Flora, seu, De florum cultura, or, A complete florilege, furnished with all requisites belonging to a florist by John Rea, Gent.

CHAP. II.

Aquilegia.

COlombines are Plants well known, and commonly raised from seeds, although their roots are of some continu∣ance, they are of many sorts, differing in form, as well as in the colours of the flowers; we will in these, as in all the rest that are to follow, give you a brief account of the best varieties of each, with directions how to continue the kinds from year to year.

The double Colombines, for the single are not regarded, are distin∣guished by the flowers, which chiefly are of four colours, namely white, blew, murrey purple, and red, some deeper, and others ligh∣ter; but these self-colours are not valued, those that are variegated, striped, spotted, or powdered, are onely entertained, whereof there are many diversities, differing in colours, or manner of marking, from each other; some will be half white, and half of another colour, as light blew, violet-purple, murrey, or light red; others striped, spot∣ted, and variously marked with these colours upon white, in some more and in others less.

The double Inverted Colombines, that is with the heels turned in∣wards, are of several sorts, as double and well-marked as those of the former, and with the same colours, but not so plentiful in va∣rieties.

The double Rose-Colombines are those that have no heels, but stand on the stalks like little double Roses, but that the leaves are narrow and sharp-pointed; of these there are some diversities, of the fore∣mentioned colours, diversly striped and mixed, some bigger and less double, and others lesser but more double.

The Degenerate Colombine is like the last, but that the outermost row of leaves is much larger than the rest that are inward; the whole flower is commonly of a greenish purple colour.

The Virginian Colombine hath small single flowers with long heels, of a yellowish colour, shadowed with red, having deeper red spots in the hollow parts of the flower; this came to us in Plants from Vir∣ginia, and from the seeds thereof, many have been raised, but few like the original, most of them degenerating into simple single ill-co∣loured flowers.

They flower in the end of May after the Tulips are past, and there∣fore the more acceptable, that season affording few other flowers.

All the double Colombines do bring seeds as well a the single, which must be sowed in April in the Nurcery, where the second year they will bear flowers, out of which the best may be chosen and removed into the Garden, there to continue three or four years, but if they be kept too long, they will turn single, or less double, and few of them will come well marked; so that against the fourth year a new stock would be provided, and the old cast away; almost every root that bears mixed-coloured flowers, will have some that will be of one co∣lour, the which, in such Plants of every colour and kind as you reserve to seed, must be nipped off, and the best marked flowers onely left to seed, and so you may be sure of many fine varieties from the seeds of such well-chosen flowers.