522 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
April 19, 1890. 
In some localities the Primrose is looked upon with 
much dread, being used in the decoration of graves, 
and even the dressing up of corpses. It is not an un¬ 
common sight to see them growing upon the graves of 
the poorer class, especially in some of our little country 
churchyards. 
There is a churchyard in Surrey, called Tandridge, 
that used to be thickly strewed with Primroses and 
Violets in the early spring, under the fatherly protection 
of a gigantic, but decaying Yew, nearly rivalling the 
famous Yew at Crowhurst, which, according to Decan- 
dolle, is 1,200 years old. In Devonshire the Primrose 
is frequently called the Butter Bose, on account of its 
gold and buttery hue ; and it is considered as most 
unlucky to take a single flower into a house when they 
first come into season. 
Milton speaks of the Primrose in three places, and 
twice he connects it with death. 
Spenser has some beautiful lines to a young husband 
who laments the loss of his young and beautiful wife— 
“She is the Bose, the glory of the day, 
And mine the Primrose in the lowly shade.” 
Darwin devoted a deal of his attention to the 
Primula tribe. The Primrose and Cowslip are very 
closely allied, and it is interesting to note the Primrose 
becoming small, with two or three flowers growing 
upon one stalk. Cowslip flowers may be seen occa¬ 
sionally on the one stalk, instead of the usual small 
cluster. But the honey these two varieties secrete 
must be very different, for while the Primrose is ferti¬ 
lised almost exclusively by moths, the Cowslip is 
habitually visited during the day by humble bees. 
Primroses should abound in all our southern counties, 
but in the suburbs of the great metropolis they have been 
nearly eradicated by the fearful demands of the 
thousands anxious to buy a bunch, for the purpose 
of airing their political persuasions, and not in 
reality as a memento of the late Premier, as is generally 
supposed. 
Whether Lord Beaeonsfield had any special fondness 
for the Primrose is exceedingly doubtful. Its associa¬ 
tion with his death is no doubt due to the fact that the 
Queen inscribed on a wreath of Primroses sent to his 
funeral the words, “His favourite flower,’’the pro¬ 
noun referring not to Lord Beaconsfield, but to Prince 
Albert. The late Premier concentrated a deal of his 
admiration upon the Gardenia ; so much so, that a kind 
friend used to regularly forward a box of these beauti¬ 
ful flowers for his special benefit. Botanists, and in 
fact all lowers of nature, must deplore the wholesale 
destruction of the Primrose, and the ruthless way 
in which our woods and banks are pillaged yearly of 
their gay attire by persons having little or no regard for 
it as a flower. On Primrose-eve it is quite a sight to 
see the vendors of Primroses returning with their 
heavily laden baskets along all our main roads radiating 
from the busy centre. 
It is not, of course, against the gathering of Primroses 
that one objects, but against the wholesale uprooting 
and wanton destruction of the plants. It is not hard 
for us to understand why the Primrose is becoming 
extinct in the suburbs of London, when we find it 
estimated that seven tons of Primroses found their w T ay 
into the London market in 1888, and in the following 
year this was increased by another ton. Every ton 
means 4,981,760 flowers, and supposing the capsule of 
each flower to produce an average of forty seeds, this 
means a loss to the woods and hedgebanks for last year of 
1,594,163,200 seeds, a number capable of supplying 
the whole of London with a small packet. Go into 
the woods and copses around London that used to 
don the Primrose carpet, to the unspeakable enjoyment 
of the lover of flowers, and you will find that they 
have been laid bare, and the place that knew them once 
knows them no more.— D. H. Robinson, The Limes, 
Bromley Common, Kent. 
-- 
PLANT LIFE. 
(Concluded from p. 507). 
The Fertilisation of Flowers. 
I have already trespassed upon your time and patience, 
but before closing I should like to refer very briefly to 
the fertilisation of flowers—a subject which opens out an 
immense field for consideration ; but it is my intention 
just to give a passing glance. Of course, we all know 
that in order to bring about the reproduction of 
flowering plants it is necessary that the pollen or yellow 
dust should be brought in contact with the female 
organ of the flower, and it is a consideration of the 
means adopted for the bringing about of this object 
that is so full of intei’est to the botanist. It has been 
proved beyond doubt that self-fertilisation is the ex¬ 
ception rather than the rule. Self-fertilisation does 
exist, yet the whole drift of modern botanical teaching 
tends towards the adoption of the theory of cross-fer¬ 
tilisation, and experiments have been made by which it 
is shown that plants fertilised with pollen from another 
individual produce far more robust offspring than the 
plant which is fertilised by its own pollen. In fact, in 
some cases—namely, that of some Orchids—the effect 
of its own pollen seems to act like poison, causing the 
pistil to shrivel up and the flower to die. Species of 
Passion Flower have also been found sterile with their 
own pollen, although cross-fertilisation has proved 
effective. "Why this is so I cannot say ; but it is beyond 
doubt a fact applicative to the animal as well as the 
vegetable kingdom, that the offspring of individuals 
closely related are more or less sickly^ and weak. 
Seeing, then, that nature objects, as a rule, to self¬ 
fertilisation, let us see avkat means she has taken to 
ensure cross-fertilisation. 
First, it is necessary that agents should be employed 
to convey the pollen from flower to flower, and we find 
that of these there are two classes —the wind and 
various insects. Flowers which are fertilised by the 
wind are never conspicuous by their colour, and here 
we find the reason why flowers are brightly coloured. 
However beautiful in appearance may be a flower, we 
shall find that its beauty is not merely to gratify our 
sense of beauty ; but underlying it, there is some useful 
office in nature for which the colour exists. You see it 
would be unnecessary for a wind-fertilised flower to be 
highly colourel ; but on the other hand, all flowers ferti¬ 
lized by means of insects are very brightly and conspicu¬ 
ously coloured, often with bright lines existing to attract 
and guide their visitors. Again, wind-fertilised flowers 
produce immense quantities of pollen, while insect- 
fertilised ones give little. In the case of those fertilised 
by wind, a large proportion is necessarily lost in 
transit ; therefore the necessity of large quantities 
being prolueed, in order that the small quantity 
require! should reach its proper destination. But ia 
flowers fertilised by insects, no such risk is run, 
therefore only a small amount of pollen is produced. 
We also find a difference in the formation of the female 
organs of the two different kinds ; those fertilised by 
insects are very small, and do not protrude ; whereas 
those fertilised by wind are branched and hairy, and 
project considerably out of the flower so as to catch the 
pollen in its course. 
In orler to prove that the colours of flowers are for 
the attraction of insects, it must be shown that insects 
are sensible to colour, and this Sir John Lubbock 
undertook by means of placing slips of glass with honey 
on piper of various colours, accustoming different bees 
to visit special colours, and when they had made a few 
visits to honey on piper of a particular colour, he 
found if the papers were changed that the bees followed 
the certain colours ; in fact, if bees are watched in a 
girden, they will be seen to confine their attention to 
particular species. 
Insects are attracted from a distance by the perfume 
of flowers, are then shown the exact spot by the colour 
of the flower, and they are evidently aware, from 
instinct, that sweet odours and high colours are the 
outward signs of honey. It would, therefore, seem 
that the honey existed as a bait to induce insects 
to visit flowers, and by that visit detach the pollen and 
convey it to the next flower visited. We also find that 
flowers which are fertilised by bees, butterflies, and 
other insects that fly by day, close up at night, for it 
would not be to their advantage to have the honey 
stolen by moths and so on, which cannot fertilise 
them. On the other hand we find showy flowering 
plants keep their flowers closed during the day, be¬ 
cause they are fertilised by moths ; and we also find 
they are rendered conspicuous by their light colour. 
Flowers also close in rainy weather to protect their 
honey. 
Another provision of nature is that honey i3 generally 
so situated in flowers that to get at it the insect is 
bound to push itself against the male organs, and when 
it retires it takes away some of the pollen on its head 
or other part of the body, while the female organ is so 
placed that on visiting the next flower the pollen on 
the insect comes into contact with that organ, and is 
detached. Within the limits of this paper it would be 
impossible to examine the structure of the insects 
whose office it is to take part in this fertilising process ; 
suffice it to say that the legs of certain insects, as well 
as the form of the mouth and the hairiness or smooth¬ 
ness of the body, are all in harmony with their 
adaptation to the fertilisation of certain flowers. 
FERNS AND FERNERIES. 
Br E. Booker. 
(Continued from p. 505 .) 
The Natural Fernery. —Having given a brief out¬ 
line of Fern culture in pots, 1 will pass on to what I 
will call the natural fernery, meaning, of course, a 
house that is (with one or two exceptions) planted with 
Ferns. For if we have a house with a north or north¬ 
western aspect, which could be devoted to a fernery or 
indoor rockery, a more natural and interesting structure 
it is difficult to find. The best material to be used in 
building a fernery of this description is what is called 
tufa, or Derbyshire stone. Although more expensive 
than burrs or cork, it is far preferable, looking more 
natural, and the Ferns luxuriate in it. I have found 
some of them to root in it so strongly as to make it a 
difficult task to remove them. It would be impossible 
for me here to give any idea or plans of the way the 
rockwork should be built, but suffice it to say that it 
should not be made too uniform, but as irregular as 
possible, here projecting and there receding. The 
practice of employing a great number of arches and 
masses of overhanging rockwork should be avoided as 
far as possible, as it prevents the light reaching the 
lower parts of the fernery. Ferns so placed as to have 
all the light excluded from them, instead o'f growing 
luxuriantly and becoming objects of interest, dwindle 
away and die, leaving bare those parts which ought to 
be most amply furnished with verdure, because of being 
below the eye of the spectator. For a fernery of this 
description to become effective the foliage in the lower 
parts ought to be a3 luxuriant as that above, and this 
can only be done when we make arrangements for 
abundance of light. It will greatly add to the appear¬ 
ance of a fernery if we cm have a shallow pond within 
the house, and also if in building the rockwork we 
let in one or two small pipes with holes pierced in 
them, so as to penetrate through the stone, greatly 
assisting to keep the stone cool and moist during the 
summer. 
Compost. —The compost should be the saras as 
previously mentioned, but it may with advantage be 
used a little coarser. Care should be exercised in the 
planting in making the plants firm, especially at the 
back. Commence by planting at the bottom, close to 
the pond, all Ferns of a water-loving .nature, such as 
the Polypodiums, Osmundas, such as O. gracilis, 
O. cinnamomea, and O. Claytoniana, Seolopendrium 
vulgare, and its beautiful crested varieties. If any 
other plants than Ferns are required for the sake of 
giving relief, there is nothing better than Aspidistra 
lurida variegata, and also that good old plant, Farfu- 
gium grande. Both these are very partial to water, 
consequently should be planted close to the pond. I 
shall not attempt to give a long list of Ferns, but shall 
mention a few sorts that I have found to do well 
planted out. Nearly all the varieties of Pteris, both 
green and variegated, will do well. Of the green 
forms, Pteris serrulata, P. s. cristata, P. hastata, and 
P. umbrosa ; while of the coloured varieties, Pteris 
argyrea (a good variety for this purpose), P. cretica 
albo-lineata, P. cristata, P. c. Mayi, and P. tricolor. 
The Davallias are also exceedingly useful, the best for 
this purpose being Davallia bullata, D. canariensis, 
D. Tyermauii, and D. hemiptera, very dwarf and 
handsome. These should be elevated a little above the 
level of the pockets, as they will then turn over the 
sides, and will root into the tufa more easily and 
readily. In fact, all Ferns having surface rhizomes 
should be kept above or on the surface—the rhizomes 
should never be buried. Nephrolepis exaltata will be 
found suitable for planting close to the wall, which it 
will soon cover, and have a pleasing effect. Nephro- 
lepsis davallioides is another good variety, if we can 
give it sufficient space, so as to show off its long 
graceful fronds. It certainly should have a place 
found for it, as I have seen this variety so planted with 
its fronds nearly 5 ft. in length, and hanging grace¬ 
fully. I might here state that I consider when Ferns 
are planted out, their true and proper characteristics 
are better produced than when grown in pots. Amongst 
the Adian turns that may be used are A. cun eatum, A 
decorum, A. formosum, and A. Capillus-Yeneris ; the 
last named is very useful for planting out, as the 
spores will grow readily on the tufa if kept moist, 
looking very pretty and effective. 
Unless the house is a large one I would not advise 
the planting of tree Ferns, for unless there is room for 
them to develop their handsome fronds, they soon get 
spoiled. A few pieces of lichen may, if desirable, be 
placed here and there on the tufa, with the object cf 
improving the appearance. 
