CHAPTER VII 



ANNUALS 

 " Our little life is rounded with a sleep. " 



IF I were compelled to choose for cultivation 

 one flower only from the list of annuals, I 

 would without hesitation select the Poppy. 

 The seedsmen have done, and still are doing, all 

 in their power, apparently, to confuse the flower- 

 grower in regard to this genus, and their lists are 

 filled with fanciful names of species and varieties 

 to such an extent that it is often impossible for 

 one to know what he will get when he buys the 

 seed. Let me do what I can to unravel the 

 snarl. 



Papaver somniferum, the Opium Poppy of the 

 East, is a well-recognized species, and is not 

 easily mistaken for any other in cultivation. The 

 plants are generally taller than any other species, 

 and are invariably heavier in stalk and thicker in 

 leaf. The leaves are smooth, wavy, of a more 

 bluish green than any other species, and are what 



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