My seed grown Gloriosa superba are currently blooming*, and for the first time I have noticed that the style bends at a sharp angle where it attaches to the ovary. Consequently, the flower can only be pollinated from one side, even though it is otherwise radially symmetric. That seems very strange to me. I'm used to flowers like orchids whose anatomy directs pollinators towards the pollen and stigma. There doesn't seem to be anything about the Gloriosa flower that would encourage a pollinator to approach from the side that has the stigma. Does anyone have any insight into why such a structure would evolve? *more accurately, the plants in pots are blooming. The plants in the ground are slower, but the largest is currently in bud. Nick Plummer North Carolina, USA, Zone 7 http://sweetgumandpines.wordpress.com/ <div dir="ltr"><div><div><div>My seed grown Gloriosa superba are currently blooming*, and for the first time I have noticed that the style bends at a sharp angle where it attaches to the ovary. Consequently, the flower can only be pollinated from one side, even though it is otherwise radially symmetric. That seems very strange to me. I'm used to flowers like orchids whose anatomy directs pollinators towards the pollen and stigma. There doesn't seem to be anything about the Gloriosa flower that would encourage a pollinator to approach from the side that has the stigma. Does anyone have any insight into why such a structure would evolve?<br><br></div>*more accurately, the plants in pots are blooming. The plants in the ground are slower, but the largest is currently in bud.<br><br></div>Nick Plummer<br></div>North Carolina, USA, Zone 7<br><a href="http://sweetgumandpines.wordpress.com/">http://sweetgumandpines.wordpress.com/</a><br></div> _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…