Wild-Flower Study 



517 



a guard to keep out undesirable insects like ants, I am convinced that it 

 is also useful in brushing the pollen from the tongues of the insect visitors. 



Some species of violets are 

 very fragrant, while others have 

 little odor. The color of the 

 anthers also differs with differ- 

 ent species. The children should 

 be interested in watching the 

 development of the seeds from 

 the flower. The seed-pods are 

 three-lobed, each one of these 

 lobes dividing lengthwise, with a 

 double row of seeds within. 

 Each lobe curls back and thus 

 scatters the seed. 



At the base of most of the 

 species of violets can be found 

 the small flowers which never 

 open; they have no petals, but 

 within them the pollen and the 

 pistil are fully developed. The 

 flowers seem to be developed 

 purposely for self-pollenation, 

 and in the botanies they are 

 called cleistogamous flowers; in 

 some species they are on upright 

 stems, in others they lie flat. 

 There is much difference in the 

 shape of the rootstock in the 

 different species of violet; some 

 are delicate and others are 

 strong, and some are creeping. 



LESSON CXXIII 

 The Violet 



Leading thoitght — Each violet 

 flower has a well of nectar, with 

 lines pointing to it so that the in- 

 sects may find it. They also 

 have down near their roots, 

 flowers which never open, which 

 are self-poUenated and develop 

 seeds. 



Method — To make this work 

 of the greatest use and interest, 

 each pupil should make a port- 

 folio of the violets of the locality. 

 This may be in the form of 

 pressed and mounted specimens, 

 or of water-color drawings. In 

 either case, the leaf, leaf-stem. 



The Canada white violet, a leafy-stemmed 



species. 



Photo by Verne Mortoa. 



