THE DAY BEFORE SPRING 49 



than in dry, sunny places. Here we have only two kinds : 

 Galanthus nivalis, the kind ordinarily planted, and the 

 great G. Elwesii, giant of the family and much taller and 

 more substantial. 



Very similar to Galanthus is Leucojum vernum, the 

 Spring Snowflake, which blooms nearly as early and 

 sheds a fine fragrance from its drooping green-tipped 

 flowers. It grows from eight to ten inches tall and 

 loves a sandy loam. 



The first Crocus to burst bubble-like from the earth 

 behind our garden walls is C. Imperati, a wild species of 

 great charm, wearing without the tenderest buff colour, 

 lightly feathered with rosy lavender, while within is pure 

 lavender against which the orange stigmata show hotly. 

 They grow in a south corner beneath some bushes and 

 are treasured, for they bloom always when I am most 

 impatient for the spring and stay my eagerness as the 

 Snowdrops never do. Despite their frail appearance, 

 they will stand the wind and rains of March trium- 

 phantly and last in beauty for a long time. Next to bloom 

 here is C. Susianus, the Cloth-of-gold Crocus, in a gold- 

 lined brown jacket. This is a much less rare and elegant 

 person than Imperati, but is so instinct with warmth 

 and life that I adore its burning trails along two borders. 

 Another early-flowering Crocus is the Scotch, C. Biflorus, 

 gleaming white lined with pale purple. Then come the 

 great splashes of colour which proclaim the Dutch 

 Crocuses valiant purple and orange, clean lavender, 



