34 
THE FLORIST AND POMOLOGIST. 
but its body, bristling with hairs, is charged with dust among which it has 
crept into. ’ Soon it takes its flight, disperses a part of the dust above the 
flower, then goes to plunder other plants, and always, in penetrating to the 
bottom of the flowers, it rubs against the summit of the seed-bearing organ. 
Now, note well that it is at the time when the dust-pouches open that the 
summit of the central organ is covered with a clammy liquor; it is also at 
this period that the nectar is distilled, and that the insects appear to feed 
upon it. Do you call this coincidence nothing ? Are you not induced to 
believe that the insects, the contemporaries of the flowers, are to them 
recognised messengers, who, to repay the hospitality received, distribute in 
the hostelry where they arrive, the pollen gathered in that which they have 
just quitted? 
What purpose, then, does the fragrant and coloured interior envelope of the 
flower serve ? This envelope expands when the pouches yield their dust, when 
the summit of the central organ becomes humid, when the nectar is distilled, 
and when there are insects to drink it. It does not require any great sagacity 
to conclude, from this concurrence of circumstances, that the interior envelope, 
by its forms, its hues, its odours, is meant to indicate to insects the reservoir 
where they can extract sweet juices ; it is the indication of the vase that contains 
the precious nectar; it is the invariable uniform of all the flowers of the same 
species; and the wandering insects know well to recognise in it, by its 
brilliant sign, the hidden caravanserie where they find their food. 
Insects are, then, the precious auxiliaries in the fecundation of flowers, 
•whether in carrying the dust from one plant to another, or in favouring the 
dispersion of that dust among the pouches of the same flower. It is for that 
reason that, in the experiments with the Melon of which we spoke in the 
beginning of this lesson, it is necessary to cover the plant with a fine* gauze, 
which prevents the entrance of insects. Without this precaution one of these 
animals could, unknown to the observer, carry dust on a flower which he 
wishes to be deprived of it, and render the experiment doubtful. 
In our next lesson we shall study, in other flowers, the parts we have 
simply observed in our first lesson on the Wallflower—namely'- L The 
exterior envelope ; 2, The interior envelope, formed by the coloured and fra¬ 
grant blades, which are popularly called the leaves of the flow'er; 3, The 
organs containing the fecundating dust; 4, The central organ, holding the 
seeds; 5, The base or receptacle of the flower, which is always more or less 
swollen at its summit, to serve as a support to all the parts of which the 
flower is composed. 
(To be continued.) 
WINTER DECORATION OF THE FLOWER GARDEN. 
No. II. 
After some weeks of severe weather, when the frost gives way, and the 
snow disappears, the first flowers of the Aconite and the Snowdrop that 
appear convey to the mind feelings of real pleasure and delight. It is this, 
no doubt, that has made them such universal favourites with young and old, 
and has caused them to be so generally grown. Yet, deservedly popular as 
they are, and much as they are grown, we wish to see them more so. Whether 
grown in the cottage garden or in the elaborate parterre, they are objects of 
great interest and beauty. 
The Snowdrop. —These flowers are justly valued for their early appear¬ 
ance, as the}' usually flower in February, when the ground is often covered 
