Editing Dianthus caryophyllus (section)

==Colours==
[[File:Moondust-carnation.JPG|thumb|left|The [[Transgene|transgenic]] cultivar 'Moondust']]
Carnations do not naturally produce the pigment [[delphinidin]], and thus a blue carnation cannot occur by [[natural selection]] or be created by traditional [[plant breeding]]. It shares this characteristic with other widely sold flowers like [[Hybrid tea rose|rose]]s, [[Lilium|lilies]], [[tulip]]s, [[chrysanthemum]]s and [[gerbera]]s.

Around 1996, a company, [[Florigene]], used [[genetic engineering]] to extract certain genes from [[petunia]] and [[Antirrhinum|snapdragon]] flowers to produce a blue-mauve carnation, which was commercialized as ''Moondust''.  In 1998, a violet carnation called ''Moonshade'' was commercialized.<ref name=physorg>Phys.Org website. 4 April 2005 [http://www.physorg.com/news3581.html Plant gene replacement results in the world's only blue rose]</ref> As of 2004, three additional blue-violet/purple varieties have been commercialized.<ref>{{cite web |title= GM Carnations in Australia. A Resource Guide |publisher= Agrifood Awareness Australia |date= November 2004 |url= http://www.afaa.com.au/resource_guides/Resource_Carnations.pdf |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120508021951/http://www.afaa.com.au/resource_guides/Resource_Carnations.pdf |archive-date= 8 May 2012}}</ref>