BRITISH PLANTS. 
157 
otanical spirit. It is with their ornamental qualities, their capacity for improve- 
ient, and capability of contributing to the interest and effect of a garden, that we 
ave now to deal. And who that has any knowledge of the spontaneous productions 
f British soil — the wild furniture of the hedge-rows, hills, and moors — will deny 
iieir merits and adaptability for such purpose ? 
Although, in the scattered and incongruous manner in which plants are usually 
)und distributed in a state of nature, many British species individually possessed of 
owers of considerable beauty and attractiveness fail to create a striking appearance, 
i^e cannot in all cases, on a strict consideration, attribute this inferiority to the 
xotics of our gardens to any superior inherent excellence which the latter possess, 
he various modes by which the cultivator ameliorates the character, and adds to the 
fleet of the plants of other countries, will tell with equal certainty, and to a 
arresponding extent, on those of our own. To go no further, even, than to afford 
lem the advantage of being collected into a mass, we need seek no other proof of 
heir showiness than a reference to some of those species which are more commonly 
let with naturally growing somewhat compactly in large numbers, of which we may 
istance the yellow clusters of Daffodils (Narcissus pseudo-narcissus), the fine blue 
towers of the wild Hyacinth ( Scilla nutans ), so prevalent in our woods in spring, 
nd the snowy patches of Saxifraga granulata, which adorn many of our mountain 
lastures. 
Every gardener is familiar with the dazzling effect of a bed of scarlet Verbenas, 
nd the comparative poverty of their appearance as single specimens scattered here 
nd there ; and many occupiers of the parterre, separately less beautiful than the 
T erbena, when planted in sufficient numbers and proximity to supply a moderate 
nbroken breadth of colour, contribute an effect that could scarcely be imagined from 
be character of individual specimens. To the neglect then of extending the system 
f grouping adopted with exotics to native species, we may safely and unreservedly 
scribe their less conspicuous effect. It has been too much the practice where 
ollections of indigenous plants have been cultivated, to adopt a systematic scientific 
rrangement, and consequently one or two specimens alone of each kind have been 
'reserved together. Now, although we do not mean to dispute the utility or oppose 
he plan of planting collections expressly for a botanical end, we must nevertheless 
bject to such arrangements being referred to, as a test of the capacity of British 
lants for contributing an ornamental feature to the pleasure-ground, or adopted as a 
deans of creating it to the exclusion of other and more effective plans. 
Assuming the system of bringing together a mass of the same species as the 
first and most important step towards enhancing the value attached to native plants 
s an addition to the garden, we will now proceed to the consideration of the next 
aatter that we have proposed to treat upon in the present article — their capacity 
dr improvement. And here we have to regret that, whilst the florist has been 
ssiduously directing his skill and knowledge to the acquirement of an improved 
! ace of flowers, by mingling the characters of different plants with a view to concern 
