POPPY FAMILY 



PAPAVERACE^ 



Everyone who has seen the Poppies of our gar- 

 dens in blossom has had an exceUent opportunity 

 to note the chief characteristics of the Poppy 

 family. As the blossom buds appear each flower 

 is covered by two large sepals, which generally 

 fall off when the petals open. There are com- 

 monly four to six or more petals, which also fall 

 off rather early in the development of the flower, 

 being succeeded by the capsule-like fruit in which 

 the numerous tiny seeds are produced. All mem- 

 bers of the family are herbaceous plants and have 

 a sap which is milky or colored in appearance. 

 The group contains comparatively few of our wild 

 flowers, although some of them are very beautiful. 



Bloodroot. The Bloodroot is one of the ear- 

 liest, as it is one of the most evanescent, of the 

 spring blossoms. In the south it '' takes the winds 

 of Alarch with beauty " while farther north it 

 comes with the April showers. When the leaf 

 first appears it is curled over the blossom, enclos- 

 ing its delicate tissue until both leaf and flower 

 are well above the soil surface. Then, even be- 

 fore the leaf has time to flatten out, the bud shoots 

 upward to unfold its linear petals of glowing 



54 



