The flower 



^i 



CHAPTER XlV 



THE FLOWER. — PART III: REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS 



Andrcecium. — The stamens, which collectively go 

 by the name of andrcecium, are the organs which bear 

 the male or fertilizing cells known as pollen-grains 

 or MICROSPORES. Each stamen (fig. 85) consists 

 usually of a slender stalk, called filament — f, which 

 corresponds to the petiole of a leaf, and an expanded 



B 



Fig:. 85. — Stamens, a, Adnate or dorsifixed. ri, Innate or basiiixed. c. Versatile. 

 D, Anther. li, Connective. F, Filament. 



head, called anther — d, which corresponds to the 

 blade of a leaf. Like the blade the anther is divided 

 into two longitudinal halves, called lobes, by a mid- 

 rib, called the connective, which is usually grooved 

 in the upper surface or face (ventrum) of the anther, 

 and ridged on the lower surface or back (dorsum), as 

 in leaves. The mode of attachment of the filament 

 to the anther varies in different plants: thus it is (i) 

 innate or basifixed — B when the filament is attached 

 to the base of the anther so that the connective is the 

 direct prolongation of the filament, as in Poppy and 

 Mustard ; (2) adnate or dorsifixed — a when the fila^ 

 ment is attached to the connective at the back of the 

 anther, as in dulee-champa {Magnolia) ; and (3) ver- 



