PEA FAMILY 



Fhnvcrs. — May to July. Perfect, violet-purple, borne in 

 dense, terminal, spicate racemes which are three to six inches 

 long. 



Calyx. — liell-shaped, five-toothed ; teeth somewhat irregular, 

 green, touched with purple. 



Corolla. — Deformed papilionaceous ; consisting of one petal 

 only, the standard, which is violet-purple, erect, clawed, emar- 

 ginate, wrapped around the stamens and the style ; wings and 

 keel wanting. 



Stamens. — Nine or ten, monadelphous, exserted ; filaments 

 violet-purple ; anthers orange. 



Pistil. — Ovary one, superior, sessile, two-celled ; style curved, 

 violet-purple. 



Fi'uit. — Pod, glandular, short, curved, never opening, usually 

 two-seeded. 



The fiower of the False Indigo is an interesting ex- 

 ample of arrested development. The corolla starts 

 out to be papilionaceous, — a butterfly blossom — but 

 something happens and when the bud opens all that 

 can be seen of the blossom is the broad banner, 

 closely wrapped about the stamens and pistil, try^ing to 

 do the whole duty^ of a corolla by protecting the cen- 

 tral parts of the flower. The banner, filaments, and 

 style are a deep rich purple; the protruding anthers a 

 brilliant orange ; and the result is that the terminal 

 spike covered with these flowers glows luridly in the 

 sunlight. The flowering impulse begins at the base 

 and moves spirally^ around the central axis to the apex, 

 thus prolonging the blooming period for a considera- 

 ble time. The bush is ornamentally^ effective. After 

 the blooming period is past it looks not unlike a locust 

 seedling. 



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