422 Account and Description of Spring Crocuses, $c. 



In 1826, two publications appeared on the Crocuses of Italy, 

 by Italian Botanists ; the first entitled, " Descrizione de' Zaf- 

 ferani Italiani," by Dr. Bertoloni, Professor of Botany at 

 Bologna, was printed in a collection of scientific Italian tracts ; 

 the second, by Dr. Tenore, Professor of Botany at Naples, 

 appeared as a separate work in 4to. at Naples, with the Title of 

 " Memoria sulle specie e varieta di Crochi della Flora Napoli- 

 tana." These were examined and criticised by Mr. Gay in 

 the Bulletin des Sciences Naturelles for July, 1827 (page 

 346), where the contents of both these Memoirs are very fully 

 set forth, and much information may be derived from the 

 whole. 



What I now propose to communicate will not at all I be- 

 lieve interfere with, or destroy the interest in M. Gay's pro- 

 jected Monograph. It is not my design to take any notice 

 here of the Autumnal Crocuses which we have in our Gardens ; 

 these are all originally wild, and consequently natural species; 

 whilst those Spring plants, of which I do propose to give an 

 account, may all, with the exception of Crocus pusillus and of 

 the native British C. Vernus, be considered as Garden produc- 

 tions; or if not originally so, they have been so long in culti- 

 vation as to have very much deviated from their native types ; 

 and the characters of the species, I shall have to observe on, 

 having all, except those of C. pusillus and C. Vernus, been 

 deduced from Garden plants, they will probably be found to 

 differ much from those which belong to any one of the truly 

 wild species. 



Those I propose to describe, and under which the vari- 

 eties in the Garden of the Horticultural Society have been 

 arranged, are C. Susianus, C. sulphureus, C. stellaris, C. lage- 



