EVERLASTING FLOWERS 201 



been modified so that there are dull white, scar- 

 let, and yellowish varieties, as well as the more 

 usual crimson. 



These varieties, however, seem not to be well 

 fixed — they do not come true from the seed — 

 and the best varieties so far produced quite' 

 generally appear to be lacking in vitality — 

 possibly from overzealousness in selection by 

 division, the only way of maintaining and multi- 

 plying any special variety. 



My own experiments have more largely had 

 to do with hybridizing the orientals and the 

 opium poppies. 



Rather curiously I found that the pollen of 

 the opium poppy was ineffective when used on 

 the oriental, yet when a reciprocal cross was 

 effected, the pollen of the oriental being used 

 on the opium poppy, seed was produced, and 

 a great number of hybrids were soon under 

 observation. 



In the hybrid colony, comprising more 

 than thirty thousand of these plants, there was 

 as little variation in color as is usual with 

 the oriental poppy. None of the hybrids 

 were double, but they had several interesting 

 qualities. 



One striking peculiarity was that the hybrid 

 poppies produced in some cases enormous seed 



