246 



NATURE STUDY 



Clo\t:r (Trifolium pratense) : 



The flowers of the common red clover are so thickly 

 clustered in a head, that for a moment one might think 

 that it belonged to the Composites. A veiy slight ex- 

 amination of the 

 S^f-?.r,. single flowers shows 



that it belongs to 

 the Pea family. 



As in the other 

 members of this 

 family, the stip- 

 ules, or leaf-like 

 bodies at the base 

 of the leaf stalks, 

 are very conspicu- 

 ous. 



The calyx has 

 long, bristle-like 

 teeth. The tube of 

 the characteristical- 

 ly butterfly-like (pa- 

 pilionaceous) corolla 

 is very long, so that 

 it can only be 

 fertilized by long- 

 tongued insects, such as the bumble bee. Our honey 

 bee, however, gets round the difficulty most ingeniously 

 by biting the tube. It is well worth his while to take 

 this trouble, for the nectar is very abundant. 



"When the red clover Avas first imported to Australia, 

 it failed to set seed, because of the absence of insects 

 with tongues sufficiently long to fertilize it. This diffi- 

 culty was finally obviated by importing bumble bees. 



Red Clover, buds and blossom. 



