polyanthus

noun

1. A type of primula, apparently originally from a hybrid between the cowslip and the primrose, having many different-coloured flowers.

   “[T]he Hens all want to sit, the Primroses Polyanthuses &c crowd the Hedges; & a Rose Tree or two are quite full of Leaves.”

   “No cottage in Coughton boasted taller hollyhocks, nor finer Michaelmas daisies in the autumn than Dame Magdalen’s almshouses; and even now, at this early season, well cared-for stocks, and rich polyanthuses might excite the envy of more scientific but less successful gardeners.”