlet, but there are varieties with rose- 

 colored, flesh-colored and white blossoms; also with 

 double fls. The arrangement of the petal-limbs sug- 

 gests the Maltese cross, hence one of the common 

 names. Rarely persists for a time as a weed. 



3. fulgens, Fischer (not Hort.). An erect-stemmed 

 perennial, hairy: Ivs. ovate to ovate-oblong, roughish, 

 tapering below but scarcely petioled : fls. few, in a rather 

 dense terminal cluster, bright scarlet, each petal divided 

 into two broad lobes, on the outer side of which are two 

 other and very narrow lobes, the ends of the main lobes 

 slightly toothed ; calyx oblong or ovate, 10-ribbed, with 

 erect teeth. Siberia, China, Japan. B.M. 2104. B.R. 

 6:478. Perhaps not in cultivation in this country. The 

 plant that passes under this name is probably a form of 

 L. coronata. From L. Chalcedonica it is distinguished 

 by lower stature, much larger fls., and the well-marked 

 side teeth or lobes on the petals. 



4. alpina, Linn. Glabrous, tufted, a ft. or less tall- 

 Ivs. mostly at the base, thickish, linear or oblong : fls. 

 pink, with 2-lobed petals (segments linear), and short, 



broad calyx with red teeth. N. Asia., Eu., and Amer. 



B.M. 394. L.B.C. 9:881 (as L. Suecica).-An attractive 



alpine. 



BB. Fls. mostly larger, borne 



singly or in loose clusters, 



or at least the clusters not 



all terminal. 



c. Plant white-woolly 

 throughout. 



5. Coronaria, Desv. ( Agro- 

 stemma Coronaria, Linn, Cor- 

 onaria tomentosa, A. Br,,). 

 MULLEIN PINK. DUSTY MIL- 

 LER. ROSE CAMPION. Fig. 

 1332. Biennial or perennial, 

 1-2% ft. tall, forking towards 

 the top : Ivs. oblong, oblong- 

 oval or oblong-spatulate, the 

 lower ones obtuse or nearly 

 so, tapering to a more or less 

 clasping base: fls. large (1% 

 in. across) , circular in outline, 

 crimson or rose - crimson, 

 borne singly on the ends of 

 the branches; petals with ap- 

 pendages at the throat; calyx 

 with filiform teeth. Eu. and 

 Asia. B.M. 24. A common 

 plant of old gardens, and 

 sometimes escaped. The glow- 

 ing fls. and white foliage make 

 it a conspicuous plant. A hy- 

 brid of this and L. Flos-Jovis 

 is figured in G.C. III. 2, p. 101. 



6. F16.s-J6vis, Desv. Per- 

 ennial, 12-18 in., making a 1331. Lychnis Chalcedonica. 

 clump: Ivs. in a rosette, also (X%.) 

 cauline, oval-lanceolate, more 



or less clasping: fls. small ( % in. or less across), bright 

 red or rose, in a rather dense, umbel-like cluster. Eu. 

 B.M. 398 (as Agrostemma Flos-Jovis). Hardy peren- 

 nial, rarely seen in old gardens. 



cc. Plant not white-woolly, green. 



D. Petals 2-notched or 2-cleft. (Forms of No. 12 may be 

 sought here.) 

 E. Annuals. 



7. Coeli-rosa, Desv. ROSE OF HEAVEN. Fig. 1333. A 

 very floriferous annual, 12-18 in., glabrous: Ivs. linear, 

 long-acuminate and very sharp-pointed: fls. on slender 



1332. Lychnis Coronaria. 



stems, about an inch across, the petals only slightly 

 notched, rose-red, with a linear bifid scale at the throat; 

 calyx club-shaped. Mediterranean region. B.M. 295 (as 



