Papaver Orientale and its variety Papaver Bracteatum are the biggest of all Poppies. The flowers are brilliant scarlet, with a deep purple-black spot at the base of each petal. If you gather the buds just as they are about to burst, they will live in water for several days. After the plants have flowered they should be cut down, and they will reappear in the autumn. They have long tap-roots that are easily injured, but where they flourish they spread laterally—that is, they send up young plants at the side. These you can take up. Whenever a plant has a root like a carrot, it is called a ‘tap-root,’ and you must be careful not to break it. Poppies are easily raised from seed, but the plants will not flower till they are two years old. When you take up your seedlings, remove each one with as much earth as possible, and plant it where it is to remain. IRISES. Roughly speaking, Irises may be divided into two classes—those you grow from bulbs, and those that have rhizomes, or creeping stems. The bulbous Irises are often called Xiphions, and will not be considered in this chapter. There is a great variety amongst those that have rhizomes, or stems. They vary a good deal as to the soil and conditions they require. Some like damp, some hate it; some want stiff soil, some a light one; manure that feeds one Iris will poison another; and as for their blooming season, it extends throughout the year if you have a large collection. The Iris is sometimes called the ‘poor man’s Orchid,’ because it can be grown without trouble or expense, and has such beautiful and curious flowers. We will tell you the names of a few that you can get at any good nursery garden; but before you plant them you must consider that each kind is only in flower for a short time, and that for the greater part of the year a clump of Irises is a clump of sword-like leaves. They are sometimes placed amongst roses or in front of shrubs. The best known of all is the Iris Germanica, or German Flag. There are many varieties, and there is hardly a garden in or near London without some clumps of it, for even in soot and smoke it will increase and flower. The beautiful white, pale mauve Florentine Iris is the French Fleur-de-lis, and was freely planted in English gardens when the Bourbons were restored in 1830. It increases rapidly, and is easy of cultivation. Iris Stylosa is one of the most valuable, because it flowers in winter, and is very fragrant. Then, some of the dwarf Irises are most beautiful, and should have a corner in front of your border or on your rockery. Iris Pumila or its varieties grow some inches high, and flower in spring. Iris Olbiensis and Iris Chamæris belong to this group, and in warm localities flower at the end of April or early in May. These kinds all thrive best in an open, warm situation. Irises are easily divided in the autumn, but each piece should have an eye to grow from, a little knot or knob that is on the rhizomatous root.