Cxlff PEOCEEDINGS OF THE EOYAJL HOKTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 
hundred seedlings, ninety-nine will probably be “pin-eyed,” 
in the flowers of which the pollen is so hidden as to he almost 
inaccessible; very few indeed turn out “ thrum-eyed.” Crossing 
between P. veris and P. vulgaris (acaulis) had often been 
successfully accomplished; he was not aware that P. vulgaris 
and P. auricula had ever been crossed. There were many 
natural hybrids which had sometimes been incorrectly intro¬ 
duced as new species; for example : P. variabilis, which would 
appear to be a cross between P. officinalis and P. grandiflora ; 
so also the Himalayan forms, which varied considerably. 
Regarding the collection of Narcissi, Mr. Jennings remarked 
that there were about twenty species, all of them European; 
they also were so closely intermixed that it had become most 
difficult to determine species. This had been easily proved by 
experiment. 
Dean Herbert had stated that N. pseudo Narcissus crossed 
with N. poeticus would produce a variety of N. incomparabilis ; 
this again crossed with N. poeticus would produce the variety 
now known as N. Barri, a decided step towards the true 
“ pheasant eye.” Successive similar crossings would bring the 
true N. poeticus back again. N. poeticus had two groups of 
distinct habit: the one early flowering, the other not coming 
into bloom till a month later. The learned Dean seemed to 
have worked mainly with the former section ; but amongst the 
many followers who devoted themselves to the improvement of 
the Narcissus, two gentlemen made their mark upon the 
genus, viz., Mr. Backhouse, of Weirsdale, and Mr. Leeds, of 
Manchester, whose crossings produced the intermediate group 
already alluded to, N. Barri and subsequently N. Burbidgei, 
a closer approach to N. poeticus, but flowering a fortnight earlier, 
and N. incomp arabilis (ivhite) crossed with N. montanus afforded 
N. Leedsi. N. Maclei had never been collected, but it is so 
very distinct that it was difficult to imagine it other than a true 
species. Dean Herbert maintains that N. Sabini is a natural 
variety, but Mr. Barr says that it is a garden hybrid, which 
has been produced both in England and on the Continent by 
crossing N. Maclei with IV. bicolor; but the same cross will 
also produce N. Nelsoni, which is a compromise of N. Sabini. 
Mr. Jennings’ remarks were illustrated by flowering specimens 
of nearly every variety alluded to. 
