106 THE HUMAN SIDE OF PLANTS 



open the naked-stalked poppy, the copper-coloured 

 day-lily, the smooth sow-thistle, and the blue-flow- 

 ered sow-thistle ; while within the following minutes, 

 until six, the morning-glory and the common nip- 

 plewort unfold. 



The spotted cat's-ear, the major convolvulus, and 

 the great water-lily, Victoria Regia, open between 

 six and seven in the morning. 



Directly following these, and at seven o'clock, 

 come the African marigold and the garden lettuce ; 

 at eight the shepherd's weather-glass and the pro- 

 liferous pink; and sharply at nine o'clock the field 

 marigold awakes. 



Between nine and ten in the morning come the 

 purple sandwort, the creeping mallow, and the 

 chickweed ; at ten, one of the Mesembryanthemums; 

 at eleven, the Star-of -Bethlehem; and at twelve, the 

 ice-plant. 



Noon sees the closing of the first flowers and be- 

 gins the recording of the "negative" or closing time 

 instead of the "positive" or opening hours; al- 

 though there are plants, such as the four-o'clock, 

 and the primroses, and also the night-bloomers, 

 with their own regular times, which open after the 

 noon hour. 



The late-flowering dandelion, the hawkweed 

 picris, the Alpine hawk's-beard, the blue-flowered 



