Name: ________________________ Period _____ Date: ________________

Lab: Flower Dissection

Many kinds of flowering plants, such as lilies, daffodils, or tulips are
commonly used subjects for dissection in biology. The flower is the
plant structure specialized for reproduction in advanced plants. The
processes of meiosis and fertilization occur in the flower.

Goals:

Introduction to Dissecting
You will be dissecting a flower. While this may not seem like an exciting dissection, it is just as
important as any other. A dissection is meant to give you the opportunity to get a first-hand
look at how a living thing is put together.

You will be asked to make drawings of some portions for each of the dissections this year. The
purpose of the drawings is to show how the main structures of the organism relate to each
other. Your drawings do not need to be of "art" quality, but they must be neatly done in pencil
and labeled. Think of a drawing as another way to communicate your experience to others.

Materials:
Of the three tools pictured here, the least important in biology dissections
is the scalpel. Yes, you will need it, but the scissors will be your most
useful tool. When you become a world famous surgeon, then you will
have the steady hand to wield a diamond-edged scalpel.
o Flower
o Scalpel
o Scissors
o Forceps
o Slides
o Dissecting and Light Microscopes
Background:

Reproduction and Flowers

Ordinarily, angiosperms produce flowers at least once during a normal lifetime. The stamens,
or male reproductive organs, produce pollen grains. Following pollination, a pollen grain
develops a tube in which the male gamete, called the sperm nucleus, is found.

The pistils, or female reproductive organs, contain ovules. An egg nucleus, or female gamete,
is located in each ovule. Typically the ovule develops into the seed and the ovary the fruit.

The petals and sepals help bring the sperm nuclei to the egg nuclei. After fertilization, the
plant embryo, the new generation, becomes enclosed in a seed. Thus in plants as in animals,
sexual reproduction enables a species to survive.

Monocots have their reproductive parts in 3’s or multiples of 3’s. Dicots have their reproductive
parts in 4’s or 5’s or multiples of 4’s or 5’s.

Types of Flowers
The flower pictured at right is a complete – perfect - regular – hypogynous flower.

o Complete because it has all four floral structures

(sepals, petals, stamens and pistils).
o Perfect because it has both sexual parts (stamens and
pistils).
o Regular because its petals are all similar in size and
shape as are its sepals.
o Hypogenous because the ovary sets above the
sepals - the ovary is superior.

1. The flower at right is incomplete, what is it missing?

2. This flower at right is imperfect,

what is it missing?
Procedure:

1. Examine the flower from all sides. The outermost circle of parts consists of sepals
(collectively called the calyx).

a) How many sepals are present in your flower? ___________

2. Carefully remove and lay sepals aside, tape one here.

The colorful leaflike parts remaining as the second SEPAL
circle are petals (collectively the corolla).

b) How many petals are present? ___________

3. Carefully remove and lay petals aside, tape one here.

Examine another circle of parts that is now visible. Each of these parts
is a stamen. PETAL

c) To which parts are the stamens attached. ___________

d) How many stamens are present? ___________

e) What numerical relationship do you find between the number of stamens, petals, and
sepals? ___________________________________________________

4. In many plant species, the carpels (pistils) may be

fused, making several “carpel” combinations possible.

At the right, (A) shows a single pistil consisting of several fused

carpels setting on a recepticle and (B) shows several pistils,
each consisting of a single carpel.

a) Circle which applies to your flower; A or B.

5. With the forceps, remove the stamens. Place all except one STAMEN

aside with the sepals and petals.

POLLEN
a. Sketch the stamen. The boxlike,
upper part of the stamen is an
 anther. The stalk to which the anther is attached is a filament. Place the anther
on a slide. With a blade, cut off and discard the filament. With a probe, open the
anther and push the contents onto another slide. The contents of the anther are
pollen grains, which you now have on the slide. Examine pollen grains under a
compound light microscope.

b. Sketch a pollen grain.

c. Which cell organelles are enclosed in pollen? _________

6. Use the scalpel to cut a small piece from the end of the ovary.
OVULES
Look at the cut end using the dissecting microscope and
determine the number of chambers it contains. Then use the
scalpel to cut the ovary in half lengthwise through the chamber.
View the cut piece containing the ovules. Make a rough count of
ovules in one section. Sketch a row of ovules.
7. The ovary may consist of one or more chambers or locules, which contain one or
more undeveloped seeds, the ovules. The area of the ovary wall where the ovules
are attached is called the placenta. The arrangement of the placenta varies in
different species. Plants like peas have a pistil consisting of a single carpel, the
placenta occurs on the ovary wall opposite the main vein. In flowers where the
pistil consists of more than one fused carpel the situation is more complex.

Cross-section (A) shows parietal placentation,

with the placentas attached to the outer ovary
wall. Cross-section (B) shows axile placentation,
with carpels attached in the center of the ovary.

The ovary may have only one chamber despite

consisting of several fused carpels. This central
placenta is known as free central placentation.
(C) shows central placentation in cross-section
and (D) shows it in longitudinal section.

a) Circle which applies to your flower; A,

B, C, or D.

8. Ovary position may differ from one

species to another.

On the left, (A) shows an ovary above the

attachment of the sepals. The ovary is
superior, the flower is hypogynous. (C) shows
an ovary below the attachment of the sepals.
The ovary is inferior, the flower epigynous. (B)
is an intermediate possibility, the ovary is
superior but surrounded by, and free from, a
receptacle formed by the sepals. This flower is
perigynous.

a) Circle which applies to your flower; A,

B, or C.
 9. Throw all parts of the flower in the trash. Wash and dry all of the equipment used.

10. Label all parts of the flower in the diagram.

Discussion:

1) What happens to pollen grains (text p. 647-648) during pollination?

___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
________________________________________________
__________________________________________________

2) How might the small size of pollen grains help their job?

__________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
__________________________________________________

3) How might the large number of pollen grains help their job?

__________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
__________________________________________________

4) After fertilization, what does an ovule (text p. 696-701) develop into?

__________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
__________________________________________________

5) After fertilization, what does an ovary (text p. 650-651) develop into?

__________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
 _________________________________________________
__________________________________________________

The Lab Problem: Dissect a flower of your choosing. Draw and label the parts indicated below.
Research References: Background Information
The Complete Flower A Single Petal
X X
X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

A Single Sepal A Single Stamen

X X
X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

The Whole Pistil Ovary Cross-section

X X
X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

X X

Circle the term in each group that refers to your flower.

complete incomplete perfect imperfect

regular irregular hypogynous perigynous epigynous

 Some Key Flower Structures and Terms

petals: colored parts inside the sepals which attract insects

sepals: structures which are usually green outside the petals which help to protect the flower
stamen: forms the male reproductive organ and consists of an anther and a filament
anther: pollen box in which pollen grains are formed containing the genetic material which produces
sperm
filament: supports the anther
pistil or carpel: female reproductive organ which consists of three parts
stigma: found at the top of the pistil, is often sticky and hairy adapting it to catch and hold pollen
style: tube-like connection between the stigma and the ovary
ovary: enlarged part of the pistil attached to the receptacle (stem tip on which the flower rests) and
contains the ovules
ovules: small white structures within the walls of the ovary which produces the plant egg cells
complete: having all the principal parts, particularly the stamens and pistils
incomplete: not having all the principal parts, particularly the stamens and pistils
perfect: a flower that has both the male parts and female parts in the same flower.
imperfect: a flower that has either all male parts or all female parts, but not both in the same flower.
regular: size, form, and/or number of individual parts is of comparison
irregular: size, form, and/or number of individual parts is of no comparison
hypogynous: sepals, petals, and stamen below the ovary
perigynous: stamens arising from a cup or tube that is free from the ovary, but extending above its
base
epigynous: stamens attached above the ovary, but to tissue that originates at the ovary