60 



mSTOKY OF THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM 



to the ovary. Hence, we may account for the 

 peculiar care with wliich these organs have been 

 guarded by the hand of nature from external 

 injury ; sometimes this is effected by means of 

 a nodding or pendant flower, as in the case of 

 the crown imperial, and the cowslip, in which 

 tlie intention of nature is the more evident in 

 that the flower stalk after the time of flowering 

 becomes gradually erect, even though loaded 

 with fniit ; sometimes it is eiFeoted by means of 

 a capacity inherent in the petals, of folding 

 themselves together in the night, and opening 

 themselves out again in the morning, as in the case 

 of many of the Papilionaceous and compound 

 flowers, particularly tlie pea and dandelion. 

 But one of the best examples of this capacity is 

 that of the white water lily, which closing its 

 petals as the sun begins to get low, and shrink- 

 ing into itself, reposes its lovely blossom upon the 

 surface of the water till the morning, when it 

 again raises its head, sometimes to the height of 

 several inches, and presents its expanded petals 

 to the noon-day sun. A phenomenon still more 

 singular is related by Theoplirastus, as occurring 

 in what he calls the lotus, perhaps the nymphea 

 lotus of Linnteus, of which he says, though only 

 on report, that in the Euphrates the flower keeps 

 sinking till midnight, when it again begins to 

 ascend, but more rapidly as day advances, ele- 

 vating itself to the surface about sunrise, and 

 afterwards expanding and rearing its head high 

 above the water. Some flowers are so very sus- 

 ceptible to changes of atmosphere, as to shut up 

 their petals even upon the approach of rain. 

 One of the most remarkable examples of this 

 sort is that of the anagallis arvensis, or poor 

 man's weather glass, which appellation it seems 

 to have obtained from its peculiar susceptibility, 

 always shutting up its blossoms even upon the 

 slightest symptoms of approaching rain, except 

 in the case of a, sudden thunder storm, when 

 it happens to be taken by surprise. But Sir 

 J. E. Smith says he has reason to think that 

 its susceptibihty is apt to be impaired, and some- 

 times totally destroyed, by long continued wet ; 

 and Linnteus remarks, that flowers in general 

 lose this susceptibility when the anthers have 

 discharged their pollen. The pollen is generally 

 discharged from the anther in such a manner as 

 to ensure its dispersion, at least to any pistil 

 that is near it, and at such a time as pistils of 

 the same species are best fitted to receive it. 

 When the anther has given indications of ma- 

 tmity by the distended appearance of its cells, 

 the valves of which the cells consist become 

 daily more and more indurated, tiU at last they 

 fly open with a sudden jerk, and discharge the 

 contained pollen as if by the force of an elastic 

 spring. Tlie cypress tree affords a good example 

 of this, when tlie pollen is thrown out with such 

 force, and in such abundance, as to resemble a 



little cloud of smoke ; but the same circum- 

 stances may be observed in the discharge of the 

 pollen from the male catkins of the birch and 

 willow, particularly if they are suddenly shaken, 

 or agitated by the wind, in which case a portion 

 of the pollen can scarcely fail to alight upon the 

 pistil-bearing and contiguous flowers, or to be 

 wafted to them if even at some distance. But 

 at the season of the discharge of the mature 

 pollen, the pistil is also peculiarly adapted to 

 receive it, as is evident from the state of the 

 stigma. Sometimes this adaptation consists in 

 the stigmas then assuming a peculiar form or 

 shape, as is exemplified in the pansy and the 

 gratiola marh/nia, both of which are furnished 

 with what botanists call a gaping stigma, opening 

 as if to receive the pollen, yet not in the early 

 stage of its gxowth, nor during its decline, but 

 in the intermediate stage only when the pollen 

 is ripe. But the adaptation generally consists 

 in the stigmas being then moistened with an 

 exuding and viscous fluid, except in the case of 

 a hispid stigma, in which no such exndation is 

 discoverable, as is peculiarly well exemplified in 

 the case of the amaryllis formosissima. This 

 beautiful flower, which when fiiHy expanded is 

 pendulous, exhibits the curious phenomenon of 

 the exuding of a fine and limpid fluid from the 

 surface of the stigma every morning, which 

 augments as the day advances, and forms about 

 noon a drop so large that one would think it in 

 danger of falling to the ground. It is re-absorbed, 

 however, by the style about three or four o'clock 

 in the afternoon, and again protruded about ten 

 o'clock on the following morning. Tliis limpid 

 drop, which is thus regularly exuded and absorbed, 

 is intended, no doubt, in the economy of the 

 flower, to facilitate the process of impregnation, 

 by catching a portion of the pollen as it is dis- 

 charged from the anther, and conducting it to 

 the ovary. It is at least certain that the poUen 

 reaches it, and is detained by it, as a number of ' 

 drenched and disfigured particles may generally 

 be seen adhering to the surface of the stigma 

 after the drop has been absorbed. Perhaps it 

 may even have some effect in forwarding the 

 explosion of the poUen, which is known to be 

 also strongly affected by moisture. As the 

 stamens and pistils grow and come to maturity 

 together, so they also decay together; the stamens 

 shrinking and withering immediately after the 

 anthers have discharged" their poUen, and the 

 stigma withering also and falling off much about 

 the same time, even when the style remains an 

 appendage to the fruit. 



The relative proportion, situation, and mutual 

 sjTupathies of the stamens and pistils, are such 

 as seem expressly calculated to facilitate the 

 process of impregnation. In pendulous flowers 

 the pistil is generally longest, as in the case of 

 the lily ; but in upright flowers the stamens are 



