Lords-and-ladies tempt flies

Lords-and-ladies is a plant that grows in the shade of woodlands and hedgerows across the UK. It flowers in April and May. Look out for a pale green leaf-like hood around a purple or yellow spadix, which is the name for a spike of tiny flowers on a fleshy stem. This releases a smell like wee that is designed to attract flies, which are then trapped beneath tiny hairs by the female flowers. If the flies have visited another lords-and-ladies plant, they will spread the pollen. At night, male flowers (above the female ones) will release pollen onto the flies and the hairs will wither, releasing the flies so they are free to pollinate other plants. All parts of lords-and-ladies can be toxic to humans, so be careful not to…

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The Week Junior (UK) (Digital) - 1 Issue, 381

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