Handbook of Nature-Study · Lesson CLIX · Topic 24: Summer and fall garden flowers
159. The blue flag, or iris
Goal: Your child finds the three side doors of an iris and explains how a bee picks up pollen on its back and leaves it on the next flower.
You'll need
- Nature notebook, pencil and colored pencils
- A hand lens (magnifying glass)
- An iris flower (garden iris works as well as the wild blue flag)
- Garden gloves
What's in the book
A Teacher's Story with a photograph of the fleur-de-lis and the lesson: Leading thought, Method and eight questions.
The lesson, step by step
When and where
Garden irises bloom in late spring and early summer; the wild blue flag grows in wet meadows and marsh edges. Comstock says the garden iris is quite as good for this lesson. Iris roots and leaves are poisonous and the sap can irritate skin: wear gloves or wash hands after.
The leading thought
Each iris flower has three side doors leading to the nectar-wells; and the bees, in order to get the nectar, must brush off the pollen dust on their backs.
Find a side door
Look for the side doors of the iris blossom. Which part of the flower forms the doorstep? How is it marked to show the way in? Which part of the flower makes the arch above the door?
Under the arch
Find the anther, and describe how it is placed.
Explain how a bee will become dusted with pollen while getting the nectar.
Slide a pencil tip gently in along the doorstep, the way a bee would go. What does it brush against?
The stigma's trick
Where is the stigma? What is there very peculiar about the styles of the iris?
Can a bee, when backing out from the side door, dust the stigma with the pollen she has just swept off? Why not?
The stigma is a little shelf that scrapes pollen off the bee's back as she goes in, but folds out of the way as she backs out.
Watch and compare
Watch the insects visiting the iris. Do you know what they are? What do they do?
How many kinds of flag, or iris, do you know?
Nature notebook
Draw the iris from the side and mark one of the three doors with an arrow. Read the caption in the book:
The fleur-de-lis is the national flower of France.