Cultivated-Plant Study 



617 



with a slightly ruffled rim, on 

 which the bud is set. This 

 rim is often pink above, and 

 remains as a pretty base for 

 the seed-pod. But in some 

 garden varieties, the rim is 

 lacking. The bud itself is 

 covered with a peaked cap, 

 like a Brownie's toboggan cap 

 stuffed full to the tip. It is 

 the shape of an old-fashioned 

 candle extinguisher; it is pale 

 green, somewhat ribbed, and 

 has a rosy tip ; it consists of 

 two sepals, which have been 

 sewed together by Mother 

 Nature so skillfully that we 

 cannot see the seams. One 

 of the most interesting per- 

 formances to watch that I 

 know, is the way this poppy 

 takes off its cap before it 

 bows to the world . Like magic 

 the cap loosens around the 

 base ; it is then pushed off by 

 the swelling expanding petals 

 until completely loosened, and 

 finally it drops. 



The petals are folded under 

 the cap in an interesting 

 manner. The outer petal en- 

 folds all the others as closely 

 as it can, and its mate within it 

 enfolds the other two, and the inner two enfold the stamens with their 

 precious gold dust. When only partially opened, the petals cling pro- 

 tectingly about the many long stamens ; but when completely opened, the 

 four petals flare wide, making a flower with a golden rim and orange 

 center, although among our cultivated varieties they range from orange 

 to an anaemic white. To one who loves them in their glorious native 

 hues, the white varieties seem almost repulsive. Compare one of these 

 small, pale flowers with the great, rich, orange ones that glorify some 

 favored regions in the Mojave Desert, and we feel the enervating and 

 decadent influence of civilization. 



The anthers are many and long, and are likely to have a black dot on 

 the short filament; at first, the anthers stand in a close cluster at the 

 center of the flower, but later they flare out in a many pointed star. 

 Often, when the flowers first open, especial!}' the earlier ones, the stigmas 

 cannot be seen at all; but after a time the three, or even six stigmas, 

 spread wide athwart the flower and above the stamen-star, where they 

 may receive pollen from the visiting insects. The anthers give abund- 

 ance of pollen, but there is said to be no nectary present. This flower is a 

 good guardian of its pollen, for it closes during the nights and also on dark 



California poppy. 

 Drawn by Anna C. Stryke. 



