628 



Handbook of Nature-Study 





Stpal 



Detail of the blossoms of the blue flag flower. 



I, Side-view of the passage to the nectar. 

 i. Looking directly into the iris flowers, 

 deceiving guide-lines in the petals. 



Note the 



In some varieties of iris 

 there is a plush rug along the 

 vestibule floor over which the 

 bee passes to get the nectar. 

 Through a lens, this plush is 

 exquisite — the nap of white 

 filaments standing up and tip- 

 ped with brilliant yellow. Vari- 

 ous theories as to the use of this 

 plush have been advanced, the 

 most plausible being that it is 

 to keep the ants out; but the 

 ant could easily pass along 

 either side of it. While holding 

 an iris in my hand, one day in 

 the garden, a bumblebee visited 

 it eagerly, never noting me; 

 after she had probed the nectar- 

 wells, she probed or nibbled 

 among the plush, working it 

 thoroughly on her way out. 

 Was she a foolish bee, or did 

 she find something there to 

 eat? What child will find if 

 other bees do this? 



LESSON CLIX 

 The Blue Flag or Iris 



Leading thought — Each iris flower has three side doors leading to the 

 nectar-wells; and the bees, in order to get the nectar, must brush off the 

 pollen dust on their backs. 



Method — While the blue flag is the most interesting of our wild species 

 of iris, yet the flower-de-luce, or the garden iris, is quite as valuable for 

 this lesson. The form of the flowers may be studied in the schoolroom, 

 but the pupils should watch the visiting insects in the garden or field. 



Observations — i. Look for the side doors of the iris blossom. Which 

 part of the flower forms the doorstep? How is it marked to show the 

 way in? Which part of the flower makes the arch above the door? 



2. Find the anther, and describe how it is placed. Can you see two 

 nectar- wells? Explain how a bee will become dusted with pollen while 

 getting the nectar. 



3. Where is the stigma? What is there very peculiar about the styles 

 of the iris? Can a bee, when backing out from the side door, dust the 

 Stigma with the pollen she has just swept off ? Why not? How does the 

 stigma of the next flower that the bee visits get some of the pollen from 

 her back? 



4. Look straight down into an iris flower. Can you see the three 

 petals? How are they marked? How would these lines on the petals 

 mislead any insect that was searching for nectar? 



5. Watch the insects visiting the iris. Do you know what they are? 

 What do they do ? 



