Flowers... It's All About Sex
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Not Just Showing Off
We want to believe the beauty and fragrance of flowers is for the sole purpose of simply enjoying them. Such a wonderful gift. But the fact is, flowers are the sexual organs of plants, and it's all about attraction. Flowering plants offer useful pollen, bright colors, eye-catching patterns, alluring fragrances and sweet nectar to attract pollinators: That is, bees, hummingbirds, moths, etc. These birds & bees (sound familiar?) are the creatures who spread pollen to other plants, fertilizing them as they go.
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The Equipment
Inside a flower's reproductive system are the stamens, or male parts, which produce pollen, and the pistils, or female parts, which contain the ovaries. It's all part of an elaborate plan to avoid self-pollination.
When the pollen from another plant, carried by a passing insect or sometimes the wind, lands on the pistil, an inner pollen tube grows down it's length, carrying the sperm to the egg, and reproduction takes place, producing flower seeds.
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The First Flower
In 1998, the fossil of what is believed to be the first flowering plant, or angiosperm, was discovered in Liaoning Province in Northeastern China by paleontologist Sun Ge. The fossil is thought to be roughly 125 million years old. Though it lacks the typical showy petals associated with today's flowers, it has one critical feature: the seeds of the plant are fully enclosed within its female reproductive organs.
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China's Gift To The World
Many gardens today are graced with flowering plants which originated in China. Just a few of these are: rhododendrons, forsythias, magnolias, camellias, primroses and viburnums. China boasts some 31,000 native flowering plant species. A third more then the U.S. and Canada combined.
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Comments
I didn't notice that, honest, but it didn't escape YOUR keen eye. -small lol- Thank you for the kind words and positive feedback - as usual.
Verrry Interesting. I never thought of it that way, but suppose you are right. I still love flowers, but prefer them alive rather than cut. That's intersting about the first flowering plant.
Well it's a darn good life and it's kinda funny
How the bee was made, the bee made honey
And the honey bee lookin' for a home
Made a honeycomb
Then they combed the world and they gathered all
Of the honeycomb into one sweet ball
And the honeycomb from a million trips
Made my baby's lips Oh honeycomb, won't you be my baby
Well honeycomb be my own Just a hank o' hair and a piece o' bone
made a walkin', talkin' honeycomb
---- bees are very important in this reproduction stuff...plant sex. It's a wonder so much pollination happens -- seems to be left to the wind and dwindling bees and insects...let's hope it keeps working!! Nature is a complicated process --- and they say women are hard to figure out. =)
Marisue, I got down to the eighth line before I recognized the song and boy, did you just date yourself! I on the other hand, only recognized it from... uh, the oldies station... ya, that's it...
I'm hoping "Dead Hive Syndrome" is just a virus, which can be cured, rather than an effect of global warming, which can't be fixed.
Karen, I got the idea for this hub when I woke up this morning to a show about the secret sex lives of flowers on OPB. Pretty interesting stuff.
Thank you both for the feedback. You two have just been hup-hopping, ay?
I only heard the song when my mom sang it to me, yeah that was it...
LOL
Good one...
It's twue...it's twue
... I got nothin'
I'm sure happy we don't need bees to - well, you know! LOL!!!
But Flowers sure do seem to help with my little honeybee!
"Flowers... It's All About Sex" And you guys thought it was a science piece... ;)
Mothers will relate to this one. Mother's Day is all about the bees coming home to the hive. We all love the nectar!
Nicely put, and very true.
CW, I decided to read a few more of your hubs and I am glad that I did. I had no idea that so many of these flowers originated from China. It's weird when you think about that because the magnolia has such strong ties to the southern US. Hmmm, who would have thunk it. Great Job, an informative hub.
Thank you, Gwendy. It was fun to put together. Doing the research was full of "Wow" moments. The inspiration for this piece was sparked by something I saw on OPB.
ok, what is OPB? sorry if that was a stupid question.
Gwendy, no such thing as a stupid question. OPB is Oregon Public Broadcasting - educational television. You probably have something similar where you live.
yes, we do. Thanks for answering my question. I can't remember what it is called here, maybe it's just too early.
You're welcome! Actually OPB is typically pretty boring, but once in a while they air something interesting. I like History and Discovery Channels much more and watch them almost all the time.
me too, I love the History channel, Discovery channel, Nat Geo, and TLC. I can't get enough of it.
Good for you, then you're probably a pretty "Fart Smeller!"
lol, my husband says the same thing. But no, I don't think so, just your aeverage person with an average mind.
Ha-ha. I got it my late grandmother - from Oklahoma.
And I would bet you're smarter than you like to admit. Haven't you heard the saying "Garbage in, garbage out"? Well, it works both ways... and happens to be true.
beautiful flowers and pics
Thanks, Eileen, and thank you for reading.
MOmmagus says:
2 years ago
Don't u guys ever get your mind off of SEX??? LOL!!! Hey, i noticed they snuck a marijuana plant into the video, hee, hee. Nice use of photos, as usual!