CHAPTER VI 

 THE MORPHOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF FLOWERS 



1. The Distinctive Features of Flowers 



So prominent and distinctive a part of the plant is the 

 flower, that to most people the study of flowers and the 

 study of Botany are practically identical. The error of this 

 belief is sufficiently attested by the proportions of the chap- 

 ters in this book. Functionally the flower is the plant's 

 principal organ of reproduction, being especially devoted to 

 effecting fertilization, the central feature of sexual reproduc- 

 tion. It is in connection with this function that flowers 

 have developed the beautiful colors, attractive fragrance, 

 and striking forms to which they owe their aesthetic charm. 

 There seems indeed no limit to the variety they present in 

 these respects. 



In color, flowers taken collectively display by far the great- 

 est variegation found anywhere in nature; and somewhere 

 among them could probably be matched any hue of the 

 chromatic scale. Yet some true flowers lack any special 

 color, being green like the foliage, as with Grasses, Birches, 

 and Pines, which plants indeed are not popularly known to 

 have flowers at all. Whatever the bright colors, they have 

 usually this feature in common, that they contrast markedly 

 with the background, being oftenest white or yellow if seen 

 against foliage, blue or red if raised above it, and white if the 

 flowers open at night. Furthermore, showy flowers usually 

 stand out well beyond the foliage, and more than that, so ad- 

 just themselves as to face the brightest light. Thus flowers 

 seem especially fitted to attract the eye, as indeed we shall 

 presently find that they are. 



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