108 A HISTORY OF GARDENING IN ENGLAND 



" flowers that being strang6rs unto us, and giving the beauty 

 and bravery of their colours so early, before many of our own- 

 bred flowers, the more to entice us to their delight . . . are 

 almost in all places, with all persons, especially with the better 

 sort of the gentry of the Land," " namely Daffodils, Fritil- 

 larias, Jacinths, Saffron-flowers, Lillies, Flowerdeluces, Tulipas, 

 Anemones, French cowslips or Bears' Ears, and a number of 

 suchlike flowers, very beautiful, delightful, and pleasant." 



The number of " outlandish " flowers grown in good gardens 

 was rapidly increasing. All through this period flowers were 

 coming in, both from the Old and the New World. The 

 following are a few among the best known of these importa- 

 tions : " The Crown Imperial," both orange and yellow, and 

 varieties of the small Fritillary, then called the " Turkie, or 

 Guiniehen flower, or chequered daffodil." The hardy cycla- 

 men (europceum) ; the Lobelia cardinalis, the Passion flower 

 (Passiflora incarnata), or " Virgin climer." The Christmas 

 rose (Helleborus niger, also Niger anguitifolius and vemalis) ; the 

 common white lilac, or " pipe-tree," and syringa (Philadelphus 

 coronarius) ; also the common cotoneaster and laburnum ; 

 several species of martagon lilies ; the common yellow jasmine ; 

 the sweet-scented marvel of Peru and evening primrose, and 

 the hardy spiderworts ; the African marigold, and sunflowers 

 and larkspurs, both annual and perennial ; the snowflakes, 

 which were classed with snowdrops as " bulbous violets "! 

 and Ranunculus, " the crowfoot of Illyria " (R. illyrius) and 

 asiaticus, also Bachelor's buttons (R. plantanifolius flore-pleno 

 and aconitifolius) , from the " Alpish Mountains "; sweet Sultan, 

 (Centaur ea moschata), Dittany or Fraxinella ; Balsam im- 

 patiens ; some species of campanula, and the bright Convol- 

 vulus minor (C. bicolor). Tobacco was one of the acquisitions 

 from America. The first description of the plant in English 

 is found in John Frampton's translation of a Spanish work by 

 Nicholas Monardus (after whom the genus Monarda has been 

 named). He says it was grown " more to adornate gardens 

 with the fairnesse thereof, and to give a pleasant sight " than 

 for its medicinal properties, which he proceeds to enumerate. 

 It was said to cure wounds, headache, toothache, chilblains, 

 swellings, " griefes of the joyntes," and various internal evils, 



