Game Time

As soon as I woke up, I ran out the door to the terrace to check on Beulah (formerly known as Eunice), who as of last night was about to open a big female blossom. Lo and behold, a stunning, HUGE, elegant flower was gazing up at the sun. I was so excited, and a bit nervous. I grabbed my camera and came back out to pollinate Eunice.

For good measure I used pollen from another male blossom on Beulah as well as some from Bubbah. I wanted to be sure I got as much pollen on the bloom as i could. When you really get close to the blossoms and look at the details it's amazing how different the males are from the females. The female blossoms are much more complex and have many more parts than the males.

Female up close:

and a male blossom up close (don't mind the little bugs- harmless):

Here are some photos from the big event:

Beautiful Buelah:

Part of a stamen with lots of pollen from a male blossom on Beulah:

Making it happen:

A blossom from Bubbah with half the petals removed so you can see the stamen:

The stamen with all petals removed, ready for battle:

And, the Bubbah stamen in action:

So, I did a bit of cross-pollination. Buelah is not officially a part of the contest so i figured it was okay to experiment. (Then again, cross-pollination is not against the rules.) Who knows what we will get?!?!