Lesson CCV

The Dogwood

Leading thought—The petals are not the only means of attracting insects to the flowers. Sometimes other parts of the plant are made into banners to show insects where the nectar is to be found.

Method—Bring in a branch of the dogwood when it is in flower. The branch should have upon it some flowers that are unopened. Study the flower first, and ask the pupils to discover for themselves why the great white bracts have a notch in the tip. A lens is a great help to the interest in studying these tiny flowers.

Observations—1. What is there at the center of the dogwood flower? How do the parts at the center look? Are they of the same shape? Are some opened and others not? Take a penknife and cut out one that is opened and describe it. Can you see how many petals this tiny flower has? Describe its calyx. How many stamens has it? Can you see the pistil? If a flower has a calyx and stamens and a pistil, has it not all that a flower needs?

2. How many of these flowers are there at the center of the dogwood “blossom?” What color are they? Would they show off much if it were not for the great white banners around them? Do we not think of these great white bracts as the dogwood flower?

3. Study one of these banners. What is its shape? Are the four white bracts the same shape and size? Make a sketch of these four bracts with the bunch of flowers at the center. What is there peculiar about each one of these white bracts. Why should this notch be there? Find one of the flower-heads which is not yet opened and watch it develop, and then write a little story of the work done in the winter for the flowers by these bracts and the different work done by them in the spring, all for the sake of the precious blossoms.

4. Sketch the bracts from below. Is one pair wider than the other? Is the wider pair inside or outside? Why is this so?

5. Where are the flowers of the dogwood borne? How are the twigs arranged so as to unfurl all the banners and not hide one behind another, so that the whole tree is a mass of white?

6. While studying the flowers, study where the young leaves come from. Can you still see the scales which protected the leaf buds?

7. What kind of fruit develops from the dogwood blossoms? What colors are its leaves in autumn?