May 12, 1888. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
581 
hence called Plieasant’s-eye. It is only fit for the 
annual borders, but that under notice is a real gem for 
the Alpine garden. A fine lot of it was flowering freely 
the other day in Mr. T. S. Ware’s nursery, Hale Farm, 
Tottenham. 
Summer Snowflake. 
Although this may be reckoned a British plant from 
its occurrence in the south of England, yet it is rare in 
a wild state, but widely diffused in gardens, especially 
where hardy plants are in favour. Next to Leucojum 
vernum this must take rank from an ornamental point 
of view, and is only less valuable because it flowers in 
summer when flowers are more plentiful, whereas the 
former comes early in spring when hardy flowers are by 
no means abundant. A wealth of leaves of a fine deep 
green are produced from the bulbs, out of which spring 
the nodding or arching flower scapes bearing a number of 
snow-white pendent blooms, with a green blotch at the 
apex of each segment—a peculiarity common to all the 
three known species. Nearly allied to this is L. 
Hernandezii, generally known in gardens under the 
name of L. pulchellum ; but it is very much inferior to 
that under notice, namely, L. festivum. The foliage 
of the former is of a much darker, shining green colour, 
with smaller flowers. As a garden plant, however, it 
is inferior to the Summer Snowflake. 
Ranunculus amplexicaulis. 
A Buttercup is rather a common name to apply to this 
chaste spring-flowering plant, besides which the flowers 
are not yellow, as in the Buttercups of our meadows, 
but pure white, and therefore beautifully adapted for 
cut-flower purposes. Being dwarf and compact in 
habit, it is suitable either for the front line of an 
herbaceous border or for the Alpine garden. The 
glaucous tint of the stem-clasping leaves also constitutes 
a distinct feature of this plant, and contrasts favourably 
with other kinds of vegetation. There are many white- 
flowered Ranunculi that we should like to see more 
frequently grown on the rockery, being specially suited 
for rather moist but well-exposed situations. R. am¬ 
plexicaulis inhabits the Pyrenees and Western Alps. 
There are great quantities of it in the nursery of Mr. 
T. S. Ware, Hale Farm, Tottenham. 
Yiola biflora. 
Imagine a dwarf compact-habited plant, similar to 
some of the many forms of the common wild Dog 
Violet, with golden yellow flowers instead of blue, and 
bright shining instead of dull-coloured leaves, and 
some idea of this Alpine gem may be gleaned. The 
stems are leafy, erect and generally two-flowered, 
occasionally with three, but the specific name which 
indicates the fact is generally applicable. The three 
lower petals are streaked with black radiating lines. 
On the whole it is a yellow Yiolet of great beauty, 
and being a native of the mountains of Europe and 
Siberia is perfectly hardy and admirably adapted for 
cultivation on rockwork. The leaves die down in 
autumn, and apparently the plant dies, but the next 
year it comes up as beautiful as ever. A fine tuft of it 
is now a beautiful object on the rockery at Chiswick, in 
the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society. 
. Androsace villosa. 
One of the hardiest and most floriferous of the genus is 
that here named, and which comes from the Pyrenees, 
the home of several others. The leaves are lanceolate 
or oblong, much broader than those of most European 
species, and hairy at the margins and underside. The 
scapes are also villous, and from 1 in. to 1£ ins. in 
height during the period of flowering. The blooms, 
borne in umbels as usual, are white when they first 
expand, but gradually change to pink, which is deepest 
round the golden yellow eye. It requires to be grown 
on the rockery in a sunny fissure ; and to those who 
like to grow Alpines in pots, it is a subject that is 
admirably adapted for this method of treatment. Pot 
specimens are now flowering in a pit with a northern 
aspect at Chiswick, in the gardens of the Royal 
Horticultural Society. 
Anemone ranunculoides. 
The commonest form of this species has golden yellow 
Buttercup-like flowers, and grows wild in a few rare 
places in England ; but is anything but plentiful even 
in gardens, notwithstanding its prettiness. The 
Pyrenean form has purple flowers, which would even 
be more in keeping with the finely divided foliage than 
yellow ones. It has been flowering for some time in 
the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society, 
Chiswick. 
Tulipa Kolpakoivskiana. 
Those who are fond of Tulips should not omit this 
species from their collections. The whole plant is 
compact in habit, and keeps the flowers well above the 
foliage. When fully expanded the perianth is bell - 
shaped, and wholly of a bright yellow colour, with the 
exception of the exterior surface of the three outer 
segments, which is heavily stained red, and adds much 
to the beauty of the flower. We noted it in Mr. T. S. 
AVare’s nursery, Hale Farm Tottenham. Although 
stated to have been introduced from Central Asia in 
1577, it is still a rare plant iu this country. 
Primroses and Polyanthuses. 
AYe are delighted to see a boxful of these beautiful old- 
fashioned hardy flowers, with which we have been 
favoured by Mr. W. B. Ilartland, 24, Patrick Street, 
Cork. Amongst double Primroses is a bunch of the 
old Pompon, which is perfectly double and intense 
crimson, having the golden yellow eye almost hidden, 
with a few small segments in the centre. The old 
Double White is notable for the great size of all parts 
of the flower. Large Late Sulphur is also a fine thing, 
and very distinct. Irish Purple has smaller flowers 
than the above, deep purple, and somewhat mottled 
with white. It is very distinct, however, and different 
from the Scotch Purple. All are delightfully fragrant. 
Amongst the Polyanthus section is a magnificent orange 
and yellow variety, named William of Orange (Oxlip), 
the flowers ofwhich are of good substance and deliciously 
scented. Danesfort Yellow Hose-in-Hose (Cowslip) is a 
fine yellow variety, with an orange line on the base of 
each segment ; while Danesfort Sulphur (Oxlip) has 
much larger and paler-coloured flowers. Both are 
hose-in-hose varieties, with the enlarged calyx similarly 
coloured to the corolla, but it is finest in the Cowslip 
named. A large bunch of the old blue Polyanthus of 
Parkinson, known in gardens as Primula elatior coerulea, 
is of a deeper blue than we have seen it for a long time. 
It deserves a place in every garden on account of its 
rare colour in this family, and by reason of its being 
some 200 or 300 years old. 
The American Wild Pink. 
Although the English name of this plant would 
lead one to suppose it to be a Dianthus, it is never¬ 
theless a Silene—namely, S. pennsylvanica—with much 
the general appearance of a Pink. This is carried so 
far that the petals are toothed at the apex, as in 
Dianthus csesius, and the medium-sized flowers are rosy 
pink, springing from the apex of short ascending leafy 
stems. Being a native of North America, it is perfectly 
hardy, and would constitute a pretty Alpine or rockery 
plant. Plants may be seen in Mr. T. S. Ware’s 
nursery, Hale Farm, Tottenham. 
Muscari botryoides album and M. commutatum. 
Only those who have seen a broad patch of these 
charming spring flowers can form a proper conception 
of their quiet and chaste beauty. From a bed of leaves 
closely covering the ground the flower-scapes arise to 
the height of a few inches only, bearing a close spike¬ 
like raceme of pure white flowers. M. commutatum is 
equally dwarf, if not more so, and exceedingly pretty. 
If not the smallest, it is certainly one of the most 
diminutive species in cultivation. The small, bell¬ 
shaped, pale blue flowers are white at the mouth, which 
enhances their charming appearance considerably. 
The flowers ultimately change to reddish purple before 
they die away. Little care is needed to grow these 
hardy bulbs to perfection, and should the soil be heavy 
or retentive, a quantity of sandy peat or potting-bench 
refuse mixed with the natural soil would answer 
admirably. Well-rotted leaf-soil might also be used 
with advantage. Either of the plants mentioned may 
be grown in the open border or on the rockery. Besides 
these, other species are grown in quantity by Mr. T. S. 
Ware, Hale Farm Nurseries, Tottenham. 
Anemone, King of Scarlets. 
Judging from the specimens sent us by Mr. B. Gilbert, 
Anemone Nurseries, Dyke, Bourne, Lincolnshire, we 
consider the variety entitled to the name, King of 
Scarlets. It is a very double form of Anemone 
coronaria, with brilliant crimson-scarlet flowers. The 
outer segments, which are the original sepals, are broad 
and much imbricated, with a beautiful large rosy pink 
blotch at the base of each. When the flowers are fresh 
this blotch is not discernible, however, owing to its 
concealment by the other parts of the flower. When 
they droop a little a ring of violet-purple stamens are 
revealed next them. The whole centre of the flower is 
densely filled up with narrow overlapping segments, 
corresponding to petaloid stamens, all of the same rich 
colour as the sepals, so that when fresh, flowers of large 
size may be compared to a bouquet, the broad outer 
sepals forming the guard. The double flowers of this 
species are preferable to those of A. fulgens, which gets 
spoiled when it becomes double. King of Scarlets is 
now flowering in great profusion with Mr. Gilbert in 
the open air. - 
FRITILLARIA MELEAGRp. 
The Snake’s-head Fritillaries are just now a very con¬ 
spicuous feature in the flower garden, and our English 
species, F. meleagris, is justly deserving of a good 
position amongst this section of the genus. On clay 
soils it makes itself at home, and is quite content with 
a place on the grass or in an undrained border. The 
type is a solitary-flowered plant, but plants with two 
flowers are by no means uncommon ; and in a border 
here we have several with three flowers on one stalk. 
Albino varieties are occasionally found in this district, 
where, by the way, F. meleagris is found in its wild 
state, and nothing could be more beautiful than a mass 
of these flowers growing quite luxuriantly iu the long 
grass, with here and there a patch of the wild Hyacinth 
amongst them. As a striking contrast to this arrange¬ 
ment, one end of a field that I visited lately, was 
carpeted with the lesser Celandine, its bright yellow 
FRITILLARIA MELEAGRIS. 
little flowers forming quite a lovely setting to the more 
sombre hues of the Snake’s-head. 
FRITILLARIA MOGGRIDGEI. 
This plant is a lovely yellow variety of F. delphinensis, 
but distinct enough from that species to be labelled 
without reference to it. It is one of the best yellow 
flowers of the family, and blooms freely in any soil. 
FRITILLARIA PAI.LIDIFLORA. 
This is another species worth growing. The flowers 
are of a soft yellow, with glaucous foliage. Grown 
amongst plants of F. meleagris, F. latifolia, and others 
of a reddish purple colour, it is a very striking and 
ornamental plant. 
FRITILLARIA RuTHENICA 
Is a curious plant, having small dark red flowers, with 
from five to seven on a scape. Quite distinct in form 
and character from either of the preceding species. 
F. persica is a plant of similar character, but with 
duller coloured flowers, and very glaucous foliage ; 
and, unlike F. Ruthenica, liable to be injured by 
frost.—/. TV. 0, Pinner. 
