CHAPTER III 
THE COLOURS AND PIGMENTS OF PLANTS 
Pigments and Colours of Bacteria and Fungi—Chlorophyll 
and the Associated Pigments—Colour and Pigments of 
Algae—Pigments of Flowering Plants—Autumnal Colora¬ 
tion—Colours of Flowers and Fruits—Meaning of Plant 
Pigments and Summary. 
In considering the colours and pigments of plants 
we may conveniently begin with the colours of 
Bacteria and of Fungi, and then pass to the con¬ 
sideration of the colouring of chlorophyll-containing 
plants. 
The colours of Bacteria are often surprisingly 
brilliant. The red spots which Micrococcusprodigiosus 
forms on moist bread, the violet colour which 
sometimes appears on decaying meat, are familiar 
cases in point, but less familiar forms are often 
equally bright. There are some facts of interest 
in regard to the position in which the pigments 
occur, and the conditions necessary for their formation. 
As to the first point, the pigment may occur 
within the cells of the colony. In 1873 Professor 
E. Ray Lankester described an interesting peach- 
