7-i Mr John Wilson on the Diinorpkisin of [sess. li. 



opens, and the glands remain conspicuously moist the day 

 after flowering. The three stamens are inserted opposite the 

 inner segments. The basal portion of their filaments are 

 half sunk in grooves in the walls of the ovary (PL I. fig. 5, st), 

 the exterior of the latter being bluish-green and papillose. 

 The two upper stamens diverge and curve outwards in a 

 symmetrical manner, their bases being in the glandular 

 region (PI. I. fig. 6, hs), and their anthers both rising to the 

 same height, about the level of the centre of the flower. 

 The third stamen (PL I, figs. 2, 3, 6, s) starts from the base of 

 the lowest segment, passes under one of the other stamens, and 

 curves upwards till its anther is a little higher than the other 

 anthers. The style (PL I. figs. 2, 3,5, sty) passes beneath the 

 other (opposite) stamen of the pair, and in position, length, 

 thickness, and curvature corresj)onds with the odd stamen. 

 There is thus bilateral symmetry in the flower, faulty only 

 in the absence of an anther where the simple stigma is. 



All the flowers of a particular inflorescence have the style 

 bent to the same side. In the four plants which flowered, 

 two had all the styles bent in one direction, and two all the 

 styles bent in tlie opposite direction — the odd stamens, of 

 course, changing sides. This arrangement constitutes the 

 dimorphism of the species. 



The lowest flower (PL I. fig. 1, //) is tlie first to open. 

 There is much diversity as to time in the sequence of oj)en- 

 ing of the flowers in any particular cyme. The most common 

 interval between the period of expansion of one flower and 

 that of the next above it is three, four, or five days. An 

 interval of one, two, six, or seven days is relatively very 

 seldom found, such occurring usually between the last and 

 the second last flower of the individual cymes. Seldom so 

 many as five or even four flowers on one thyrsus (as figured) 

 expand in one day. It is comiiiou enough to have either 

 two or three, but in the greatest number of cases, especially 

 towards the close of flowering, there is only one flower open 

 at a time, — a fact perhaps worth noting. The subjoined 

 table will servo to illustrate these remarks. The observa- 

 tions set down in it liave reference to two distinct inflor- 

 escences, which may be regarded as typical. The cymes 

 are nuiribered from lielow upward. The Araljic numerals 

 indicate the days on which the flowers open. Thus, in the 



