178 THE DEPTFORD PINK, 



sundrie places, whereby it greatly encreaseth; whereupon doth 

 growe little reddish flowers. The roote is small, tough, and long 



lasting."— Herbal, p. 476. 



It will at once be obvious that this description is entirely 

 inapplicable to D. Armeria, while it agrees very well with D. 

 deltoides.' Johnson, as has been already said, adds a figure of 

 D. Armeria, but simply reproduces Gerard's description. This is 

 the more strange as I think there can be no doubt that he knew 

 the plant. In his Mercurius Botanicus (1634) he correctly cites 

 this figure as a synonym for Lobel's Armeria syl. altera caliculo 

 foliolis fastigiatis cincto, and adds, " collibus et nonnullis pasc^s." 



Parkinson (Theatrum, 1640, pp. 1838-9) again describes D. 

 deltoides, — apparently in two forms, — and correctly points out that 

 Johnson's figure does not represent his plant. His description 



runs thus : 



" Caryophyllus pratensis noster major. — Our greater wild field 

 Pincke. — Wee have in many places of our Land growing wild a 

 small kinde of Pincke, as I may so call it, and especially by Deptford 

 and Rederiffe, which spreadeth much oftentimes, and rooting by 

 the branches as it groweth with small short greene leaves next the 

 ground, and by couples on the stalks, with small reddish Pincke- 

 like flowers on the toppes. Of this sort also there is a lesser, 

 growing among the thicke grasse in our medowes about London, 

 namely towards Totnam Court, whose roote is so small and threddy, 

 that it will not abide transplanting, having very slender stalkes, 

 and smaller, shorter, and greener leaves set thereon then in the 

 former, the flowers also are smaller, and of a cleare red shining 

 colour sometimes, but one of a stalke, and sometimes more espe- 

 cially under hedges and bushes that may defend it by the shadow. 

 Of neither of both these have I any true figure to exhibite here and 

 I am loath to insert Master Johnsons figure, because it doth not 

 truely expresse it, as also that it is Lobels figure of a small Armeria, 

 which hath leaves among the flowers, which these have not." 



The two plants have sometimes been wrongly identified by the 

 authors of local floras. The usually accurate Flora of Middlesex 

 cites one of Parkinson's plants for D. Armeria, as also Merrett's 

 locality of " Tuddington field." But in each case D. deltoides, well 

 known as a Teddington plant,* was, I think, intended ; Merrett 

 cites both Johnson's figure and Parkinson's synonym. 



We are so used to regarding D. Armeria as the Deptford Pink 

 that probably no change in the English name would be either 

 necessary or desirable. The only evidence, however, as it seems 

 to me, that this species ever grew near Deptford is that afforded by 

 Johnson's figure ; whether this is sufficient, the compilers of the 

 long- desired Flora of Kent will have to determine, for at the present 

 time it is not likely to occur there. 



* As an iUustration of the way in which errors occur in transcribing, it may 

 be noted that in the British Herbarium of the British Museum is a specimen 

 labeUed, "near Paddington Dock, Surrey," — "Teddington Lock" being the 

 locality intended. 



