The Evergreen Saxifrage
(SAXIFRAGA AIZOIDES)
THE Saxifrages have been extraordinarily successful in the Alps. Some thirty different species, some of them exceedingly common, are met with in Switzerland.
The Evergreen Saxifrage is one of the most abundant. It grows in moist rocky places, at the foot of glaciers, and on the banks of mountain streams and waterfalls. It ascends to 9000 feet in places and descends almost to the plains with some of the rivers. The plant grows in tufts. The erect flower stems are covered by the narrow, succulent leaves, which have hairs along each margin; they terminate in branches bearing four to eight flowers. The star-like flowers, which appear in July and August, are made up of five brightly coloured petals alternating with five green sepals. The petals may be lemon yellow with orange red spots, or, as in the specimen here photographed (var. atrorubens), pure orange red. Next comes a ring of ten stamens with dark red pollen, and then the showy ring-like nectary and the two styles in the centre of the flower. The honey is so obvious and abundant that insects of all kinds—flies, bees, butterflies, and beetles—visit the flowers; but self-fertilisation is, in the main, prevented by the pollen being shed before the ovaries with their stigmata are ready for fertilisation. The Evergreen Saxifrage is to be found in all parts of the Alps, and is also met with in the Arctic regions.
With the help of the photograph no difficulty should be experienced in recognising the plant. From the Stonecrops, notably the Biting Stonecrop (Sedum acre), it is recognised by its possession of two styles. But several of the other Saxifrages resemble it much more closely. The Rough Saxifrage (S. aspera) has paler flowers and more hairy leaves. The Moss-like Saxifrage (S. bryoides) has a moss-like growth and the flowers are borne on long, usually unbranched, flower stalks. Saxifraga Sequieri has more flattened leaves, and Saxifraga Hirculus, which is rare, has two raised spots at the base of each yellow petal.
Plate XX.
SAXIFRAGA AIZOIDES. L.
The Evergreen Saxifrage. Saxifrage toujours verte ou Saxifrage pain d’Oiseau. Immergrüner Steinbrech oder Borsten-Steinbrech.