Note on Aponogeton dislachy^on I ^ ff^ 



I I S'r AR Yl: 



Note on Aponogeton distachyon. 

 By Inez C. Verdoorn, Division of Botany. Pretoria. 



Through the courtesy of 'the Director, National Botanic 

 Gardens, Kirstenbosch, the Division of Botany at Pretoria re- 

 ceived a few living plants of Aponogeton distach}fon. These 

 were grown in the greenhouse in a large glass teuik in which some 

 soil had been placed. 



The plant is a typical water plant with flat leaves, which are 

 borne on long petioles and float on the surface of the water. 

 The inflorescence consists of a number of naked flov^rs each 

 subtended by a fleshy white bract. 



The writer had facilities for keeping the plants under constant 

 observation and has recorded the following few notes on the 

 life-history which appear sufficiendy interesting to warrant publi- 

 cation. 



In March, each plant developed a ** flower *' bud which was 

 enclosed in a green sheath. This sheath splits in a circum- 

 scissile manner at the base and falls otf as a cap exposing the 

 young inflorescence. At first the two arms of the inflorescence 

 are appressed hiding the flowers but they eventually separate and 

 expose the crisp white fleshy bracts which surround each flower. 

 The bracts soon expand and the individual flowers consisting of 

 3 to 4 white carpels surrounded by about 8 brown anthers are seen. 

 As the flower matures, the filaments of the stamens elongate 

 •until they reach the height of the carpels; the anthers then 

 dehisce and shed their pollen. 



The method of pollination was not clearly observed but as 

 fruits ripened pollination must have taken place. 



After pollination and as the fruit matures the whole in- 

 florescence becomes green. At maturity the carpels split at the 

 apex, the pericarp curls back and exposes the seeds (sometimes 

 only one seed is formed) which escape and float on the surface of 



