DROPWORT 29 



This beautiful plant is usually 2 ft. in height. It is in flower in 

 June, July, and onwards up to October. It is perennial and is repro- 

 duced by division. 



No honey is secreted, but only pollen. The insects alight on the 

 stigma and cross-pollinate the plant. The petals are bent backwards and 

 downwards during the expansion of the flower, and are attached by very 

 narrow stalks so that they hang down under their own weight and 



DROPWORT (Spircea filipendula, L.) 



a bee's weight when visited. Before they open, the stamens are bent 

 outwards, and 9-12 broad styles spread out in the centre into a hori- 

 zontal plane forming a disk around which the stigmas stand directed 

 upwards and outwards. As the inner stamens remain directed upwards 

 till they open, this causes the plant to be self-pollinated. It is visited 

 by Halictus zonulus, H. sexnotat^is, Eristalis arbustorum, E. nemorum, 

 Helophilus floreus, Syritta pipiens, Trichius fasciatus. 



The seeds are few and contained in a follicle, and may be 

 dispersed around the parent plant by the wind or by browsing 

 animals. 



Dropwort is a lime-loving plant, preferring a lime soil, and may 



