The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-03-14
THE COLOR OF FLOWERS.
IMPORTANT RELATION BETWEEN
INSECTS AND PLANTS.
Prof. StewartsOn Brown Says That
the Celebration of Flowers Is Main
" "A Matter of Insect Attraction.


Gently lectured in that institution on '+The
Color of Flowers-the Relation of Insects
to Plants" in which he said
In the skunk cabbage the spathe has
other uses than the protection Of the
young flower, else were celebration need
less. This color varies from green to solid
maroon, and its purpose is the attraction
of the little beetles to fertilize the flow-
ers.
The stamens and pistils Of the skunk
cabbage do not develop at the same time,
the pistil being the first, and the small
beetles, attracted by the colored spathe,
follow down its Inside surface, and if
having previously visited a flower where
the anthers had shed their pollen, they
carry that pollen to their present host
and shed 1t upon the young pistils ex-
posed. thus fertilizing the flower
The stamens and pistils of one species
of mallow, (whose large petals attract in
sects) are borne on one central stalk
pistils atop and stamens below. Both
organs are developed at the same time,
but 1t is impossible for the plant to fer
tilize itself because the stigma won't
come into contact with the stamens in any
possible way, hence the necessity for a
bee or other insect to transfer the pollen
from one flower to another. The bee be-
coming covered with the pollen of the first
flower will shed it upon the stigma OF the
next visited and thus fertilize 1t.
Insect life in the Arctic regions Is very
limited, and to insure their attraction
one of the genus geum "a rosaceous plano
from Alaska has a row of large petals.
This plant, also the geum novale, IS ut
terly unable to fertilize itself, and de-
mands insect help, as In the SKUNK cao-
bage.
All Arctic flowers are very large In COM
parison with the plants bearing them.
The petals of a European species or
cinquefoil are scarcely visible, while our
own yellow cinquefoil is much smaller
than one from Alaska.
The Iceland poppy-so caled-occurs
throughout the Arctic and outlying re-
eions of the old and new worlds.
The coloration of flowers everywhere is
mainly a matter of insect attraction, no
other function for the color being known.
The protection of the young flower would
not require 1T.
Various notifications of the floral en-
velopes occur in plants fortified by the
winds-such as the poplars and similar
trees-also grasses; in these there are no
conspicuous floral envelopes There is
practically no corolla, fertilization being
through the agency of the wind.
The shape of pollen grains in wind
fortified plants differs from that in in
sect fertilized-the former having their
pollen grains very dry and light. easily
carried to great distances, while those
where the fertilization is by insects either
have spines on them or, in majority of
cases, have channels running the whole
length of the pollen grain, so there is
4f,Ix fIal lace or. ha ctr fr
head of the insect
Many plants have mechanical arrange
ments of the stamens so that they will
throw the pollen on the insect on en-
tering the f1ower-common examples of
this occurring in all the plants of the
heath family, ericaceae.
A striking example OF spraying insect
visitants with pollen is found in the
mountain laurel-the kalmia-whose flow
er has nine or ten pockets, each pocket
with its stamen, and when the first flow
er opens each stamen Is fastened in its
cup in the corolla. An insect visiting
this flower and settling down atop re-
leases, by its presence, all these stamens,
and the pollen is thrown out in great
clouds on the under side of the insect,
| all the pollen being discharged from the
| end of the anther.
On the lower side of a portion of its pc
rinth, the pollinia Ca species of iris) pre-
|
| to direct insects to the nectary. The in
| sect passes down and the pollen Is shed
! on its back, (the pollen grains being very
large, and resembling in form grain OF
/ wheat, and in entering the next flower
| the pollen is busted off its back upon the
stigma, en- route to the nectary.
| All through the northern woods abounds
the white orchid, with two large leaves
| living fiat on the surface of the ground
| All of the orchids have very INTEREST,"
ing method of pollination.
| one species of orchid bears two sta
MEMS the slightest pressure on which
causes an opening, exposing the pollen
mass. The orchid has very glutinous,
| sticky base, internally. One Of the sphinx
| moths fertilizes it; being possessed OF
| very long tongue, 1t sticks its head into
| the throat of the flower and two little
mats Corning a part of the pollen ar
| rangemenO press the pollen upon Its head
| and when it flies away 1t carries these
| pollen grains to the next flower visited
| where its head comes in contact with the
! stigmatic surface, and two of these pollen
| masses would suffice for the fertilization
| of number of flowers.
| One of the small varieties Of huckleberry
| is fortified by bee, which, coming I'M
| derneath the flower and filling his probos-
els up in order TO get the honey. the fiow-
| er throws a shower of pollen in his face,
to be carried to the next host
| The artistolochia clematitis is visited en-
| tirely by small flies or like insects, and is
provided with hairs in the corolla tube to
| keep the insect in. The hairs all pointing
1 downward, IL is easy for him to get in, but
impossible to get out until the flower Is
ready that he should. After the stigmas
have passed the receptive stage, then the
pollen is shed and the insects imprisoned
at the base freely busted herewith, and
hairs fall over. lose their strength, and
the top of the flower closes over so as not
| to attract further visitants Then the
prisoners pass out and go to the next plant.
In a mass of flowers of arlstolochia Gle
mathis growing upon vine, most Of
them, we will say, open and In receptive
condition, stameus above and pistiis below,
the flower would appear entirely capable
OF Standardization. Not so. The two or
gans do not develop at the same time, the
pistiIs being in receptive condition first,
| when the tube is contracted and the hairs
point downward for insect capture and de-
| tention.
The geranium robertlanum has a dual
| provision for fertilization to provide
against lack Of insect visitants. It's sta
a