STUDYING A FLOWER-THE SWEET PEA
Materials:Ifthere are no sweet peas in your garden, you can buy a spray
inexpensively at the florist's shop. Use ahandlens or magnifying glass to
examine the flower's lovelystructure.
Follow thisprocedure:After you have carefully observed the flower, gently
pull the petals away from the center and expose the organs inside.
You will observe: Delicate white or pink petalsthatare mildlyfragrant.
These petalsattractinsects to the blossoms.
Tiny, green, leaf-likestructures called sepals at the base ofthe petals
protectedthe bud before it blossomed into a flower.
Thereproductiveorgansthatyou exposed are protectively covered by the
petals. You will see a collar-likeformationofstamens;these are thepartsof
the flower which give rise to male cells. Each stamen has astructureat its tip
called anantherwhich provides thepollen.
Remove the collar ofstamens, and you will see thepistilof the flower.
The baseofthe pistil is called theovary. If you split the ovary apartwith
your fingernail and examine it with yourhandlens, you will notice tinyovules
(egg cells)thatmay become futureseeds-infact, they may become green peas!Itsfragrantpetalsattractbees andotherinsects to the sweet pea flower
where they suck the flower's sweet nectar (a liquid produced by plants to
attractinsects).Ifa bee lands on a flower he accidentally gets pollen on his hairy