Nebraskaland

Aug-Sept 2022 Nebraskaland

NEBRASKAland Magazine is dedicated to outstanding photography and informative writing with an engaging mix of articles and photos highlighting Nebraska’s outdoor activities, parklands, wildlife, history and people.

Issue link: http://mag.outdoornebraska.gov/i/1472976

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August-September 2022 • Nebraskaland 39 outward from the fl ower. When the duped insects visit another fl ower, this pollen is transferred to a single female, pollen-receiving stigma found at the tip of a long fi lament that extends between the two fertile anthers. While pollination is complete, the insects are still hungry. The dayfl owers' deceptive fl owers are just one of the plant kingdom's many unique fl oral designs to ensure pollination and survival on this remarkable planet called Earth. N Cousins of the dayfl owers, spiderwort fl owers have retained three showy petals and six fertile, yellow anthers. RIGHT: Early one July morning in the author's garden, a common dayfl ower blossom emerges from the leafy bract enclosing the fl ower head. Above the fresh bloom, the previous day's fl ower sits withered. A Botanical Jokester The 18th century Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus bestowed dayflowers with the genus name Commelina in honor of his friends: the Dutch family Commelin. One version of the story states that the flowers' two bright blue petals represent the families' renowned botanists: Jan and his nephew Caspar. The third small, colorless petal represents Jan's brother Casparus, who was merely a book seller and newspaper publisher. Linnaeus deserves credit as this is about as good as botanical humor gets, excluding, of course, the classic joke about the rabbi, the priest and the botanist. CARL LINNAEUS

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