February  25,  1897, 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
161 
flowers,  and  an  extreme  floriferousness  that  is  not  found  among  the 
Chinese  single  varieties.  True,  the  individual  flowers  are  smaller,  but 
this  is  recompensed  for  by  their  numbers.  Not  that  the  Chinese  must 
be  omitted  to  make  room  for  these  ;  on  the  contrary,  both  should  be 
grown,  for  each  is  useful  and  beautiful  in  its  own  particular  style.  The 
plants  attain  to  a  height  of  from  18  inches  to  27  inches,  and  the  fact 
that  the  flowers  remain  long  in  beauty  when  cut  and  placed  in  water 
will  be  another  recommendation  in  the  eyes  of  most  people.  The 
'flowers  vary  in  colour  from  pure  white  to  pale  purple,  but  more  shades 
will  doubtless  be  added  before  many  years  have  gone  by. 
Double  Primulas  are  perhaps  even  more  beautiful  than  the  singles  ; 
■the  colours  are  so  clear,  so  chaste,  and  so  dtlicate,  the  flowers  so 
so  handsomely  marbled  as  to  render  them  worthy  of  being  grown  for 
this  alone.  To  these  recommendations  must  be  added  the  one  of  fra¬ 
grance,  for  this  distinctly  increasing  in  many  of  the  varieties.  We  give 
in  fig.  36  a  photographic  reproduction  of  one  of  Messrs.  Sutton  &  Sons’ 
plants  that  was  in  a  48-pot.  This  shows  the  blooms  reduced,  but 
unfortunately  it  was  impossible  to  convey  a  proper  idea  of  the  beauty 
of  the  foliage  on  account  of  the  photo  being  too  black.  Neither  does 
the  picture  show  the  extraordinary  number  of  buds  with  which  the 
corm  was  bristling,  though  it  depicts  the  purity  of  the  colour  and  the 
great  substance  of  the  large-sized  flowers. 
Between  the  persicum  and  the  grandiflorum  sections  it  is  difficult  to 
choose.  In  the  former  one  secures  numbers  of  flowers  and  particularly 
Fig.  36.— A  SUTTON  CYCLAMEN. 
uhapely,  so  useful,  and  so  freely  produced,  and  the  plants  of  such  useful  i 
MSize  and  form.  For  the  adornment  of  rooms  double  Primulas  in  48-pots 
are  admirably  adapted,  and  that  this  is  recognised  is  proved  by  their 
growing  use  for  tbis  purpose.  The  colours  represented  are  scarlet, 
Carnation-flaked  (an  appropriate  name),  white,  pink,  imperial  purple, 
crimson,  and  blue,  every  one  of  which  is  of  the  best  quality,  and  seen  as 
they  are  at  Reading  in  bold  masses  of  distinct  colour,  produce  a  telling  and 
at  the  same  time  very  striking  effect.  It  is  but  a  cursory  reference  that 
we  have  been  able  to  make  to  this  unique  collection,  but  it  must  suffice 
now.  If  any  wish  to  see  the  plants  it  behoves  them  to  go  as  soon 
asipossible,  for  the  zenith  of  their  beauty  is  already  getting  past. 
Cyclamens. 
Truly  are  these  flowers  rivals  of  the  Primulas.  In  addition  to 
ffiowers  of  exceptional  beauty  the  plants  when  well  grown  produce  foliage 
handsome  leaves,  while  in  the  latter  tbe  blooms,  though  considerably 
larger,  are  not  so  abundant,  and  the  leaves  not,  as  a  rule,  so  handsomely 
marked.  The  colours  of  the  giants  comprise  white,  cherry  red,  rose, 
pink,  crimson  and  white,  purple,  and  crimson,  each  pure  and  good. 
Of  the  persicums  the  best  are  certainly  Salmon  Queen  and  v  ulcan, 
both  of  which  are  superb,  the  other  colours  being  little,  if  anything, 
inferior.  That  their  culture  is  thoroughly  understood  at  Reading  is 
emphatically  demonstrated  in  the  wonderful  robustness  of  each  of 
the  plants,  a  condition  of  affairs  that  is  by  no  means  common  in  many 
parts  of  the  country. 
Besides  these  there  are  other  plants  at  Reading  that  are  well  worthy 
of  attention,  such  for'example  as  the  magnificent  Cinerarias  ;  but  now 
all  must  be  passed  by,  reserving  them  for  a  future  visit  to  the  town, 
which  was  erstwhile  celebrated  for  its  biscuits,  but  is  now  renowned  tor 
its  Primulas  andlCyclamens. — Metropolitan. 
