Sue Ig rove : Peloria in Plants. 133 



means a monstrosity or sport. Perhaps that is ah that can be 

 said with certainty. Darwin notes that those flowers nearest 

 the axis are most subject to peloria, and thinks such occur- 

 rence ' may be connected with a different flow of nutriment 

 towards the central and external flowers.' He seems to have in 

 mind chiefly the disk flowers of a composite like the Daisy. In 

 such a case the growth of irregular ray flowers seems to be pre- 

 cisely the opposite to what has occurred in our present example. 



In the ' Transactions of the Woolhope Naturalists' Club/ 

 1902, p. 49, there is a note (with plates), on a similar instance 

 of peloria, but it occurred on every branch of the plant, the 

 number of carolla lobes was in each case doubled, and the number 

 of stamens was also double, distinctly leading to the suggestion 

 made that two flowers had become one. 



Examples are often met with (in fact in some years are 

 quite common) of Daisies, Buttercups, Wallflowers and Dame's 

 Violet producing broad, flat, flowering axes, on which flowers 

 are crowded, and often run into one another. 



The Toadflax, again, is said (I have not seen it) to produce 

 sometimes a five-spurred flower. 



Two conclusions are fairly clear : — 



(1) The examples of peloria in Compositse and Umbel- 

 liferae, as quoted by Darwin, are quite different from all the 

 other examples here adduced, unless (as certainly does not 

 appear to be the case), he suggests that flowers like those 

 of the Dandelion, are normal, and the disk flowers of the 

 Daisy ' abnormally symmetrical." 



What is the meaning of the statement that ' flowers nearest 

 the axis a e most subject to peloria ? ' The ray flowers of a 

 composite are not nearest the axis. 



(2) The obvious explanation of the malformations of 

 Buttercups etc., known as fasciation, is that two (or more) 

 flowers have grown together. 



This explanation may stand for the Foxglove peloria, but 

 what of the five-spurred Toadflax ? It might be suggested that 

 the cas of the former was one of reversion to regular form, 

 but the number of corolla lobes is against such a conclusion. 

 Perhaps all we can say is — 

 [a) Buttercups, etc., exhibit fasciation. 

 [h) Toadflax correlated variation, and the Foxglove some- 

 thing of both. 



iqog Hpril i, 



