5.74l Cultwe of the Violet. 



oblige my friends ; and the second, to promote a taste for my 

 favourite flower. I also used my influence with the Perth- 

 shire Horticultural Society to get it introduced into their 

 schedule as a prize article ; and the consequence is, that this 

 spring and autumn flower is, in this quarter, now meeting with 

 merited attention. 



One of my original breeders, which is called Brown's 

 Violet, is a fine improved variety of Fiola tricolor ; upper 

 and side petals deep purple tinged with carmine ; lower 

 petal brown, with a slight yellow laced border ; eye yellow, 

 permanent, and well marked; average length of flower, an 

 inch and three tenths ; breadth, an inch and one tenth. This 

 favourite is difficult to preserve, it being a sort of biennial ; 

 but its existence may be prolonged by cuttings or layers. Its 

 seedlings maintain a near family likeness. The flowers have 

 generally a sweet smell. 



My other original breeder was the ^iola grandiflora, of 

 which I still retain the original plant by cuttings. It does 

 not seed very freely, and its seedlings are liable to sport. An 

 improved variety has been obtained with the parental colours, 

 but a more regular flower, and rather larger than its parent : 

 it forms almost a circle of nearly two inches diameter. Its 

 upper petals are purple ; side and lower petals light blue 

 tinged with purple ; eye small, yellow, and permanently 

 distinct. From this I very early obtained a beautiful large 

 flower, which a friend, to whom I gave the first plant I had 

 to spare, out of compliment named Gorrie's Superb. From 

 this many beautiful seedling varieties have been produced. 

 The upper petals are a fine dark velvety purple; side and 

 lower petals deep ultramarine blue; the two side petals 

 deeply shaded above the eye, which is light orange, in the 

 centre radiate, and the rays light yellow at the extremities. 

 The flower measures, at an average, two inches and two 

 tenths every way. The original plant is still preserved, 

 and very extensively distributed ; from it has been pro- 

 duced here, last season, Queen Adelaide, named (without 

 asking permission) as an expression of loyalty. It is some- 

 thing like the former in its upper petals; the others have the 

 blue brighter, the shades deeper, the eye, more compact, and 

 altogether it is reckoned a finer flower than my Superb. 

 Another, raised at the same time, and from the same original, 

 is called Miss Drummond : it has a strong resemblance 

 to the Superb, but all its petals are of a deeper velvet purple, 

 the eye is yellow, radiate, surrounded by a marked light blue 

 halo: it is longer-shaped, and rather less, than Queen Ade- 

 laide. One named Lady Murray Threipland, is a beautiful 



