Mar., 1909.] 
Removal of Showy Parts of Flowers. 
467 
METHOD OF CONDUCTING THE EXPERIMENT. 
This experiment is made up of a series of tests, which will be 
mentioned separately. By way of explanation when using the 
term test, test limb or test group, is meant that such a branch 
or group of blossoms has had the showy parts of the flowers 
removed, while by a check is meant a branch or group adjoining 
the test limb or group with blossoms untouched, but simply 
marked for comparison with the test. 
WEATHER CONDITIONS AS A FACTOR. 
Inasmuch as the weather conditions have been a prominent 
factor in important developments in this experiment from begin¬ 
ning to end, mention will be made of this in the separate tests. 
PART PLAYED BY INSECTS. 
As intimated, in the beginning of the experiment it was 
thought that insects would perhaps fail to reach those blossoms 
having the showy parts removed as considerable stress has been 
laid by various observers upon the present high development of 
flowers as to color and varied form, as due largely if not exclu¬ 
sively to insect visits. While as before mentioned the experi¬ 
ment has had to do with removal of showy parts, it must not be 
forgotton that these may also be protective. Too much stress 
has certainly been put upon such development of flowers as due 
to insect visits, and it will be shown that the visitation of insects of 
various orders is just as abundant after removal of the showy 
parts as before. In all of the tests made out of doors in the early 
part of spring very decided differences in amount of fruit setting 
was secured in check and test limbs. Thus on some test limbs 
there would be less than half as much fruit set as on the adjoin¬ 
ing check limb on which the blossoms were left untouched. But 
we would not be justified in saying that this lack of fruit was due 
to lack of insect visitation when we know that insects were flying 
and when we see them on those flowers having the corollas 
removed. Thus on June 9, observations were made on a syringia 
bush which was visited quite early in the morning before any 
insects were flying and a large number of flowers were deprived 
of corollas. By the time this was finished insects began to come 
in abundance, among them being the common hive bee, many 
species of the smaller Apidae, Diptera, and Wasps. The visits 
were as frequent apparently on the flower with corollas removed 
as on the blossoms with all the parts. In the afternoon the 
bush was again visited and found that the flowers with corollas 
removed were still attracting insect visitors as they were in the 
early morning hours, the smaller apidae being quite noticeable. 
Some of the more important of the separate tests will now be 
given somewhat more in detail. 
