OBSERVATIONS ON INDIAN PRIMULAS. 



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remarkably little. In its lower altitudes the flowers are smaller and 

 borne on short stalks and are usually more numerous. In its alpine 

 conditions it has larger and fewer flowers, and the whole plant becomes 

 stunted. The flowers are often also deeper coloured, or there is an albino 

 condition in which the petals become almost white and the annulus 

 around its mouth orange instead of lemon-yellow. In Sikkim I observed 

 that the calyx had longer teeth than seen in the Simla form, and that the 

 mouth of the corolla was also greenish-yellow. I am satisfied other 

 botanists will confirm me in these observations, hence I think we are 

 justified in putting faith in the characters mentioned as being closely 

 associated with the life of at least this particular species. But when I 

 add that all the species of my section denticulata manifest a remarkable 

 constancy, then I think the further conviction may be accepted — namely, 

 that they form a natural and useful assemblage. The word " useful " 

 reminds me that in Bashahr the flowers of P. denticulata are regularly 

 eaten in salad, and the powder of the roots is held to be of value in killing 

 leeches. Professor Balfour informs me that in its many forms (alba, 

 rosea, purpurea, cashmeriana, maxima, &c.) it is luxuriant and sows 

 itself freely in Edinburgh. 



Space will not permit me to discuss the extensive assemblage of 

 minute species that fall into this position. The earliest known, and 

 I believe the only one hitherto successfully grown in Europe, is P. 

 minutissima. This is a North- West form, being found from Kashmir 

 to Garhwal and Kumaon. I first made acquaintance with it while 

 struggling with the final ascent of the Sauch pass at 15,000 feet. Snow 

 lay on the ground here and there, filling all the lower undulations, but on 

 the exposed surfaces I was delighted to find our little friend sparkling 

 alongside of an equally minute yellow-flowered Ranunculaceous plant. 

 This gave me the opportunity of resting on the steepest parts of the 

 ascent without having to admit to my stalwart coolies that I needed 

 repeated rests. The whole plant does not exceed an inch in height, but 

 its beautiful purple-blue flowers with yellow throats (occasionally com- 

 pletely white) are fully half an inch in length. Occasionally they are 

 solitary, more often two or three are placed on the extremity of an 

 extremely short peduncle, the flowers being sessile within the involucre of 

 bracts. Sometimes it is seen to throw out runners, but usually two or 

 three of the tiny little plants form a small cluster. P. Heydei is a slightly 

 larger species with coarsely pinnately serrate leaves and creeping stems, 

 with long ascending scapes that bear small heads of beautiful blue 

 flowers ; Duthie found it in Baltistan. In many herbaria this species 

 has been confused with P. minutissima, but the universal presence of the 

 scape should obviate such an error. 



These, then, are the types of the North-West Himalayan capitate 

 species, but there is an Eastern group that must now be mentioned. The 

 best known example doubtless is P. capitata. This is closely allied to P. 

 denticulata, but is easily recognised and preserves its distinctive features 

 when cultivated. The scape (which appears with the fully formed leaves, 

 not before, as in P. denticulata) rises to a height of a foot or more and 

 bears a head of dark blue narrow bell-shaped flowers, the outermost 

 whorls of which are pendant. It occurs in Sikkim at altitudes 



