This section is from the book "The Gardener V1", by William Thomson. Also available from Amazon: The New Organic Grower: A Master's Manual of Tools and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener.
This is an undoubtedly hardy species. It has now lived over two winters, the one just past and the previous one, without any protection in the garden here; and I am aware of its having been in the garden of a cottager in a similarly cold locality for many years. It was introduced from Chili upwards of forty years ago, and appears to have a very extensive geographic range extending down to the Straits of Magellan, a fact that will account for its extreme hardiness. It forms low tufted rosettes of broadly-ovate or rhomboid leaves coarsely toothed, but perfectly smooth and shining, though deeply veined on the upper side. From the axils of the leaves spring numerous naked scapelike flower-stalks to the height of 9 inches or a foot, quite erect, and supporting six or eight bright yellow flowers. On the under side of the corolla there are usually a number of minute dots of crimson, but they do not form any striking feature of the flower when casually examined. It is a very free-flowering plant, and early, having begun throwing up its scapes in the middle of May; and if kept growing, will continue to do so till growth is stopped by the progress of the season.
It does not appear to be attacked with the canker that cuts off so many of the shrubby Calceolarias, but my experience of it is wholly confined to our own deep cool loam, in which Calceolarias generally suffer little from that disorder: it delights in abundant moisture and rich loamy soil.
 
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