Jasper County Democrat, Volume 6, Number 20, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 August 1903 — Odors of Flowers. [ARTICLE]

Odors of Flowers.

It Is a remarkable fact that although there are nearly or quite 100,000 flowering plants known the relative number having odor is wonderfully small, not more than 10 per cent, in fact. In connection with this it is noteworthy that because one species of flower is endowed with sweet odor it does not necessarily follow that all or nearly all or even a fair proportion of the other species of the same family will he as favorably endowed. An illustration of this is found in the familiar mignonette. There are some fifty species of this genus known, and of them all, but one has any fragrance. Nor is it certain that the most insignificant looking flower has the greatest fragrance or the most gorgeously colored likely to he without odor, thus seemingly disproving the theory that color and fragrance are given flowers for the purpose of attracting Insects to assist in cross fertilization.