DEGENERACY OF FLOWERS. 2G9 



anthers has followed. Those wind-fertilised plants with stiff 

 filaments have presumably not yet degraded to a similar state. 



With regard to the pistil, since of heterostyled plants 

 the stigmatic papillae are larger and longer in the long-styled 

 forms, we seem to get a hint as to the origin of the papillose 

 and plumose characters of many wind-fertilised plants ; in 

 that such may be due to compensatory processes on the loss 

 of the corolla, honey-secreting organs, etc., which have thus 

 favoured the development of the pistil generally, such deve- 

 lopments becoming emphasized in certain directions. 



Protogyny or homogamy generally accompany anemo- 

 phily.* Thus Miiller mentions Thalictrum minus, Plantago, 

 Luzula, Callitriche, Myriophylkivi, and many Grasses as 

 being protogynous ; and a common characteristic feature of 

 such flowers is frequently noticed by Miiller, viz., that they 

 have all "long-lived stigmas." This seems clearly to ppint 

 to a relatively increased amount of vigour in the develop- 

 ment of that organ in protogynous flowers ; which becomes 

 especially noticeable in their enhanced size^ as seen in most 

 anemophilous flowers. Poterium he regards as homogamous, 

 as well as Rye and Wheat. These conditions all agree w^ith 

 the total suppression of the corolla, and may be regarded as 

 signs of degradation : and I have elsewhere shown, when 

 treating of emergence and development of the floral organs, 

 how a compensatory process accompanies the formation of 

 the corolla and stamens on the one hand, and of the 2:)istil 

 on the other ; so that when the former tend towards degra- 

 dation, the pistil gains the ascendancy, and matures earlier. 



* Artemisia vulgaris seems to be protandrous. The style arms are 

 provided with papillose rosettes in the central florets, but are very 

 elongated, and terminate in points in the circumferential florets. In 

 no case could I detect pollen-tubes in unopened florets, though the 

 grains were shed. 



