ONE-FLOWERED WINTERGREEN; SINGLE 



BEAUTY 



Moneses uni flora (L.) Gray. 

 HEATH FAMILY 



The name Moneses is derived from Greek words meaning 

 "single delight" and is surely appropriate. Many flower lovers 

 consider this our most beautiful wild flower, and the finding of 

 a colony in bloom in the mossy spruce woods is the laying up of 

 a treasure in memory. Such a pleasure is within the, reach of 

 many, for the plant is widely distributed, although not as common 

 as the Pink Wintergreen. These glistening, waxy blossoms 

 with crisped edges, are usually white, but are said to be occasion- 

 ally rose-colored. They are shown natural size in the picture 

 opposite. 



This little plant is prudent as well as fair. Its chief purpose 

 is to produce seeds, and send them forth with a good chance of 

 success in life. The vitality that comes from cross-fertilization 

 is highly desirable, and in the early stage of bloom, the pendent 

 position of the flower with the relative arrangement of pistil 

 and stamens gives visiting insects every chance to carry pollen 

 from one flower to another, and also prevents self-fertilization. 

 But even self-fertilized seeds are better than none, hence in the 

 later stage, to make assurance doubly sure, the face of the flower 

 is tilted upward, even when cross-fertilization has already taken 

 place, giving the style an oblique postion and bringing some 

 of the anthers directly above the five-lobed stigma. These 

 anthers open by pores at one end, and the curve of their stalk 

 of filament is now changed so that the pores point downward, 

 and the pollen remaining in the sacks is shaken out upon the 



stigma below. Thus fertilization is doubly provided for 



surely a happy instance of the attempt by the individual plant 

 to carry on and extend the species. 



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