194 FLORA HISTORICA. 



This is a perennial plant which is easily propa- 

 gated by dividing its creeping roots in the autumn ; 

 and although it is a native of the East, it bears the 

 severity of our winters without injury, particularly 

 when planted in a dry soil. The seeds of this 

 species of Poppy should be sown as soon as ripe, in 

 pots filled with a rich and fresh loam. These pots 

 require the protection of a greenhouse or frame for 

 the winter months ; and in the following spring the 

 young plants may be transplanted into a bed or 

 other pots, and removed again in the autumn. This 

 Poppy rather belongs to the spring than the sum- 

 mer, since it generally flowers in IMay. From its 

 magnificence both in size and colour, it belongs 

 rather to the foreground of the shrubbery than to 

 the borders of choice flowers. The petals are 

 generally of a bright red, with black rays at the 

 base, but they sometimes vary to a reddish orange- 

 colour. It is no small recommendation to this 

 plant that it flowers freely under the shade of trees, 

 as we have but few plants that blossom in the 

 shade with a red flower. 



The Papaver Bracteatum, 



Which first flowered in this country in the Bota 

 nical garden at Chelsea, in 1820, is one of the most 



