By Joseph Sabine, Esq. 



447 



are then spreading ; as they elongate they are waved near 

 their end ; this appearance is caused by the compression of 

 their tops by the leaf sheaths soon after their points emerge. 

 The germen is cream coloured, sometimes marked at the top 

 with six dark coloured spots ; the tube is white, becoming 

 brown at the top, and is there marked with six lines which 

 run into the petals. The petals are large, obovate, nearly 

 equal, bright yellow, opening, but not so much so as to be- 

 come stellate. They form a fine and shewy flower. The outer 

 petals are marked on the back with feathered olive green 

 lines, the centre one most conspicuous, and extending to the 

 top of the petals, the two next run considerably up the petal, 

 but are very feint and broken, and sometimes do not appear 

 at all ; the others being two to three on each side are short, 

 pale and narrow, the mark at the base of the inner petals 

 may be described as one short feather, the centre part of 

 which extends along the petal. 



The anthers are pale yellow, and small, producing but 

 little pollen ; the stigmas are also pale yellow, and very short. 

 The bulb is large, depressed, slightly angular, and is covered 

 over with a light brown striated skin. 



6. Crocus lacteus. Cream coloured Crocus. 



1. C. lacteus concolor. 



2. penicillatus. 



The two varieties of this species are the least common of 

 any of the cultivated Crocuses ; some few years ago they were 

 very rare indeed, and are now only to be found in the gardens 

 of Collectors of curious bulbs. They have hitherto been consi- 

 dered as varieties of Crocus lagenaeflorus, but the circumstance 

 of their having only a single bract, as noticed in the Synoptical 



