190 



and colour. The petals may be white, yellowish-white, greenish- 

 yellow or reddish, and have three yellowish-green stripes 

 (Fig. 14 D); they are erect or bent somewhat outwards, hence 

 the rain-drops may collect among them. During rain the flower 

 is wet down to its base. 



Scent. According to Ekstam it has a faint, pleasant scent 

 in Nova Zembla, but no scent has been noticed in Spitzbergen. 



Honey is secreted abundantly by the yellow, glistening 

 base of the pistil. 



The flowers vary greatly as regards their development, 



Fig. 15. Saxifraga groenlandica. 

 A, B, Small-flowered form with greenish-yellow petals, homogamous or perhaps proto- 

 gynous flowers. The anther of one of the antisepalous stamens is open (Spitzbergen 

 July 1, 1882; A. G. Nathorst). С, Ripe stigma; there are many pollen-grains upon the 

 stigma (West Greenland (Godthaab) ; June 29, 1884). D, The flower is still small ; it is 

 protandrous. The antisepalous stamens are erect and some of their anthers are open. 

 The styles are quite uaripe. E, Stamen and pistil (about **/i) of a flower gathered Dec. 31» 

 1893, in East Iceland; H. Jonsson). (E. W.) 



some being protandrous, some protogynous, and some homo- 

 gamous. 



Protandry. In Greenland I found slight protandry to be 

 the rule. In the recently expanded flower all the stamens are 

 erect or bent somewliat outwards and lie against the petals; 

 but afterwards the antisepalous stamens begin to bend inwards 

 towards the middle of the flower, so that the open anthers 

 are placed above the still unripe stigmas. Then those stamens 

 bend backwards and the antipetalous stamens perform the same 

 movements, but before the stamens have finished making these 

 movements, the styles have spread out and the stigmas have 

 become ripe. In Fig. 14 В it is only the anthers of the four 

 antisepalous stamens which are open, but even at that time the 



