Latent Characters 241 



existence of red species in the same genus, or 

 in some rare cases, in nearly allied genera. 

 Colors that are not systematically present in 

 the group to which a white species belongs are 

 only produced in its varieties in extremely rare 

 cases. 



We may quote some special rules, indicated 

 by Hildebrand. Blue species are in the main 

 very rare, and so are blue varieties of white 

 species also. Carnations, Asiatic or cultivated 

 buttercups {Ranunculus Asiaticiis), Mirabilis, 

 poppies, Gladiolus, Dahlia, and some other 

 highly cultivated or very old garden-plants have 

 not been able to produce true blue flowers. But 

 the garden-anemone {Anemone coronaria) has 

 allies with very fine blue flowers. The common 

 stock has bluish varieties and is allied to Aubre- 

 tia and Hesperis, and gooseberries have a red 

 form, recalling the ordinary currant. In nearly 

 all other instances of blue or red varieties every 

 botanist will be able to point out some allied red 

 or blue species, as an indication of the probable 

 source of the varietal character. 



Dark spots on the lower parts of the petals 

 of some plants afford another instance, as in 

 poppies and in the allied Glaucium, where they 

 sometimes occur as varietal and in other cases 

 as specific marks. 



The yellow fails in many highly developed 



