16 Flower Colour and Characters of the Opium Poppy 



In addition to the above there occurs, at rare intervals, a form in 

 which the petal is much reduced in size. In the extreme case the petal 

 is sepaloid and the flower fails to open. Intermediate forms occur in 

 which the petals, though much reduced in size, open and have a distinct 

 petaloid appearance. This group of plants is referred to as the small 

 petalled forms (s) (PI. I, fig. 12). 



The laciniated petal. 



In numerous cultures the laciniated petal has occurred in an impure 

 condition and 'in a few of these counts have been made. Counts have 

 also been made in a few cases when one parent of a cross has possessed 

 the laciniated petal while the petal of the other parent was entire. 



Number of 

 families Laciniated Entire 



11 3471 1443 



Crosses 3 6565 1553 



Totals ... 10036 2996 



Batio 3-36 1 



From these figures it is probable that the laciniation is due to a 

 single factor showing complete dominance. 



The size of the petal. 



The ratio of small petalled plants to those bearing the normal petal 

 is, in the case of families impure for the character, 1 : 4'5 on a total of 

 over 45,000 plants and, in the case of the crosses, 1 : 39 on a total 

 of over 2,800 plants. These figures, considering the number of plants 

 recorded, indicate a very considerable excess of plants with the normal 

 petal — an excess which, occurring as it does with considerable regularity 

 in each family, appears to be too great to be fortuitous. 



The factor appears to be a simple one, however, and associated in 

 no way with the colour factors. Consequently, corresponding to each 

 colour form, there will occur an s form bearing the particular colour 

 factor, or factors, which develop that colour. Owing, however, to the 

 reduced size of the petal these forms are not fully capable of identifica- 

 tion by appearance. The white form is represented by a form having a 

 greenish colour (PI. I, fig. 12 b), while those corresponding to the Group I 

 colours are recognisable as distinct from other forms but are not distin- 

 guishable inter se (PI. I, fig. 12 a); that corresponding to the purple, 

 especially the MP, form is frequently so lightly coloured as to be hardly 

 separable from the white, while the forms corresponding to the colours 



