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ALPINE FLOWERS FOR GARDENS 



[PART II. 



its flowers are faded, A sheltered and 

 slightly shaded position will tend to the 

 health of the plant. It is readily 

 propagated by division of the root, and is 

 a native of the Caucasus. The umbel 

 is many-flowered, the blooms larger than 

 those of P. denticulate, borne about 6 or 

 7 inches high ; the leaves woolly 

 beneath and toothed. 



Primula auricula (Auricula). The 

 parent of the Auricula of which Parkin- 

 son, writing more than two hundred years 

 ago, enumerates twenty-one varieties, and 

 says there were many more ; and in 1792 

 the Catalogue of Maddoek, the florist, 

 named nearly five hundred sorts. In our 

 own time these have come to be almost 

 forgotten as florists' flowers. P. auricula 

 lives in a wild state on the high mountain 

 ranges of Central Europe and the Cau- 

 casian Chain, and is one of the many 

 Primulas which rival the Gentians, 

 Pinks, and Forget-me-nots, in making 

 the flora of Alpine fields so beautiful 

 Possessing a vigorous constitution, and 

 sporting into a goodly number of varieties 

 when raised from seed, it attracted early 

 attention from lovers of flowers ; its more 

 striking variations were perpetuated and 

 classified, and thus it became a "florists' 

 flower." I do not desire to approach the 

 subject from the florists' point of view, 

 believing that to be a narrow and to some 

 extent a base one ; so much so, indeed, 

 that I cannot regret that their practices 

 and laws about the flower have taken but 

 weakly root. To lay down mechanical 

 rules to guide our appreciation of flowers 

 must for ever be the shallowest of vanities. 

 But, without seeking to conform or select 

 them according to mechanical rules, we 

 may preserve and enjoy all their most 

 attractive deviations from the wild forms 

 of the species. 



The varieties of cultivated Auriculas 

 may be roughly thrown into two classes : 

 First, self -coloured varieties, with the outer 

 and larger portion of the flower of one 

 colour or shaded, the centre or eye being 

 white or yellow, and the flowers and other 

 parts usually smooth and not powdery ; 

 second, those with flowers and stems thickly 

 covered with a white powdery matter, or 

 <* paste." The handsomest of the not- 



powdery kinds, known by the name of 

 "alpines," to distinguish them from 

 the florists' varieties, are the hardiest. 

 The florists' favourites are always readily 

 distinguished by the dense mealy matter 

 with which the parts of the flower are 

 covered. They are divided by florists 

 into four sections : green-edged, grey- 

 edged, white-edged, and selfs. In the 

 green-edged varieties, the gorge or throat 

 of the flower is usually yellow or 

 yellowish ; then comes a ring varying 

 in width of white powdery matter, 

 surrounded by another of some dark 

 colour, and beyond this a green edge, 

 which is sometimes half an inch in width. 

 The outer portion of the flower is really 

 and palpably a monstrous development 

 of the petal into a leaf-like substance, 

 identical in texture with that of the leaves. 

 The "grey-edged" have also the margin 

 of a green leafy texture, but so thickly 

 covered with powder that this is not 

 distinctly seen. This, too, is the case 

 with the "white-edged," the differences 

 being in the thickness and hue of the 

 " paste," or powdery matter. In fact, the 

 terms green-edged, grey-edged, and white- 

 edged, are simply used to express slight 

 differences between flowers all having an 

 abnormal development of the petals into 

 leafy texture. It is a curious fact that 

 between the white and the grey the line 

 of demarcation is imaginary, and Wh 

 these classes occasionally produce green- 

 edged flowers. The "selfs" are really 

 distinct, in having the outer and larger 

 portion of the corolla of the ordinary 

 texture, a ring of powdery matter sur- 

 rounding the eye. 



The enumeration and classification of 

 such slight differences merely tend to 

 throw obstacles in the way of the flower 

 being generally grown and enjoyed in 

 gardens. By all means let the florists 

 maintain them, but those who merely 

 want to embellish their gardens with 

 some of the prettier varieties, need not 

 trouble themselves with named sorts at 

 all. One fact concerning the florists' 

 kinds should, however, be borne in mind, 

 they are the most delicate and difficult 

 to cultivate. The curious developments 

 of powdery matter, green margins, etc., 



