Spi'ing Flowers. g 



perfection. It is sometimes called forget-me-not ; but the plant to which 

 that name rightfully belongs is of a different genus. 



Doronicnm Caucasicum is widely different from any of those named 

 above. It is a composite flower ; that is, formed like a single aster, or a 

 white-weed of the meadows : but it is of the brightest yellow, and, blooming 

 in large clumps, makes a gay show in the garden. 



Anemone Pulsatilla is one of the best of spring flowers. It is of a bluish 

 purple, star-shaped when fully open, and resting upon a tuft of finely-cut 

 leaves. It has proved perfectly hardy here ; but, whether it would do so in 

 all other situations of this latitude, we are not prepared to say. Probably 

 it would be winter-killed in a wet, cold soil : in a moderately dry one, it 

 may safely be trusted. 



The Vinca, or periwinkle, improperly called the myrtle, — a name which 

 belongs to plants very different, — is too well known to need description. 

 Besides the common single blue species, there is a double blue variety 

 and a pure white one, both very good. There are also varieties with 

 variegated leaves ; the one marked with yellow streaks and shadings, the 

 other with white. All these belong to the species Vinca minor, which has 

 the excellent qualities of perfect hardiness, and of growing in the shade of 

 trees, where the deep glossy green of its neat foliage will serve to carpet 

 bare earth where little else will live ; but, to make it bloom in perfection, 

 you must give it sun and air. There is another species, Vinca major, 

 equally attractive, but much less hardy. A New-England winter com- 

 monly kills it to the earth, leaving the roots alive ; so that the plant 

 grows again in the following spring. The variegated variety of Vinca major 

 is very striking. Its large leaves are shaded with white, which, in con- 

 trast with their rich green, makes it one of the best of variegated plants. 

 It can be grown out of doors by being covered with leaves and boards in 

 winter. 



The Aubrietias are early flowers not much known here, but exceedingly 

 pretty. Several circular tufts of them, as large as a foot-cushion, are now 

 a dense mass of purple bloom, almost hiding the foliage from sight. They 

 have been in their places for four or five years, improving in beauty every 

 spring. 



Diclytra cucullaria is a native plant, smaller and far more delicate than 



VOL. 1. 2 



