Blossom and Seed 167 



with many stamens, such as the rose, ranunculus, anem- 

 one, or blossom with many florets, such as the daisy 

 and dahlia, which are most commonly doubled by culti- 

 vation. 



Nature does not ^tow many double flowers, for wild 

 plants need seed, and double flowers produce little if any, 

 seed being sacrificed to petals. Geraniums, which have 

 only ten stamens, are among the plants, however, which 

 have a tendency to increase the number of their petals; 

 and among the single blossoms, one may often be seen 

 with a petal or two more than the rest, or an extra small 

 petal, which is half-way between a petal and a stamen. 

 If the seed from this blossom were saved, some of the 

 next generation of plants might have still more petals and 

 still fewer stamens, and by carefully cultivating those 

 having these peculiarities the gardener would at last 

 obtain quite double blossoms. The orange day-lily, too, 

 may sometimes be seen with one or more stamens enlarged 

 into small petals and bearing an imperfect anther. 



But we have now to see what it is which changes the 

 little, immature grains in the hollow part of the pistil into 

 seeds, capable of growing into independent plants. At 

 first they are mere specks of matter to all appearance, and 

 so they will remain unless they are brought into close con- 

 tact with some of the dust contained in the sacs borne by 

 the stamens. This is the special stimulant which they 

 need to make them develop, and if it be kept from them 

 they will simply shrivel and die, for nothing else will do 

 instead. 



This dust, or pollen, is contained in the anther, which 

 is usually seated, or more often perched, and apparently 

 very loosely perched, too, on the end of a stalk. 



