Flowers are the reproductive parts of a plant. Usually, one flower has both male and female parts. The male parts are the stamens, which consist of filaments and anthers. Filaments are like little stalks that support the anthers. Anthers produce tiny dust-like grains called pollen. The female part of a flower is called the carpel. This consists of an ovary, ovules, a style and a stigma. The ovary is hidden in a bulb-shaped receptacle at the base of the flower. Inside the ovary are one or more ovules, which become seeds if the flower is fertilized. Rising from the ovary is a small, sticky stem called the style, the tip of which is the stigma. In order for a flower to be fertilized, pollen must be transferred from the male stamen to the female stigma.
Flowers do much more than just provide beauty and lovely scents. Their primary purpose is reproduction. During the reproductive process, flowers make use of their colorful petals to attract pollinators such as insects and animals. These creatures are also lured by the nectar that flowers produce in their nectarines, glands that are often found at the base of their petals. By producing nectar, flowers are able to provide food for the insects that help to pollinate the plants. After a flower is pollinated, its fertilized ovule develops into a seed that can create a new plant; and the ovary that formed the ovule becomes a fruit. The process of plant reproduction, then, also generates food for people and animals to eat.
In addition to reproduction, flowers also serve important roles in gardens in particular. Some flowers possess an unparalleled ability to attract insects that are beneficial for the fertilization of other garden plants. On the other hand, certain other flowers can repel unwanted insects that are harmful to garden vegetables and fruits. Employing flowers as “garden guardians” can allow gardeners to decrease the amount of pesticides they use on their crops, which in turn leads to an increased number of beneficial insects in the garden. For instance, lavender is great for repelling fleas, moths, and whiteflies. Japanese beetles, those garden pests, can be attracted and killed by Four O’clock flowers planted near vegetable gardens (though these plants are poisonous to animals and humans). Furthermore, the act of planting flowers in itself is beneficial to humans, allowing the planter to burn calories and increase elasticity in certain muscles.
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