OP ORNAMENTAL EXOTIC PLANTS. 
207 
GENUS II. 
PRIMULA Lin. THE PRIMROSE. 
Un. Syst. PENTANDRIA MONOGYNIA. 
Generic Character. — Calyx five-toothed. Corolla salver-shaped ; tube cylindrical. Stamens five ; filaments very short ; anthers oblong- 
oval, included within the tube. Capsules one-celled ; apex ten-toothed. 
Desceiption, &c. — The species of the genus Primula are very numerous, and most of them are very 
ornamental. By far the greater part, however, are hardy plants, for even when they are natives of hot countries, 
they generally grow on the tops of mountains where the climate is temperate. The only species which is properly 
an inhabitant of the greenhouse is the Chinese Primrose. The word Primula is derived from the Latin 
primus, in allusion to the flowers being among the first that blossom in the spring. 
1.— PRIMULA SINENSIS Hook. THE CHINESE PRLMROSE. 
Synonyme. — P. prsenitens Ker. 
Engravings. — Bot. Mag., t. 2564 ; Bot. Reg., t. 539 ; Lodd. Bot. 
Cab., t. 916 ; and om-jiy. 3, in PI. 42. 
Specific Character. — Leaves all radical, cordate-ovate, many- 
lobed ; lobes dentate. Petioles longer than the leaves, and as well as 
the whole plant covered with a soft pubescence. Scapes several from 
the same root. Flowers umbellate ; umbels frequently twice prolife- 
rous, making the flowers verticillate. Calyx conical, inflated at the base. 
Description, &c. — This species was first introduced by T. C. Palmer, Esq., of Bromley, in Kent, a gentleman 
in whose greenhouses some of our most beautiful Camellias and other Chinese plants were blossomed for the 
first time in England, the plants in question having been introduced by Mr. Palmer’s brother-in-law. Captain 
Rawes. The Chinese Primrose, it is stated in the “ Botanical Magazine,” was at first considered very shy in 
producing seed, but it was found after a little experience that this was occasioned by the pollen not becoming 
readily detached from the anthers, and that when the flower was blown into abundance of seeds ripened. At 
present, innumerable varieties have been raised, some of which are white and others of different tinges of lilac ; 
some of all colours are double, and many of these are beautifully fringed at the edges. The plants require only 
the ordinary treatment of greenhouse plants ; they thrive best in rich loam with a large pi’oportion of sand, and 
they require to be well watered, but not over the crown, as it is apt to rot. The species is a native of China, 
whence it was introduced in 1820. 
CHAPTER LI. 
PLUMBAGINACE^ Undl. 
Essential Character. — Calyx tubular, plaited, persistent. Corolla 
of very thin texture, monopetalous, with a narrow angular tube, or of 
five petals, which have a long narrow claw. Stamens definite, opposite 
the petals ; in the monopetalous species hypogynous ; in the polypetalous 
species arising from the petals. Ovary superior, composed of five valvate 
carpels, one-celled, one-seeded. Ovule pendulous from the point of 
an umbilical cord, arising from the bottom of the cavity. Styles five. 
Stigmas five. Fruit a nearly indehiscent utricle. Seed inverted, with 
a rather small quantity of mealy albumen. 
Description, &c. — The plants belonging to this order are distinguished by the plaited calyx of the flower, and 
by the singular position of the solitary seed, which is suspended by a cord rising from the base of the ovary and 
passing over it. It is also remarkable that the ovary is only one-celled, and contains but one seed, though there 
are five stigmas. The most interesting genera in the order are Plumbago and Statice. 
