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NIGHT FLOWERS
There are some flowers that never see the sun. One of the most
curious is the "evening primrose." About six o'clock it suddenly
bursts open, with a popping sound, and at six next morning
closes.
If you watch that pretty flower, and listen, you can hear
this strange performance.
This is why it does so. The little calyx holds the petals in such
a way that the moment it turns back they are let loose. At
once it bursts out into full flower, with this funny noise, like
a pop-gun.
So the "night-blooming cereus" blossom in the night, only for
an
hour, giving out its sweet fragrance, and then dies. Just think
of never seeing the sun at all!
In a far Eastern country there is a kind of jasmine called the
"sorrowful tree." It droops as if sick in the daytime, and at
night grows fresh and bright. It opens its lovely flowers with a
very pleasant odor till morning, and then wilts and looks
wretched again.
****
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