4*9 
Insectivorous Plants ( Part II). 
till it oozes down among the filaments and anthers, washing 
with it the pollen-grains. It then accumulates in the um- 
brelloid cavity, and forms there a nectar-bath of pollen. Now 
each petal has a narrowed base inserted into the receptacle, 
close against and beneath the stamens ; the petal then widens 
out and passes down straight, or rather obliquely, for about 
half an inch to an inch (varying in different species). It then 
bends outwards, and, expanding considerably, hangs over as 
a pendant banner between the two adjacent incurved angles of 
the umbrella-shaped style. Such being the course and shape 
of each of the five petals, it follows that an insect that has 
crawled up the flower-stalk or alighted directly on the outer 
calycine whorl will reach the interior most readily by passing 
through the opening between two adjacent petals, but to do 
this it must step first on to the outer surface of the umbrelloid 
style, and, guided by the hairs of the style-surface, which 
point towards the stigmatic knobs, it must creep round the 
edge of the style at or near the knobs, so that it must in many 
cases touch them. If, therefore, an insect has already visited 
a flower, the nectar-soaked pollen that is smeared over its body 
can scarcely fail to be rubbed against the stigma. Reaching 
the interior of the style, it will again revel in a nectar-bath 
and again be abundantly smeared, but on leaving it can most 
easily get out by rounding the edge of the style considerably 
below the stigmatic knob, since the latter is in the way of its 
freely mounting out, and the style-arms themselves are often 
incurved. 
I have not been able to satisfy myself as to when the 
stigmas mature. The stamens, as above noted, begin to dehisce 
before or just as the flower opens, but at that time the 
stigmatic surfaces do not appear more or less fit for pollina- 
tion than at a later period. Some gardeners have experienced 
difficulty in getting the Sarracenias to seed under cultivation 
even when cross-fertilization was attended to, but the fact 
that many hybrids have been obtained, indicates the possi- 
bility of definite results if fertilization could properly be 
effected. It occurred to me that the possible explanation was 
F f 
