310 Field, Forest, and Wayside Flowers 



of peculiar form (Fig. 8;). Each nectary is 

 hooded, and inside each is an incurved horn (Fig. 

 87, b). Within the circle of honey-jars are the 

 five stamens, which are fixed to the base of the 

 corolla, and stand in contact with each other, sur- 



FIG. 87. Trap of the milkweed 



a, single blossom seen from the side, showing" the corolla turned backward and 

 the ring of upright nectaries ; , single blossom seen from above ; c, the 

 stamen ring, showing one of the openings between the stamens, and the disk at 

 its upper end; d, a freshly removed disk, with its attached pollen masses; 

 e and _/", positions taken by the drying pollen masses as they are carried 

 through the air by insects. 



rounding and enclosing the pistil (Fig. 87, c). On 

 top of the ring of stamens is a large five-sided 

 disk, which keeps the pollen from being wet with 

 rain or dew. The whole stamen system is like a 

 little tub or firkin, standing in the midst of the 



