Grasses 165 



Meantime we call these little green affairs 

 " bracteoles" when they stand beside the florets of 

 the yarrow and " flowering glumes" and "paleae" 

 when they enclose the tiny blossoms of the grasses. 



But they occupy a similar post in the plant 

 economy everywhere. They are humble attend- 

 ants upon the true flowers, standing close by as if 

 to guard and screen them. 



We shall see the oat-blossom itself when the 

 flowering glume has been removed. Its most con- 

 spicuous parts are a pistil and three stamens. The 

 anthers are large, as in all the grasses, and they 

 are balanced like see - saw boards, on the tips of 

 slender filaments. 



So they oscillate and sway at the faintest 

 breath, shaking their pollen out to the wind. The 

 filaments, which are as fine as gossamer, are also 

 stirred by the faintest zephyr. 



And, lastly, the spikelet itself dangles at the 

 end of a delicate stalk, which forms part of an 

 open, swaying flower-cluster. So the wind has its 

 will with the oat-blossoms, and its force is used to 

 the utmost in shaking the stamens and scattering 

 the pollen. The pollen is light and dry, so that 

 it can readily be detached from the anthers, and 

 blown away 



