The Blue Hepatica. 221 



And coy Anemone, that ne'er uncloses 



Her lips, until they're blown on by the wind. 



We have found these flowers to have the most agreeable effect, 

 when the different varieties have been kept in distinct clumps, 

 the single Blue Hepatica being divided by other early flowers 

 from the red or white varieties ; and as the double Hepaticas 

 blossom about a fortnight later, they should never be mixed with 

 the single sorts, but in some situations they may form a mass 

 intermingled with the yellow hellebore or the white snowdrop, 

 giving the shrubbery the appearance of being 



-Fringed in nature's native taste, 



The hillocks dropped in nature's careless haste. 



Burns. 



The name of Hepatica for this plant is from the Greek, hepati- 

 Jcos which signifies belonging to the liver, as the form of the 

 leaf is supposed to resemble that organ. It was formerly called 

 Trinity Herb. We conclude this name was given on account 

 of its leaf, which has the appearance of three leaves united into 

 one ; hence its specific name, Triloba. The single Hepatica 

 was cultivated in the English gardens previous to the time of 

 Gerard, who also notices the double varieties, but states that they 

 are strangers to England. They were first sent from Italy by 

 Pontius, who found them growing with double flowers in Aus- 

 tria. "When flowers become double in their natural state, which 

 is but rarely the case, it is owing to some accidental circumstance 

 analogous to cultivation — such as keeping the seed out of the 

 earth beyond its due time, or its falling in situations where it has 

 not the power of perfecting its blossoms ; for a flower becomes 

 more imperfect as it is more doubled, the stamens often becom- 

 ing wholly converted into petals, as in the double Hepatica, which 

 is therefore not able to produce seed, and necessarily requires the 

 hand of cultivation to prevent them from becoming extinct. The 

 single Hepaticas produce seeds every year, and by sowing them, 

 new varieties may be obtained as in other plants. The time 

 recommended for sowing the seed is in the beginning of August. 

 They should be sown in pots or boxes filled with light earth ; 

 these should be placed so as to receive the morning sun only, 

 until October, when they may be removed into a more general 

 sunny situation. About the month of March, one of the earliest 



