THE FLOWER 199 



occur indiscriminately and without order, or in regular suc- 

 cession between the alternating stamens ? Examine one of 

 the little powdery yellow bodies at the tip of the stamens, 

 and see whether they face toward the pistil or away from it. 



Remove one of the stamens and sketch as it api)ears under 

 the lens, labeling the powdery yellow body at the top, 

 anther, and the stalklike body supporting it, filament. Usu- 

 ally the filaments are threadlike, whence their name, but 

 sometimes, as in the star-of-Bethlehem, they are flattened 

 and look like altered petals. See if you can find such a one. 

 What would you infer from this fact as to the possible origin 

 of the stamens? (100.) 



Notice the two little sacs or pouches that compose the 

 anther, as to their shape and manner of opening, or dehisc- 

 ing, to discharge the powder ^^ ^^,.^^ 

 contained in them. This /J f\ ^^^ i I 

 powder is called pollen, and %„,4ii / ^( W \kJy 

 will be seen under the lens 275 276 277 278 



to consist of Httle yellow , Figs. 275-278 -Forms of poUen: 275. 



from mimidus; 27b, star cucumber ; 277 

 grams. These are of differ- wUd balsam apple ; 278, hibiscus. (After 



ent shapes, colors, and sizes, ^^"^•) 



in different plants, and their surface often appears beautifully 

 grooved and striate when sufficiently magnified. Place some 

 of the pollen under the microscope and draw two of the 

 grains, with their markings. In the hibiscus and others of 

 the mallow family, they are large enough to be seen with a 

 hand lens. 



214. The pistil. — Remove the stamens and sketch the 

 pistil as it stands on the receptacle. Label the round or 

 oval enlargement at the base, ovary, the threadlike appendage 

 rising from its center, style, and the tip end of the style, 

 stigma. In some specimens the style may be very short, or 

 wanting. In this case the stigma is sessile, and the pistil 

 consists of stigma and ovary alone. If the stigma is lobed 

 or parted, count the divisions and see if there is any corre- 

 spondencfc between them and the number of petals and sepals, 



