Artichoke flowers are gorgeous, like giant thistles.
アーティチョークの花は巨大なアザミのような豪華な花です.
In May the flower buds grew so large that some were harvested, boiled and eaten, but other buds were left to flower.
五月に花の蕾が大きくなって、一部収穫して茹でて食べましたが、その他の蕾はそのままにして花を咲かせることにしました.
When the bracts, which look like green petals, are starting to open up, we can see the choke, a crown of pointy fibers (resembling hair), at the centre of the flower. A number of the pointy fibers become the gorgeous purple florets of an artichoke flower from the periphery to the centre.
緑の花びらのように見える苞葉が開き始める時、花の中央にチョークという尖った繊維（髪の毛に似た）の冠が見えるようになります. そしてその無数の尖った繊維が周辺から中心部に向かってアーティチョークの花の豪華な紫色の小花になるのです.
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| The choke at the centre of the flower still can be seen. 花の中央にまだチョークが見えています |
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| In full bloom 満開 |
A few days later, another variety flowered
数日後には別の品種の花も開花しました
If you look closely at the flowers, you can see that at first white pollen appears a little below the blue stamen. A few days later, the pollen is almost completely gone (it sticks to the bees as they come and move around) and the tip of the blue stamen splits in two. According to research on thistle flowers on the internet, pollination is only possible when the tips of the stamens have split. The same is thought to be true of artichoke flowers.
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| White pollen can be seen on the lower part of the stamen しべの下の方に白い花粉がついているのが見える |
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| The tip of the stamen is split in two しべの先端が二つに分岐している |
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| Pollen were collected (Down fluff is attached to the other side of the earpick stick sold in Japan) 花粉を集める（耳かきの梵天） |
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| Pollinate a few days later 数日後に授粉する |
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| Individual purple florets of an artichoke flower 個々のアーティチョークの紫色の小花 |
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