November 26, 1835. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
467 
principal marks are its leaves not being glutinous, its smaller bracts, 
and differently coloured flowers. The leaves of Huteri are spatu 
late, with eleven to fifteen broad triangular teeth somewhat thick¬ 
ened at the tips, the middle one being longer than the others. The 
upper part of the flower-stalk is slightly glutinous, the two or 
three oblong bracts being broad and almost covering the calyces. 
The flowers are if anything larger than either the parents, violet- 
coloured, as in Viola odorata. It is thriving well with us in a peaty 
soil well mixed with small pieces of granite. It is found at various 
places in the Tyrol, but not over-plentiful in numbers. It flowers 
during April. 
P. integrifolia, L .—Although a comparatively common plant 
both on the Pyrenees, Northern Italy, &c., where it studs the 
ground wherever it finds a bare slope in great profusion, it is not 
often seen in perfection in English gardens. In the majority of 
places it is generally found dwindling rather than increasing in 
strength, which we believe in a great measure to be due to insuffi¬ 
ciency of moisture and free drainage ; for when grown on the flat, 
well drained, and too rapid evaporation prevented by thickly 
Fig. 71.—Primula involucrata (P. Munroi). 
strewing the ground with pebbles, it flowers with great freedom. 
Though its increase is anything but rapid, it is in excellent health, 
which is one step towards it. A dwarf-growing plant, nestling 
close to the ground, and rarely with anything of a stem ; leaves 
crowded in little rosettes, oblong elliptic, slightly dilated at the 
base, quite entire, and having a narrow cartilaginous margin in 
some cases and—notably in plants from the Albula Pass Engadine 
—with a few hairs ; whitish underneath, and dull, not shining as in 
spectabilis on the upper surface. Scapes short, not more than an 
inch, bearing two or three lilac-purple flowers, broader than the 
length of the tube ; calyx of ovate blunt sepals, surpassed by the 
narrow bracts. It was first introduced by Baron Sigismund von 
Zois of Laybach, and flowered in 1792 by Mr. Loddiges. It flowers 
in April. Lehman has figured a remarkable variety with toothed 
leaves, which we have not seen in cultivation. Syn., P. Candolle- 
ana, Rch. 
P. involucrata, Wall (fig. 71, reduced from plate 15, vol. xxxiii. 
of the “Botanical Register’’).—One of the most charming, and 
perhaps the commonest in gardens, of all the Himalayan Primroses. 
It was, we believe, first collected by Captain Munro at an altitude 
of about 12,000 feet above sea level, and owing to its high elevation 
perfectly hardy with us even in severe winters. It ripens seed 
with great freedom, and may be raised in almost any quantity, and 
if there is a possibility of any of the Himalayan Primulas natural¬ 
ising themselves with us this is no doubt the one, the bed in which 
we had them growing last year being thick a month or two ago with 
seedlings. It prefers a free rich soil, where it will increase with 
great rapidity, apparently ummindful of shade or sunshine. As 
the leaves mostly die down during the resting season, leaving little 
buds, these had better be protected from birds, &c., as their scraping 
often damages them. Where fairly well established they flower all 
through the summer, and a large patch of their elegant and grace¬ 
fully drooping sweetly scented flowers is a welcome sight either in 
the rockery or border. The leaves are 1 to 3 inches long, oval or 
oblong, slightly cordate at the base, and narrowed into a long wiry 
stalk. Leaves entire at the margins, rarely crenated, and free of 
meal. Scapes slender, often about a foot long, terminated with a 
loose head of from three to six drooping white flowers, about an 
inch in diameter with deep lobes, and a yellowish or orange eye ; 
bracts linear, surrounding the base of the petioles, reflexed at the 
base, which is often bifid ; calyx tubular, slightly inflated, and 
prominently three-ribbed. P. Munroi, Hort ., is given as a synonym 
of the above, and as there is a variety in cultivation with lilac or 
lilac-tinted flowers, and as the name is largely in use in gardens it 
will perhaps save confusion to preserve the name Munroi in a 
varietal sense, as the type has been described in the Indian Flora 
as having white flowers. It is figured as Munroi in the “ Botanical 
Register,” 33, t. 15.—D. 
PERPETUAL OR SPINACH BEET. 
This is proving a most valuable vegetable at the present time with 
us, as were it not for the above variety no Spinach could be had, with us 
at least, and I douht if there are not many others in the same fi ?ld. The 
Prickly Spinach is very backward owing to the dry weather in late summer 
and autumn. The seed lay a long time in the ground before germination 
took place, and when it did it was very slow. The Perpetual is not con¬ 
sidered so good flavoured as the ordinary Spinach, but if a little extra 
attention is paid to the cooking it would go unnoticed at the table by 
many of the less keen judges. It appears strange that such an easily 
grown plant shouli be so little known amongst gardeners, as many have 
exclaimed when passing through the garden here, “ What is that you 
have there?” when the reply given was Spinach Beef. Here Spinach is 
most appreciated in early spring and in the autumn and winter. When 
other choice vegetables are plentiful in summer Spinach is overlooked; 
this is to our advantage, as the ordinary varieties behave very indifferently 
on our soil, and I have known the same to be the case in other gardens. 
It is common in many places to see this vegetable assuming wonderful 
size, requiring much thinning to do it justice, but it is not so with us. 
We have tried artificial manures, lime, salt, wood ashes, soot, horse 
and cow manures, but all to no purpose in obtaining a luxuriant crop 
of Spinach. In future it is our intention to sow the round variety 
for early spring crops, and the Perpetual for autumn and winter supplier. 
Our seed of the latter variety was sown from the second week in May to 
the middle of June, and we have been able to p ; ck quantities of leaves 
for some time ; in fact, we could have picked all the summer had the 
demand rendered it necessary, and we hope to continue it for a long time 
yet to come. When this variety is grown strongly the stems can be 
cooked and used like Seakale ; but I have only known it used as such in 
one or two instances, yet I see no reason why it should not become an 
established rule.—S. B. 
CHRYSANTHEMUMS AT THE AQUARIUM. 
There were many things which gave me an interest in the National 
Chrysanthemum Society’s Show last week. It has, in its constitution and 
practical working, gone so thoroughly on the lines of the National Rose 
Society, that, as imitation is the most flattering, I cou'd not but feel 
flattered that our plans, which I had so large a share in formulating, were 
considered worthy of adoption, and I was anxious to know how they 
worked. The Secretary, too, was the son of one whose kind and genial 
character one always recollects with pleasure, and I was enabled to visit 
the show in company with one who thoroughly appreciates the flower, and 
himself grows it largely. All these things made the day a very agreeable 
one. Mr. Holmes told me that the National Rose plan worked uncom¬ 
monly well, and that he attributed a good deal of their success to their 
having adopted it. 
I had heard a good deal of the season being late, and that one was 
not to expect the same excellence or quantity as had been seen in former 
years, but there was no evidence of falling off in either respect. The 
entries, I was told, were more numerous than ever, and if flowers are to 
be had finer and larger than those I saw, it is a marvel, as indeed many 
of them were ; and here let me say I had a very pleasant surprise in 
seeing the wonderful blooms from my friend Canon Hodgs m i garden. 
I question very much if his boxes of twelve were surpassed by any in the 
Show, and had a prize been offered for the best box irrespective of 
numbers, he would have stood a good chance. There was one great draw¬ 
back. The weather wa«, to use a term expressed to me, “beastly.” A 
thick fog was over everything, worse, I believe, on Thursday than on 
Wednesday. The Aquarium is a bad place fer an exhibition, and on such 
a day it was very bad. However, we had an opportunity of seeing it 
before the fog was very thick, and although it dulled the colours, yet wa 
got a pretty good idea of them. 
