318 



GENERAL SCIENCE 



the process of reproduction in 

 flowering plants, it is necessary 

 to make a study of the parts 

 of a flower (Figure 274). The 

 outer whorl of the leaf parts 

 of a flower is called the calyx 

 or cup of the flower (Figure 

 275). Each division of the calyx 

 is called a sepal. These are 

 often green in color. The next 

 whorl of parts just inside the 

 calyx is called the corolla. Each 

 leaf of the corolla is called a 

 petal. These parts of the flower 

 are not essential for the pur- 

 poses of reproduction, but they 

 are the parts which make flow- 

 ers so attractive for decorative 



FIG. 273. A Peach Twig. 



purposes. 



The essential parts of the 

 flower are the stamens and 

 the carpels. Each stamen 

 consists of a supporting stalk 

 called the filament. The 

 anther is the enlargement 

 at the end of the filament 

 (Figure 276). The pollen, 

 which resembles yellow pow- 

 der, grows in the anther. 



The carpels of a flower 

 considered collectively are FlG - 274. Diagram showing the 



, ., , /T ,. rti-ri^N Parts of an Ideal Flower. 



called the pistil (Figure 277). o anther; cor carpeU . ^ petal; 



A Simple pistil has but One s, sepals ; at, stamens. 



