Flowers Under A Microscope

upper view of the stamen of the orange flower

side view of stamen of the yellow flower

The glands at a flowers base make nectar, which is the part of the flower that insects want. So the insect crawls into the flower to reach the nectar. On the insect's little journey, the pollen grains on the anthers stick to the insect's feet where they are transferred to another flower. Or they can be moved from the stamen to the pistil of the same flower.  The pistil of the flower holds the female organs and is made of the stigma and the ovary. In the ovary you find the ovule which is at the base of the tube. When a piece of pollen spore falls onto the stigma, it sends a tube down to the ovum. The male gametes are found at the tip of the tube. Once that tip reaches the ovule, it bursts and releases the male gametes. One of the gametes combines with the polar nuclei and the other the the female egg. The ovum then starts the production of a seed and the ovary grows a protective barrier around it that will eventually turn into the fruit.