186 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[Mat, 
two or three feet long. This species is found as 
far north as Virginia, while S. purpurea grows 
all through the Northern States, and in cold 
places among the mountains. Southward. 
Some time ago w’e saw in an English periodi¬ 
cal some engravings showing how the leaves of 
the Sarracenia could be 
made useful in the arts 
of design. We had two 
of the subjects copied, 
and regret that we have 
forgotten the name of 
the artist, or we would 
give him credit for them. 
Figure 2 is an ingeni¬ 
ous adaptation of the 
leaf in a design for a 
gravy boat. Fig. 3 shows 
how this form may 
be adapted to a vase, 
or by turning the lip 
outward, it might serve 
as a pitcher. If those 
who design patterns for 
furniture and utensils, as 
well as those who make 
figures for cai'pets and 
wall paper, would take 
a few hints from na¬ 
ture, we shotild be sur¬ 
rounded by more pleasing forms than at present. 
Since the above was in type, we have seen in 
American journals, wdiich ought to know better, 
an article from the English papers, giving an 
account of this plant as a specific cure for small 
pox.—This thing started in Nova Scotia several 
years ago, and we supposed it had died out. 
Suffice it to say that direct experiments in hospi¬ 
tals have shown it to be without any efficacy 
whatever as a remedy in small pox. 
Insects and Fertilization. 
SY prof. ASA GRAY, CAMBRIDGE, MASS. 
■■ [The part played by insects in the fertilization of flow¬ 
ers, l.e., in tlie carrying of the pollen or ferlilizing dust 
from the anther, which produces it, to llie stigma, or that 
part of the pisiil designed to receive it, is a subject now 
receiving rniicli attention at llie hands of naturalists. 
It not only affords an interesting study to the curious 
observer, but tlie fact itself is of importance to the cul¬ 
tivator, as some of our products depend upon the aid of 
Insects for tlieir perfection, and probably tlie fruitfulness 
of many of tliem is largely influenced by the abundance 
or scarcity of bees and other honey and pollen seekers. 
Professor Gray, of Harvard University, thedistingnished 
botanist, has oonsented to give us in a series of articles, 
his observations upon the relations of insects to plants, 
which we are sure our readers will accept with pleasure. 
—Eds.) 
Fig. 1 .—Flower of the Dutchmak’s Pipe, Aristolochla 
Slpho. 
Far the greater number of flowers are her¬ 
maphrodite, i.e., have the stamens and pistils 
together. And the anthers, which contain the 
pollen, are placed so near the stigma, which is 
to be impregnated, and often in such position in 
respect to it, th.at it seems evident that Nature 
intended the stigma to be acted upon, in gen¬ 
eral, by the pollen of the same flower. Self- 
fertilization, as we may call it, seems to be very 
generally and very surely provided for in the 
case of hermaphrodite blossoms. Indeed, spec¬ 
ial pains appear to have been taken, in a great 
variety of cases, to make this result certain. 
Take a pea-blossom, for example, and all the 
flowers of that numerous family, where the 
anthers and the stigma are shut up together in 
a sort of pocket made of the two front petals. 
Or the showy Dicentra of the gardens, and all 
flowers of that firmily, "where the anthers anck. 
the stigma are placed close together in a little 
sac made of two spoon-shaped petals, the bowls 
placed face to face, and united at the tip. Or 
the Dutchman’s Pipe, shown in fig. 1, where 
the anthers grow fast to the stigma, and are se¬ 
cluded in the bottom of a long, crooked, and 
narrow-mouthed tube. We might mention 
Orchis-flowers, also; but their parts look so dif¬ 
ferent from those of ordinary blossoms, that 
they are not so readily understood by those who 
are not botanists. But take such a familiar flow¬ 
er as that of any Iris, figures 3, 4, and 5. Here 
the stigmas are three little plates, one under 
each of the three petal-like branches of the style 
which occupy the center of the blossom, and 
curve over in front of the three outermost and 
largest leaves of the flower. And close to each 
stigma is a stamen, its long anther almost touch¬ 
ing the stigma behind it. Here surely, one 
would say, the pollen shed from the anther 
must be intended to fall upon the stigma, which 
it is almost in contact with. This seems to be 
the very purpose of the arrangement. But 
closer inspection reveals a difficulty. The an¬ 
ther opens and sheds its pollen only on the face 
which is turned away from the stigma. On the 
other hand, the face of the broad stigma "which 
alone can receive the pollen, is the one which 
looks from the anther. The couple are sitting 
close together, but, with back turned to back, 
they are not upon such cordial terms as out¬ 
ward appearances led us to suppose. 
The case of the Aristolochia or Dutchman’s 
Pipe is quite as unpromising. The anthers are 
stuck fast to the column formed of the three 
united stigmas, but below and behind the pol¬ 
len-receiving surface or real stigmaS";-—in such 
a way that let the flower hang in whatever po¬ 
sition it may, not a grain of pollen can ever fall 
on to the stigma. Pig. 2. And the crooked, 
narrow-mouthed tube which encloses the whole, 
effectually prevents all chance of the "udnd’s 
blowing the pollen from the one to the other. 
So in Orchises, the pollen is all tied fast by deli¬ 
cate threads to a sort of stalk, and placed very 
close to the stigma; but in such a way that it 
can rarely fall on the stigma; in most cases it 
"would never reach the stigma of itself. These 
are a few of the more striking or familiar cases 
out of hundreds that might be mentioned. 
What do they mean ? Here on the one hand, 
as in pea-blossoms and the like, are such nice 
adaptations that the pollen shall reach its stig¬ 
ma. On the other hand, quite as m.any cases, 
apparently evincing the same intention, but 
where closer inspection shows something to pre¬ 
vent this purpose from being carried out. Na¬ 
ture appears to be at cross-purposes. Does she 
really contradict herself, or thwart her own de¬ 
signs ? 
Well; those who know something of these 
matters will be ready "ivith an answer. Plants 
are helped out of these difficu’ties by the aid of 
insects. To be sure, most flowers are feeding 
places for insects. These feed upon the nectar or 
honey which all such flowers produce. The 
Fig. 2 .—Longitudhial section" of flower of Udtch- 
man's Pipe, a, a, anthers under the lobes of the stig¬ 
ma, 6. 
plants are essential to the insects, affording the 
entire sustenance of large classes of them. Is the 
reciprocitj’", as Sir Boyle Koche says, all on one 
side ? Or are insects so attracted to flowers, of 
any use to the plant ? We should suspect so, 
when we consider that the much greater num¬ 
ber of flowers yield nectar, that many have sacs 
or pits, or hollow tubes which hold the nectar; 
and that this sweet matter "ndiich flowers so 
generally produce, is, so far as we know, of no 
Fig. 3 .—Flowbk op an Ibis or Flower de-Litoe, a, a, 
TWO OF THE THREE OUTER PETALS; d, b, b, THE THREE IN¬ 
NER PETALS; C, C, TWO OF THE BRANCHES OF THE PETAL- ' 
LIKE STYLE. 
direct use to the plant. That insects, in visiting 
flowers for honey, accidentally or incidentally 
aid in fertilization, by carrying pollen from 
anther to stigma, is familiarly understood. 
That they are necessary, or at least are the 
principal agents, in the case of such flowers as 
those of Willows, "U'here the stamens and pistils 
are borne by different trees, is also familiar. 
And in these curious hermaphrodite flowers that 
Fig. 4 .—Iris flower with the petals removed •, a, a, a, 
THE PETAL-LIKE BRANCHES OP THE STYLE WITH THE STA¬ 
MENS 6, b, JUST BENEATH THEM. 
we are considering, "we cannot resist the con¬ 
clusion that the aid of insects is, so to say. 
