304 
THE FLORIST. 
of a flower depends upon a white eye may frequently be found by 
covering it with another colour, when its charms immediately dis¬ 
appear. Thus this petal (/) is a fac-simile from a greatly admired 
variety having no other claim to notice than its centre. Another 
most important point in the florist’s flower is that it should not burn, 
that is, have the colour of the spot disfigured when exposed to the 
sun, or from the advancing season ; neither should it sport, that is, 
bring some of its petals true, others particoloured, or seifs; and an 
additional excellence is that the bloom should die well, or through¬ 
out the whole time of the plant’s flowering be equally good. Flowers 
for general purposes require less attention to many of the above points. 
Prolific bloom is indispensable, and novelty of colour is of much 
more importance than accuracy of form; large flowers also are in 
more request than the medium size. Every one who has a cultivated 
eye and taste, and who grows a select stage of Pelargoniums, has, 
no doubt, like the writer, often had a smile at seeing the worst 
flowers in his collection the most admired. 
E. Beck. 
[To be continued.] 
WINTER FLOWERS. 
I OBSERVE in your October Number a promise by Mr. Kendall to . 
give us some directions relative to the culture of the Persian Cycla¬ 
men, whose merits he paints in glowing terms. The Cyclamen is a 
great favourite of mine, and I would rather go without my Sunday’s 
dinner for a whole twelvemonth than be without this old favourite in 
my greenhouse. Much, however, as I admire this singularly beauti¬ 
ful Primwort, and delicious as is its fragrance, I am about to invite 
attention to a plant which I esteem above all win ter-flowering plants, 
viz. Daphne odora rosea. It is destitute of the showy flowers of 
the Camellia, it is true, and it does not possess that singularity of 
form which wins for the Cyclamen so many admirers; and if the eye 
alone is to be consulted, many superior plants might be named. But, 
if our sense of smell is allowed to choose, it will at once give the 
preference to this queen of perfumes, compounded by nature’s own 
hand. In my estimation it has no equal in this respect among the 
fragrant plants with which nature has so plentifully supplied us ; even 
in the shop of the perfumer, where so many odoriferous substances 
are gathered together, a sprig of this variety of Daphne will be found 
to retain its fragrance, and to be the most deliciously sweet of the 
whole. 
Its culture is extremely simple, and the amateur will do well to 
add it to his stock of plants; for sure I am that if the lady members 
of his family once inhale its soothing fragrance, they will rather tend 
it with their own hands the whole year round than not find it in 
flower during the dull months of winter. Before detailing its culture, 
however, I must premise that you obtain your plant from some 
