t i SOY 6EANS IN fiENGAL, filHAR AND OKISSA. 



type has white flowers and this colour is com id on among the 

 American varieties, which are frequently impure for this 

 character. In young buds, of which the corolla is just showing- 

 colour, the pistil projects considerably bej^ond the stamens as they 

 just begin to dehisce ; but the stamens gradually elongate and in 

 the flowers the stamens will be found to be very nearly as long as 

 the pistil, and the stamens and pistil will be found to be completely 

 covered with yellow pollen grains. In some cases the pollen is 

 pushed out of the end of the keel by the elongation of the 

 stamens. The standard forms a roof which lies close over the 

 top of the keel. 



2. Pollination. — Piper and Morse found the Soy Bean 

 flower completely self-fertile, bagged plants setting pods as 

 perfectly as those in the open ; they also found that the flowers 

 are much visited by bees for the purpose of eating the pollen, 

 but cross-pollination is prevented by the abundance of the 

 pollen which covers the stigma almost as soon as the flowers 

 open. The observations made at Sabour in 1910 showed that 

 the seed would set perfectly well under bag, but the results of 

 bagging were not so satisfactory in 1911, probably due to the 

 heavier rainfall. From the above description of the flower it 

 also appears that the stamens open early and their elongation 

 brings large quantities of pollen in contact with the stigma; it 

 is therefore probable that the seeds are normally self-fertilized 

 unless visited by insects before the pollen has come into contact 

 with the stigma. 



Observations were made by Mr. H. L. Dutt on the insects 

 visiting the flowers, and it was found that the number of insects 

 visiting the flowers was largest between 10 and 12 a.m. Among 

 bees the following species were noticed : — Apis dorsata, F. ; Apis 

 indica, F. ; and Nomia cognata, Bing. Of these, Apis dorsata 

 was not common. It clung to the keel with its first two pairs of 

 lees, with its abdomen hanging down below the keel, while it 

 inserted its head between the standard and keel. Apis indica 

 was more commonly found than the above species. Nomia 

 cognata was the most common species visiting the flowers, as 



