CINQUEFOILS 181 
The Potentillas are nearly allied to the Fragarias, or 
Strawberries, and have very similar flowers; they are 
chiefly distinguished by the character of the receptacle upon which the 
fruits (achenes) are developed. In Potentilla this is small and dry, but 
in Fragaria it is large and juicy. Most of the British species are neat and 
pretty, and in the early days of gardening in this country were probably 
more cultivated than they are now; but more than two hundred and fifty 
years ago we began to introduce exotic species. The first of these was P. 
grandiflora from Siberia (1640), and P. recta from South Europe in 1648, 
followed in 1680 by P. monspeliensis from France, and P. opaca from 
South Europe. The year 1822 saw the introduction of three good species _ 
from Himalaya—P. atrosanguinea, P. nepalensis, and P. splendens. In 
cultivation many hybrids have been produced, chiefly by crossing 
atrosanguinea and P. nepalensis, and these are in greater request than 
the original species. : 
Sieeati pede pertins POTENTILLA ALBA (white). Stems weak, trailing; the 
lower leaves of five leaflets, the upper with three. Flowers 
nearly an inch across, white with an orange ring near the centre; 
February to August. Native of the European Alps. 
P. ATROSANGUINEA (dark-blood.) Silvery Cinquefoil. Stems hairy, 
branching, about 2 feet high. Leaves trefoils; the leaflets saw-toothed, 
and covered with silvery down beneath. Flowers 1} to 2 inches across, 
of a beautiful dark crimson colour; May to July. Plate 85. 
P. comarum (arbutus-like). Marsh Cinquefoil. Stems more or less 
creeping, purple-brown. Leaflets five to seven, pinnately arranged, 
coarsely saw-toothed, pale beneath; stipules large. Petals dark purple- 
brown, smaller than the purplish sepals; June and July. Fruits many 
achenes, disposed on a crimson, dry, spongy cone, like the fruit of 
Arbutus. A native of our bogs and marshes. 
P. rruTICOSA (shrubby). Stem shrubby, with flaking bark, 2 to 4 
feet high. Leaflets three or five, lance-shaped, margins turned back, and 
untoothed; hairy. Flowers few, 14 inch across, rich yellow, in terminal 
cymes; June and July. Bracts lance-shaped. Native of Britain. — 
P. NEPALENSIS (native of Nepal). Very similar to P. atrosanguined, 
differing chiefly in the character of the radical leaves, which have five 
leaflets instead of three. Flowers in June and July. 
_P. pyrenaica (Pyrenean). Stems 1 to 1} foot. Radical leaves 
long-stalked, with oblong leaflets, toothed only towards the tips; stem- 
leaves short-stalked, three- to five-lobed. Flowers large, deep yellow; 
petals very round, overlapping ; June to August. 
‘P. RUPESTRIS (growing on rocks). Stems 1 to 2 feet, branched. 
I.—5 
History. 
