2C0 EVENING FLOWERS. 



the (linker foliage. Accordingly, we often find 

 two closely allied blossoms diflFering hardly at all " 

 in form or structure, but visited respectively by ' 

 bees or butterilics on the one hand and night- 

 flying moths on the other, and with their colors 

 strictly adai)ted to the varying tastes and habits 

 of their wijigcd associates. For example, the 

 common red cam])ion or day-lychnis yields its honey 

 for diurnal butterflies and bees; it is therefora 

 colored bright piiik, is scentless, and opens, as its 

 name imports, in the daytime, shutting up again 

 more or less completely as night api)roachcs. The 

 equally common white campion or night-lychnis, 

 on the contrary, yields its honey for nocturnal 

 moths ; it is, therefore, pure white in liue, it dis* 

 tils a sweet scent towards nightfall, and it opens 

 in the evening, fading or closing during the heat 

 of the day. Sometimes, as in the case of the 

 evening primrose, night-flt)wering blossoms are 

 very pale yellow instead of white ; but pale yellow 

 is equally well seen in the dusk, having, indeed, 

 a peculiar lialf-phosphorescent aj^jjearance in the 

 early evening, which renders it particularly useful 

 for attracting moths. In no case, however, are 

 night-flowering plants provided with spots, lines, 

 patches of color, or variegations upon the face of 

 the petals. These curious marks are confined to 

 day-flowering blossoms, where they serve as honey- 

 guides to point out the position of the nectaries, 



