PAPAVER. 



an alpine Poppyling confined entirely to the Pyrenees, differs for the 

 worse from all these last in having smaller flowers (fragrant though they 

 be), and very variable in colour from orange to pink, with narrower petals 

 forming a Maltese cross when expanded, instead of a rounded cup. 

 The hairy leaves (there is a hairier variety Endressi) are more divided 

 than in P. pyrenaicum, but not nearly so much so, nor so finely, as in P. 

 alpinum, and they are green, not glaucous — thus leading us on to the 

 next allied species, the big brother of all these, the Iceland Poppy. But 

 P. nudicaule, in its typical forms, is really too common and large and 

 rampageous and pervasive ; so that its admission to the rock-garden 

 (unless its extent be specially huge) is almost as bad a confession of 

 weakness as the admission of Meconopsis cambrica. At the same 

 time it is lovely in itself, and has dozens and scores of variations, 

 alike in habit, size, and colour — P. radicatum, Rottboll, being an 

 important sub-species of this, occupying Arctic America to the 

 exclusion of all rivals. And Alpine Asia abounds in more. 



A strong generic likeness marks the perennial Poppies of the Pilosum 

 group, all being valuable for decorating out-of-the way corners, though 

 in their habits a little lush and floppy for the choicer places. P. spi- 

 catum is a most curious species, with its brick-red flowers sitting alter- 

 nately up the stem, close upon it in the axil of a bract, with the effect 

 of a waved spike ; the whole plant is shaggy in felted white down. 

 It differs from P. pilosum, not only in this and in its habits of flower, 

 but in its stem-leaves that do not embrace their stem (except in the 

 variety P. s. luscJianicum (P. Heldreichii, Stapf.), where they do begin 

 to think about doing so). The plant comes from the Mediterranean 

 region, and interbreeds with P. pilosum, the results being P. Balan- 

 saeanum and P. Boissierianum, this last being clad in dense tawny 

 fur. P. pilosum (P. olympicum, Sibth. and Sm.) is terribly variable ; it 

 is in type tall and lax and hairy and bright -green, with large brick- 

 red or fierce orange flowers borne singly on long foot-stalks from a freely 

 branching stem of 2 feet or so, in a loose shower, and making a very 

 handsome effect. The long oval leaves are soft and velvety, and 

 irregularly, deeply scalloped all round their edges, while on the stem 

 they are smaller and almost embrace it. This is a species of the Medi- 

 terranean Basin in its Eastern half, and offers many shades passing 

 into its other relations. The next indeed, P. apokrinomenon, has but 

 a shadowy existence, its very name implying that it hardly has a right 

 to one, being a mere transition from the last to the next species (and 

 this, too, often merged into P. pilosum). This is P. Heldreichii, which 

 replaces P. pilosum in northern Asia Minor, and differs from it in smaller 

 habit, smaller flowers, narrower capsule, and less irregular scalloping 



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