266 THE JOURNAL OF BOTANY 



reduced to oblong coloured pieces about the length of the sepals or 

 a little shorter. A remark in Masters' Vegetable Teratology ■'- 

 seems to infer that at times the petals may be developed normally. 

 He says, "In most of the flowers of this variety the petals are 

 smaller and less perfectly developed than usual." Brongniart f 

 makes a similar remark : " Dans ces Clieirantlms monstrueux, qui 

 etaient tres nombreux dans les parterres du Museum en 1841, les 

 sepales et les petales existent dans leur position habituelle, mais 

 en general les petales ne prennent qu'un developpement imparfait, 

 ce qui signale immediatement les plantes qui sont le siege cle cette 

 monstruosite." We have not, however, met with any cases in 

 which normal petals were developed. It is almost to be expected 

 that sucli cases would occur, for it is scarcely credible that a 

 single character-determinant should produce the remarkable and 

 dissimilar abnormalities which occur in both petals and stamens. 



The most extraordinary change, however, is in the stamens 

 which are converted into carpels. As Allman \ has pointed out, 

 there is considerable variation in the number of the supplementary 

 carpels and in their adhesion. The full number is six, derived from 

 the six stamens, but those corresponding with the two lateral 

 stamens are not infrequently smaller than the others, or altogether 

 absent. Allman found the ovary with the short style of these 

 supplementary carpels was derived from the filament of the stamen, 

 while " the stigma was plainly a transformed anther." 



Brongniart § has well described the various forms of this rogue 

 met with, all of which we have seen in our own cultivations (see 

 figure). We cannot do better than quote Dr. Masters' translation 

 of his notes. II " Sometimes these six carpellary leaves are 

 perfectly free, and in this case they spread open, presenting two 

 rows of ovules along their inner edges, or these edges may be 

 soldered together, forming a kind of follicle like that of the Colum- 

 bine ; at other times, these staminal pistils are fused into two 

 lateral bundles of three in each bundle, or into a single cylinder 

 which encircles the true pistil. In a third set of cases these outer 

 carpels are only four in number, two lateral and two antero- 

 posterior, all fused in such a manner as to form around the 

 normal pistil a prism-shaped sheath, with four sides presenting 

 four parietal placentae, corresponding to the lines of junction of 

 the staminal carpels." 



The conversion of stamens into carpels is a comparatively rare 

 phenomenon, though conversion of stamens into petals is frequent. 

 It occurs in Papavcr souinifcnon, and we have seen it in 

 P. oricntale in our own garden, but in these cases, only some of 

 the stamens are transformed ; it has also occurred in Polemonium 



* Masters, M. T., Vegetable Teratology, p. 305 (1869). 



f Brongniart, A., " Sur quelques cas de transformation des etamines en 

 carpelles." Ball, de la Soc. Botaniqtie de. France, t. 8, p. 453 (1801). 



I Allman, Prof. G. J., " On the Morphology of the Fruit in the Cruciferae, 

 as illustrated by a monstrosity in the Wallflower." Report Brit. AiSociation, 

 July, 1851 (Ipswich) Trans., p. 70 (18.V2). 



§ Brongniart. A.. I.e. ante. ]| Masters, M. T.. I.e. ante. 



