POPPY. lOJ 



Wc were so niiicli attracted by the beauty of the 

 Carnation Pop])y in the gardens of the Tuilleries, 

 at Paris, during the summer of 1813, that we pro- 

 cured some of the seed and brought it to England, 

 which on sowing in the following spring produced 

 the gay variety of double flowers that had so much 

 pleased us in the royal gardens of France. From 

 these plants we obtained a good supply of seed ; but 

 perceivmg abundance of young plants springing 

 up from the self-sown seed, we omitted to sow 

 seeds, excepting in a small spot at a distant part 

 of the garden, which again produced the same 

 beautiful double flowers, whilst all the plants from 

 the self-sown seed blossomed with sinfjle flowers, 

 except a few plants with semi-double^ but the beau- 

 tiful edging and varieties in colour were the same. 

 These plants were again permitted to scatter their 

 seed, and the plants were on the succeeding summer 

 so far returned to their natural state as not to be 

 distinguishable from the common Red Poppy of 

 the corn-fields, from which it may be inferred that 

 some kinds of seeds being kept out of the earth 

 beyond the time allotted by nature, become weak- 

 ened so as to lose a part of their natural properties, 

 and thus produce flowers which the botanist rejects 

 as monsters, from their being out of nature, whilst 

 the florist exults over the change which his art has 



