220 



THE FLOWER 



441. — Staminodia, transformed sta- 

 mens of calla simulating petals: pet^ 

 petals ; st, staminodia. 



all. The corolla is usually wanting and the stamens and 

 pistil are greatly reduced, but they are much more prolific 

 than ordinary blossoms. 



315. Transformations. — Instead of suppression, organs 

 frequently undergo an alteration into something else by 



which their nature is greatly 

 obscured. Conspicuous in- 

 stances are the brilliant stam- 

 inodia, or altered stamens of 

 the canna, that simulate 

 petals (Fig. 441), and the four 

 large white bracts, usually 

 mistaken for a corolla, that 

 surround the flower clusters 

 of the dog- 

 wood. In the 

 cereus and 



other cactuses, bracts may be found in all 



stages of transition, from spines or scales 



to the most gorgeous of corollas. The 



rose, camellia, and water lily furnish other 



instances of the same kind ; and in fact, 



examples of the transition of almost any 



organ into another may be observed by 



one who will take the trouble to look for 



them. 



316. Appendages of the Corolla. — An 



appendage attached to the inner face of 

 the corolla, like the funnel-shaped or bell- 

 shaped projection within the perianth of 

 daffodils and jonquils and others of the 

 amaryllis family, to which they belong, is 

 called a crown. It is no part of the peri- 

 anth proper, and does not interfere in any way with the 

 symmetry of the flower. The crown of the passion flower, 

 to which so much of its beauty is due, is composed of 

 a ring of abortive filaments, brilliantly colored, that sur- 



442. — Flower of a 

 cactus {cereus greg- 

 gii), showing tran- 

 sition from scales to 

 petals. 



