This elegant species of Penstemon was originally discovered
by Mr. Nuttall in the prairies on the banks of the Red River,
growing in dry situations, and in a calcareous soil. It has
since been observed by the late Mr. Thomas Drummond in
the interior of Texas, and from seeds transmitted by him
plants were raised in tlie spring of last year, in several collections.
Some of those raised in the Glasgow Botanic Garden
flowered the following autumn.
We are indebted to our friend Mr. James Macnab for the
beautiful drawing represented in our plate. The plant whence
it was taken flowered in the collection of our worthy friend
Dr. Neill, at Canonmills, near Edinburgh, in June last.
The plant had been kept in the greenhouse. It will be seen
that the flowers in our specimen were larger and of a diiferent
colour from those represented in the “ Botanical Magazine,”
circumstances perhaps attributable in a great measure to the
different seasons of the year in which the plants blossomed.
Mr. James Macnab informs us that the flowers vary in the
shade of colour. The red streaks in some are more visible
exteriorly, in others they are confined to the inside of the
tube, or extend along the lobes. Mr. James Macnab also
informs us that the plant is readily multiplied by cuttings,
and that it has every appearance of being hardy.
The generic name is already explained at fol. 259.
D . Don.
1. Radical leaf. 2. Upper leaf.
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