Stamen (Anther, Filament)

A stamen is the male part of a flower.

Drawing courtesy Carrie Liz Carpenter

Tiny pollen grains form on the stamen’s anther. The pollen is picked up by pollinators or the wind, and with luck some of it arrives to fertilize another plant.

Star Tulip – photo courtesy Keir Morse

This generic flower diagram shows how parts are arranged, with the pistil in the center, surrounded by stamens, and then by petals and sepals.

Drawing courtesy Judy Mason

However, a flower doesn’t need to have all these parts. As long as there is a pistil or a stamen you’ve got a flower. Each species makes its own variations.

Want more? See Wikipedia.

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