256 The Romance of Wild Flowers 
probability of placing pollen on the stigma from an 
earlier flower, the bee’s proboscis touches against the 
down-projecting processes from the anther-lobes, 
separates the lower edges of the lobes, and a little 
shower of the dry pollen is shaken down upon its 
proboscis, thus priming it for a similar office in 
another flower. Yet in spite of this highly special- 
ised structure, from the plant’s habit of growing 
largely in shady places cross-fertilisation is not by 
any means invariably effected ; but should the insects 
remain away, the Cow-wheat fertilises itself by the 
curving downwards of the style until the stigma is 
beneath the pollen-box, which ultimately opens of its 
own accord, and pollinates the stigma. 
The Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus crista-gallr) like- 
wise goes in for showering dry pollen upon the heads 
of its visitors, but adopts some differences in the 
details of the mechanism by which this is effected. 
Here again the yellow corolla is divided into an 
upper and a lower lip, but the tube is much wider, and 
is surrounded by the globose, bladder-like calyx. The 
upper lip is helmet-shaped, compressed from the sides, 
and arched above. Honey is secreted at the base of 
the ovary, and in order that the long style shall not 
come in the way of honey-seeking bees, it keeps 
close to the roof of this vault, and the stigma protrudes 
from the narrow opening of the flower. The lower 
lip serves as an alighting-platform, before which is 
the narrow entrance to the upper lp, and, within the 
filaments of the stamens rise up, their inner edges 
bearing sharp spines. The anthers come together 
just below the style, and open on their inner face, the 
pollen being prevented from falling by a fringe of 
