When double, the daisy becomes much more ornamental, and in this state
many varieties of it have long been cultivated, very generally in
gardens; those principally found in our nurseries are
The large double daisy with florets of a deep red colour on the under
side, figured on the plate; the flowers of this sort will sometimes
expand nearly to the size of a half-crown piece, and are the most shewy
of any that we have seen; the foliage of this sort is also
proportionably larger.
The pale red double daisy, more delicate in its appearance, but smaller,
varying in its shades of colour.
The pure white double daisy.
The deep red double daisy; in this the petals are usually tubular or
quilled.
Besides these, there are
The coxcomb double daisy, both red and white, in which the flowering
stem rises up preternaturally flattened, and carries on its summit a
long-extended ridge of flowers, frequently of an enormous size; this
monstrous production seems to arise from the coalescence of two or more
flowering stems: and as it is of accidental origin, so we find that a
daisy which has been a coxcomb one year, shall lose that appearance
entirely the next, and out of a long edging of daisies growing
luxuriantly, new ones shall here and there arise; we cannot therefore
depend upon the constancy of this variety.
Another singular variety is the proliferous or hen and chicken daisy, in
which a number of flowers standing on short footstalks spring circularly
out of the main flower; as this appearance for the most part arises from
great luxuriance[A], this sort of daisy is also found occasionally to
lose its prolific character: in my garden at Lambeth-Marsh, I once had a
daisy growing in an edging among a number of others, which not only
became proliferous, or of the hen and chicken kind, but its stalk also,
or scapus, became branched, producing six or seven flowering-stems, with
flowers at their extremities of the size of the common daisy; thus we
find that the most permanent characters of plants are liable to be
altered, and even destroyed, by accident, or culture.
Daisies appear to most advantage planted as an edging to a border, not
that they are superior, or even equal to box for the great purposes of
an edging; but in the spring of the year they enliven the border more,
and add much to the general gaiety of the garden: in the formation of
these, we shall give our readers some practical instructions, which will
enable them to succeed much better than by following the mode commonly
practised.
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