146 FAMILIAR GARDEN FJ.OWERH. 



rejected his view, and tlius tlie}' were made to rank as 

 species. Now, however, the view ot Linnieus once more 

 Irt'evails, and we tind no difficulty in acceptini^ it. Oc- 

 casionally a common primrose will assume the cowslip and 

 oxlip mode of flowering', the common stem rising above 

 the leaves and displaying- all the flowers as members of an 

 umbel. And on the other hand, oxlips and cowslips will 

 occasionally produce short stems with long -[jeduncles, so 

 tliat tile flowers appear singly. In the garden the varia- 

 tions that occur are of the most interesting nature, and in- 

 structivelj' illustrate the speculations of the botanists. 



The primrose is a hedg'ebank flower, loving woods, 

 partial shade, and a moist soil. The cowslip is a jiasture 

 flower, loving a somewhat dry soil and full exposure. It 

 has small and comparatively unattractive Howers, which, 

 however, are capable of remarkable modifications when 

 taken in hand by the florist, for the cowslip doubiless is 

 fke parent of the polyanthus, and some intermediate form.s 

 that find favour in gardens. The o\lip is very closely 

 allied to the cowslip, but differs in having a l^roader and 

 flatter flower. As a wilding it is usually met with in more 

 luxuriant pastures than the cowslip; it loves moisture, but 

 does not thrive in the shade, where the primrose is usually 

 at home. As a garden plant it requires a rich soil, and it 

 suffers mucli if very dry at the root for any length of time 

 in high summer. Consequently frame cultui-e suits the 

 better kinds more thoroughly than border culture, because 

 frame plants obtain more constant attention tlian those in 

 borders, and the regular supplies of water through the 

 summer tend very much to insure the rich and aljundant 

 bloom tliat renders these plants so delightFul in the spring. 



As woodland and mixed border jslants the jirimroses and 



