AMONG the many beautiful blossoms to be found in the field, the forest, or the garden probably none have served to inspire the poet more than the primrose and its near relative, the English cowslip. Someone has said that "no flowers typify the beautiful more strongly than those of the primrose which, though showy, are delicate and seem inclined to retire to the shade of the plant's leaves."

These plants belong to the Primrose family (PrimulaceÆ) which includes twenty-eight genera and over three-hundred and fifty species. Nearly all are natives of the Northern hemisphere, some being found as far north as Greenland (the Greenland primrose). Some of the species are Alpine, and a few are found in the southern portions of South America and Africa. One of the most interesting wild species of this family is the shooting star or American cowslip, which grows abundantly on the prairies of the Eastern portion of the United States. Dr. Erasmus Darwin tells us that "the uncommon beauty of this flower occasioned LinnÆus to give it the name Dodecatheon, signifiying the twelve heathen gods."

The family as a whole seems to have no economic value of importance and are of use to man simply to beautify his surroundings. Many of the species are very interesting to the scientific observer, for the structure of their flowers is such that they are peculiarly adapted for cross-fertilization. This character has made it possible for the floriculturist to produce many of the beautiful forms that are found in cultivation. The generic name of the primrose is Primula from the diminutive of the Latin word Primus, meaning first. The blossoming of the plants in the early spring led LinnÆus to give them this name. It is said that their name was also applied, during the middle ages, to the European daisy (Bellis perennis).

This genus, Primula, is the type of the family and contains about one hundred and fifty species from which have been produced, both in nature and under cultivation, many hybrid forms, one investigator claiming to have found more than twenty in the Alps alone. The species are found distributed throughout the cooler regions of Europe and Asia and a few are natives of North America.

The common or English primrose (Primula vulgaris), by careful culture, produces a wonderful number of variations. The wild forms produce only yellow single flowers while from those under cultivation are developed numerous varieties, both single and double, which vary greatly in color—red, pink, white, purple, and many shades of each.

The cowslip primrose (Primula veris) is also a native of England. The flowers are yellow and nodding, and the plants emit a strong odor of anise.

The Himalaya Mountains are probably more rich in beautiful and interesting species and varieties than any other locality. Here is found the most beautiful of all the primroses, the delicate rose-colored form (Primula rosea.)

This species of primrose should not be confounded with the evening primrose, of which there are about twenty species, all American. The yellow flowers of the latter appear in the summer, opening at night, the thin and delicate petals withering the next day.