﻿Production 
  of 
  Double 
  Flowers 
  509 
  

  

  double 
  begonias. 
  Others 
  bear 
  only 
  seed 
  on 
  their 
  

   weaker 
  lateral 
  branches, 
  as 
  the 
  double 
  camomile, 
  

   or 
  become 
  fertile 
  only 
  towards 
  the 
  fall, 
  as 
  is 
  

   often 
  the 
  case 
  with 
  the 
  above 
  quoted 
  Erfurt 
  va- 
  

   riety 
  of 
  the 
  blue-bottle. 
  As 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  

   able 
  to 
  ascertain, 
  such 
  seeds 
  are 
  quite 
  adequate 
  

   for 
  the 
  reproduction 
  and 
  perpetuation 
  of 
  the 
  

   double 
  varieties, 
  but 
  the 
  question 
  whether 
  there 
  

   are 
  differences 
  between 
  the 
  seeds 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  

   or 
  less 
  double 
  flowers 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  plants 
  still 
  

   remains 
  open. 
  It 
  is 
  very 
  probable, 
  from 
  a 
  the- 
  

   oretical 
  point 
  of 
  view, 
  that 
  such 
  differences 
  ex- 
  

   ist, 
  but 
  perhaps 
  they 
  are 
  so 
  slight, 
  as 
  to 
  have 
  

   practically 
  no 
  bearing 
  on 
  the 
  question. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  ground 
  of 
  their 
  wide 
  range 
  of 
  varia- 
  

   bility, 
  the 
  double 
  varieties 
  must 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  

   pertaining 
  to 
  the 
  group 
  of 
  ever-sporting 
  forms. 
  

   On 
  one 
  side 
  they 
  fluctuate 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  to- 
  

   wards 
  such 
  petalomanous 
  flowers 
  as 
  are 
  borne 
  

   by 
  the 
  stocks 
  and 
  others, 
  which 
  we 
  have 
  pre- 
  

   viously 
  discussed. 
  Here 
  no 
  trace 
  of 
  the 
  fertile 
  

   organs 
  is 
  left. 
  But 
  this 
  extreme 
  is 
  never 
  reach- 
  

   ed 
  by 
  petaloid 
  double 
  flowers. 
  A 
  gap 
  remains 
  

   which, 
  often 
  overlooked, 
  always 
  exists, 
  and 
  

   which 
  sharply 
  separates 
  the 
  two 
  types. 
  On 
  the 
  

   other 
  hand 
  the 
  alteration 
  of 
  the 
  stamens 
  grad- 
  

   ually 
  relapses 
  to 
  perfectly 
  single 
  flowers. 
  Here 
  

   the 
  analogy 
  with 
  the 
  pistillody 
  of 
  the 
  poppies 
  

   and 
  with 
  the 
  " 
  five-leaved 
  " 
  clover 
  is 
  obvious. 
  

  

  