Kim Carl, age 12, of Eugene, Ore., for her question:

HOW DO FLOWERS GET THEIR SMELLS?

A flower creates its own perfume and builds it right into its petals as they grow. The special fragrance is planned to attract certain insects that will help to spread pollen from flower to flower. It is processed into an oily substance and tucked into tiny perfume pockets among the cells of the petals.

The flowery fragrance is a light oil, planned to evaporate in the warm air. When this happens the oil changes into gaseous molecules. They mingle with the other gases of the air, carrying their perfume as they go. The breezes waft the fragrance far and wide and attract the right insects to the right flower.