Pick the Pollinator
Common blue violet: common blue violet
The common blue violet will sometimes form tiny, inconspicuous
flowers that look simply like buds that haven't bloomed. These
flowers are being pollinated, but through self-pollination!
The pollen travels from the stamen down into the flower's own ovary.
In the instances at left, the violet flowers gain the benefits of
genetic diversity via insect pollination as well as of being able to
grow outside of insect pollinators' range via self-pollination. Note
the seeds in the self-pollinating "bud."