Pollination: or How to Cross Plants 281 



wither and die before the stigmatic lobes open. In other 

 cases, the stigma matures first, although this is not the 

 usual condition. 



Manipulating the flowers. We are now familiar with 

 the essential principles in the pollination of flowers. 

 Before a person proceeds to operate on a flower with which 

 he is unfamiliar, he should carefully study its structure, 

 so as to be able to locate the different organs, and to dis- 

 cover when the pollen and the stigma are ready for work. 



The first and last rule in the pollinating of plants is this : 

 Exercise every precaution to prevent any other pollina- 

 tion than that which you design to give. The anthers, 

 therefore, must be removed from the flower before it 

 opens. This removal of the anthers is known as emascula- 

 tion. Just as soon as this is done, tie up the flower securely 

 in a bag to protect it from foreign pollen, which may be 

 brought by winds or insects. As soon as the stigma is 

 ripe, remove the bag and apply the desired pollen, placing 

 the bag on the flower again, where it must remain until 

 the seeds begin to form. The stigma may be receptive 

 the day following emasculation, or, perhaps, not until a 

 week afterwards. Much depends on the age of the bud 

 when emasculation takes place. It is commonly best 

 to delay emasculation as long as possible and not have 

 the flower open; but the operator must be sure that 

 the anthers do not discharge or that insects do not get 

 into the flower before he has emasculated it. The bud at 

 B, in Fig. 82, is nearly ready to emasculate. The older 

 buds on the top of the spike of bugbane, Fig. 85, are 

 ready to operate ; and so is the bud seen at the left in 

 Fig. 86. 



