May '20

There are many reasons to admire blooming flora, for instance the ability to capture a lady’s heart, a longing so typical for the month of May. A visual perception is not enough to make a lady swoon; she longs to incorporate her olfactory system and use it to thoroughly examine the flower’s reproductive organs. How much easier would gentlemen’s lives be if we could elicit that same form of admiration?

For flowers, this is definitely not an evolutionary coincidence. Angiosperms (flowering plants) developed beautiful and enchantingly fragrant blossoms in order to attract pollinators. The bees, bumblebees or even hummingbirds chug down the sweet nectar without realizing that they are getting the plant’s male reproductive cells all over themselves, and then continue transporting the pollen to their next yummy pit stop, where amorous female cells are already waiting.

The game does not end there, though. The now mature seeds must be carried as far as possible in order for the plant to procreate. Another middleman is needed to this end. What about the fact that the seeds’ yummy cover, a.k.a. fruit, utilizes many precious nutrients? No matter! The bearer usually carries the seeds in his digestive tract and treats them to a generous amount of fertilization when discharging them, so nutrients are in no short supply.

So, where can we take inspiration from flowers? Well, indomitably blooming colors and shapes can also be used strategically and with aim. Especially if chromosomes are at stake.