The Naughty Bits.

These daffodils had a chequered start to life; I bought them the day before Valentine's Day, while Mrs TD was out, they were purchased for herself; unfortunately, when I returned, she was at home so I had to quickly secrete them out of sight until the coast was clear. It was clear by 3:00 am when I got up to go to the loo and took the opportunity to retrieve them, cut off their feet, stick them in a vase and prop the card against them. They were still in tight buds at that time, but the warmth has brought them on and this is one of them now.

Some sixty years ago I was sent to the wrong school; I had a flare for science even at that young age but the school concentrated on the classics. Not having an aptitude for that branch of education I didn't flourish which meant that I was "C streamed" which, in turn, meant that I had to study general science. Eventually, in my final year there and, after a major battle with authority, I was allowed to study physics and chemistry as separate subjects with out the support of the school; biology was out of the question. Today I'm not too bad on mammals, but have never caught up on botany. It was, therefore, a pleasant surprise to look at this picture and suddenly realise what was what: stamens covered in pollen (some of which has dropped off) and a tri-lobed stigma with a small central tube to receive the fertilising pollen. I have no idea whether or not these flowers have functional nectaries, or where they are, I assume that they do at least have rudimentary ones but they are not considered to be a useful source of nectar by beekeepers.

I recently discovered that one of my Wednesday cycling friends went to the same school in Bristle; we are in total agreement about the standard of education provided by that school.