PART II. 



PLEIOMORPHY.' 



Most iiTegular flowers owe their irregularity to an 

 unequal development of some of their organs as 

 compared with that of others. When such flowers 

 become exceptionally regular they do so either because 

 development does not keep pace with growth, and a 

 regular flower is thus the result of an arrest of the former 

 process (regular peloria), or because the comparatively 

 excessive development, which usually occurs in a few 

 parts is, in exceptional cases manifested by all, hence the 

 flower becomes regular from the increase in number of 

 its irregular elements. These latter cases, then, are 

 due to an excess of development, hence the application 

 of the term pleiomorphy. It must be understood that 

 mere increase in the number of the organs of a flower 

 is not included under this head, but under that of 

 deviations from the ordinary number of parts. 



CHAPTER I. 



IRREGULAR PELORIA. 



The term peloria was originally given by Linne 

 to a malformation of LinaHa mdgarisy with five spurs 

 and five stamens, which was first found in 1742 near 

 Upsal. This was considered so marvellous a circum- 

 stance that the term peloria, from the Greek ttAw^, a 



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