PRIMROSE FAMILY. Primulacese. 



A handsome wild flower, frequently culti- 

 Cowslip or vated, but confined in its natural state to the 

 Shooting star country west of Pennsylvania. The blunt 

 Dodecatheon lance-shaped deep green leaves proceed 

 Lhtma. n from tne roofc ' tliev are generally tooth- 

 April-May * ess or neai 'ly so > an( i their stems are long 

 and margined. The tall primary flower- 

 stalk is topped by a small cluster of delicate pendulous 

 light magenta, pink-magenta, or white flowers, the five 

 long corolla-divisions of which are strongly turned back- 

 ward. The exposed stamens are close-clustered grouped 

 in a conelike figure ; the anthers are long, thin, and 

 golden yellow ; the base of each is thickened and marked 

 with magenta-purple. The flower is cross-fertilized 

 by bees. According to Professor Robertson, a visiting 

 bee to reach the nectar must force its tongue between 

 the anther-tips and come more or less in contact with 

 the mature stigma ; the anthers at this period are still 

 immature. Among the visitors are the bumblebee Bom- 

 bus americanormn, the bees of the family Andrenidw, 

 and the clouded sulphur butterfly Colias philodice. 

 8-20 inches high. Moist hillsides, cliffs, open woods, 

 or prairies, from Penn. to S. Dak., south to Ga. and Tex. 

 Name from the Greek, meaning twelve gods. 



A delicate little plant found only in the 

 Dwarf Cana- . 



dian Primrose northern part of our range, bearing a fam- 

 Primuia ily resemblance to the yellow English 



Mistassinica Primrose. The light green leaves are 

 p ^ magenta " blunt lance-shaped, tapering to a distinct 

 June-July stem, thin, green on both sides, rarely 

 with a slightly mealy appearance beneath , 

 and shallow-toothed. The pale magenta-pink or lighter 

 pink corolla is five-lobed, bluntly scallop-tipped, and 

 stained with yellow in the centre (sometimes the yellow 

 is absent). The few flowei's are clustered at the top of 

 the long slender stalk. This species is apt to intergrade 

 with Primula farinosa, a taller one, with leaves white- 

 mealy beneath (at least when young), and flowers with 

 a more cuniform lobe, borne in thicker clusters. Con- 

 fined to moist situations; Me., central N. Y., and 

 Canada. 



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