Budding clocks
The Invention Promotion Company of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, has patented a flower garden that func- tions as a clock -a modem version of an idea cooked up by Linnaeus, the 18th-century Swedish botanist and father of taxonomy. The flowers of catnip open between 6 am and 7 am, orange hawkweed follows between 7 am and 8 am, field marigolds open up at 9 am, and vari- eties of Helichrysum wake up at 10 am. Other varieties follow, with Convolvulus opening at noon. The inventors do not claim that their colourful timepieces will challenge a digital watch for accuracy.