PRODUCING A NEW COLOR 297 



The fact that a certain flower, for example, 

 may vary in color from bright scarlet to pure 

 white, and from salmon to blue, while still retain- 

 ing the botanical characteristics that would lead 

 any florist to classify it as a Shirley poppy, in 

 itself demonstrates the comparative unimpor- 

 tance of any particular color in the scheme of 

 plant economy. 



There may be special conditions that make a 

 red flower fit into its environment a little better 

 than a yellow flower, or vice versa; but either red 

 flowers or yellow ones or pink ones or white 

 will attract the insects, and thus fulfill the 

 purpose for which color in the flower has been 

 developed. 



That, doubtless, explains why it is relatively 

 easy to modify the color of a flower, within cer- 

 tain limits, and what amounts to saying the 

 same thing why the same species of flower may 

 so often be found presenting different colors or 

 shades of color in different localities, or under 

 varying conditions of cultivation. But perhaps 

 the chief interest of the entire matter of the 

 coloration of flowers, and specifically the chief 

 interest of such a development as that of the blue 

 poppy, is found in the suggestions given as to 

 the underlying principles of heredity involved 

 in color transformations. 



