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THE JOURNAL OP INDIAN BOTANY. 



The several stages in the process of bending are shown in the 

 figure below. The actual bending is due to one sided growth at the 

 portion immediately below the insertion of the two sheathing leaves. 

 Examination of this part of the shoot before and after the curvature 

 by marking it with india ink made this clear and it was further 

 noticed that greater growth was as a rule opposite to the bladed 

 sheath so that this was always lower in the curved inflorescence. A 

 rapid bending is seen when the plant is in its best state of growth 

 and the curvature is at two places, one at the base of the shoot and 

 the other just beneath the bracteal leaves referred to above. The 

 bends also appear as loops owing to the basal portion of the shoot 

 being slow of response. The loops were observed in those cases 

 where there was a delay in the development of the topmost flowers. 

 The mutilation of such flowers brought about a similar result as also 

 the complete removal of flowers just opened or of the inflorescence 

 with unopened flowers a little above the insertion of the bracts. The 

 loops were generally characteristic of plants in a poor state of growth. 

 It is interesting to note that the > shaped curvature is reached on 

 the sixth or seventh day of the opening of flowers. 



A close study of the phenomenon as explained above shows that 

 we are really dealing with two kinds of geotropic curvatures (l) the 

 positive geotropism of the inflorescence resulting in its complete 

 reversal and caused by a curvature beneath the insertion of the bracts, 

 and (2) a diagcotropism of the lower portion of the flowering shoot 

 which corresponds to the internode of the sympodial vegetative axis 

 and behaves as such 



