236 SPRING FLOWERS. 



thousand names and descriptions; the mere name 

 serves not the cause of botany: and no description 

 on paper conveys any idea of a plant as it grows. 

 The only rule, then, is to pick up at intervals, ac- 

 cording to your fancy, and to stop when you have 

 no more ground. 



As the summer has plenty of riches, and as the 

 shrubbery makes the most of winter, it may be pro- 

 per to notice a few flowers which give beauty to the 

 spring. They are not numerous as to kinds, and 

 for effect, therefore, there must be many of each. 

 The crocus tiresome if only yellow cannot be too 

 abundant if its various hues are blended. It is 

 easily raised from seed ; its bulbs quickly multiply 

 of their own accord; and they may be bought at 

 sixpence a hundred. It is not agreeable in beds or 

 patches, but fine when set as a fringe to the flower 

 borders, and perfectly beautiful as studding to a 

 piece of smooth green sward. For this purpose 

 have a long stick with a dibble point, and to regu- 

 late the depth insert a cross bit of wood, to set the 

 foot on, three inches from the extremity. Let one 

 person perambulate the ground, making holes, and 

 another follow with two baskets, one containing a 

 thousand bulbs, and the other sifted earth or sand 

 to cover them. Hepatica or liverwort is the next 

 in value as a flower of spring. The double blue is 

 rather delicate ; the other sorts single blue, red 

 and white single or double are hardy. The root 

 is a solid turf, and the only art of propagating is to 

 divide by cutting straight down. Plant at inter- 



