Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 80.djvu/386

yellow or white stamens, anthers and pollen, (4) never have the smallest particle of black about them. . . . It is rather interesting to reflect that the gardens of the whole world—rich man's and poor man's alike—are to-day furnished with poppies which are the direct descendents of one single capsule of seed raised in the garden of the Shirley Vicarage so lately as August, 1880.

It is certain that many more good variations would be discovered if trained people were everywhere on the lookout for them, and it must be remembered that among the cereals, for example, a good new strain will not be a conspicuous object like a red sunflower. There is here a fascinating field for amateurs, with possibilities of vastly increasing the wealth of mankind, or adding beauty to his gardens. Aside, however, from the discovery of new things, there is an almost unlimited field open for the crossing of known varieties, and their recombination along Mendelian lines. Any one who has a garden may do this work, and if nothing else comes of it, it will certainly give much pleasure and an insight into some of the most interesting biological problems of the day.