292 ] The Fascination of Flowers 



The youngster can also notice the way the plants sometimes 

 change their position according to the direction of the source of 

 light and how, when a new length of stem grows, its young leaf 

 bends and turns its stalk to escape, as much as possible, the shade 

 of surrounding leaves. The leaves of nasturtiums, begonias, and 

 others, are noticeably adept at keeping in a favorable light. 



Out-of-doors there are some plants, such as one of the wild 

 lettuces, which fix their leaves so consistently in a north-south 

 plane that they are known as "compass plants." 



Some "Dew" Doesn't Fall: Going out-of-doors in the early morn- 

 ing, a child always notices the dew, with some such exclamation 

 as, "Look how much dew has fallen!" But like as not the drops 

 of moisture he calls dew, did not "fall"; they are probably water 

 that passed out of the grass and leaves as water vapor and con- 

 densed into drops as it emerged. If the night was humid and cool, 

 the vapor could not become part of the air as rapidly as it came 

 out of the leaves. 



What Flowers Are For 



There is much that a child can learn from house plants, but 

 the real fun of studying flowers is mostly found outdoors. There 

 he can watch insects traveling from one bloom to another in quest 

 of nectar. As he observes flowers in numbers, he will see countless 

 interesting variations in the shapes and colors of petals and in 

 the forms of complete flowers. But there is a purpose in flowers 

 beyond mere looks, beautiful though they are. 



A child may be old enough to understand that what flowers 

 are really for is to continue the life of the plants that bear them; 

 yet, looking at a blooming garden and with real curiosity in his 

 voice, he will ask, "How do they?" 



How FLOWERS DEVELOP SEEDS 



A brief answer is that flowers produce seeds. But before 

 a flower can produce seeds, it must receive grains of pollen that 

 will fertilize it. What is involved in the fertilization of a flower? 

 To answer this question, we must be familiar with the different 

 parts that make up a flower. 



