PRIMROSES AND POLYANTHUS

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 55, 2 September 1937, Page 23

PRIMROSES AND POLYANTHUS

These are very, useful spring-flower-ing plants and'when their fairly simple requirements are attended to are no trouble to grow. They prefer a rather heavy soil in a cool position but not too shady. The soil should tie fairly rich in humus and have some wellrotted cow manure added to it. The common yellow primrose is very hardy and will grow even on clay banks provided it gets plenty of moisture. • The double varieties— yellow, white, or lavender—are not so hardy and should be given the best soil and situation possible. The newer, blue primroses are hardy and from a packet of seed plants of various shades of blue will be obtained. Polyanthuses, or bunch-flowered primroses, are delightful iri the spring. They may be had in a wide'range of colours from white to deep yellow and various shades of red or red and gold. When well grown the flower heads are borne on stalks 10 inches or more long and the individual blooms are enormous. These plants do quite well in the Wellington district but finer heads of flower are obtained in the more south-

erly districts where the1 atmosphere is cooler and moister,!'

Both primroses and polyanthuses may be increased'by division of the plants after flowering—in fact this is the only way to make' sure of increasing the stock of any particular variety, as they do not always come true from SSGCI. : When dividing the old clumps it is not wise to break them up too much. They seem to require the thick rhizomatous roots if they are to flourish as they should. September or October is the time to sow seed, which should be sown in a box of good soil, the seedr lings being pricked out Into other boxes as soon as • they are large enough to handle comfortably. The young plants must be kept moist throughout. This is especially necessary during the hot summer months, when they are liable to be attacked by red spider if allowed to get too dry, The young plants may be put out into their flowering posi* tions during the autumn and should provide good blooms during the fok lowing spring. A packet of polyanthus seed of good strain should produce a hundred or more plants.