STAMINODES 



aborted or rudimentary state, while the Tamarind has 

 only three, and two bristles. In other families, e.g. 

 in the ACANTHACE^E LABIATE, VERBENACE.E SCRO- 

 PHULARIACEJE, there are only four stamens with no- 

 trace at all, as a rule, of a fifth, but the four that 

 do occur are in the same places, as they would be if 

 the whole five were present. In BARLERIA (one of 

 the ACANTHACE^E) two of the four stamens are much 

 smaller than the other two and have no pollen, and 

 there is a gap where the fifth stamen might have 

 been, opposite the uppermost sepal. 



In JUSTICIA and in ADHATODA, belonging to the 

 same family, there are only two stamens with no- 

 trace whatever of the other three. We must sup- 

 pose that in these cases the whole number five is 

 unnecessary, and that only four or two, as the case- 

 may be, are developed, to save material. 



When a stamen is without anther or pollen,, 

 being therefore sterile and undeveloped, it is termed 

 a staminode. Staminodes occur in many families, 

 among polypetalae as well as synpetalae. Sometimes 

 they are mere points, in other cases they are broad 

 and coloured like petals. The commonest Indian ex- 

 ample of this is CANNA. In this flower there are- 

 three short sepals just above the ovary, three-coloured 

 petals, and in the middle of the flower a flat style 

 and a flat stamen with part of an anther on one 

 edge. The other structures between the petals and 

 this anther are staminodes, and are usually coloured 

 more gaily than the petals. The same is true of the 

 flower of the ginger plant, ZINZIBER, of Cardomoms, 

 MARANTA and others like them (see Part II). The 



