Freaky Flowers

It is not too unusual to find odd flowers, particularly when they open following unsettled weather or othe extreme conditions. Sometimes, though, we may not know what sort of environmental condition induced the odd forms.

Green (1914) reported on some odd flowers that opened from the bulbils of a lily. Somewhat analogous to these were the "blossoms" that replaced the leaves of seedlings from the Morello cherry observed by T. A. Knight.

"I have seen the blossoms and fruit of the Morello Cherry tree bear, in the forcing-house, the temperature of seventy and even of eighty degrees, without any injurious or peculiar effects, except that the plumules of the seeds produced in such high temperature expanded with something very like blossoms upon the points. Small white leaves, in every respect similar to the petals of blossoms, were in many instances arranged as in a perfect blossom, which withered and died, whilst a bud upon the lower part of the stem vegetated, and the period of puberty in the plants did not subsequently appear to be at all accelerated by the operation of the high temperature in which the seeds had been ripened."

The oddities below are some I've found during my walks in varous parts of California.

December 25, 2009 - Paperwhite Narcissus in San Carlos, CA.

Multi-petalled Amaryllis 'Rubra Bicolour' blossoms on a scape of normal flowers, in my San Carlos, CA garden, August 22, 2006.

The azalea blossom at left has lost a petal, yet remains symmetrical. The bloom on the right has two petaloid stamens. Palo Alto, CA.

Like the azalea above and the daylilies below, this IB iris remained symmetrical despite the change in number of organs. Palo Alto, CA.

July 29, 2009 - San Jose

I don't know the variety, but these two blooms represent several examples of abnormal numbers of floral parts found at the time. Palo Alto, CA.

Another daylily with extra petals displayed symmetrically. Foster City, CA.

California poppies, one with 6 petals rather than the usual 4. Palo Alto, CA.

These are variant forms of Hemerocallis 'Kwanzo' observed at Palo Alto, CA.

Galls on Rosa californica. From a distance these appeared to be hips. It is striking that insect larvae can take over the genome of the host plant to produce a suitable home for themselves. Casper's Wilderness Park.

A few years ago, all the buds on 'Asta von Parpart' opened to reveal clusters of more buds. Each opened to another flower. San Jose, CA.

'Spray Cécile Brünner' with bud emerging from center of flower. Four blooms appeared like this at the same time, suggesting that some condition of weather was responsible. Hayward, CA.

Odd occurrences on Agapanthus. Palo Alto, CA.

Petaloid anthers in Camellia

Rose 'Marquise Boccella' with shoot growing from an ovule (left), and leaves in place of sepals (right). San Jose, CA.

See: Cook on Metaphanic Variations (1926)
and Goethe: Metamorphosis of Plants 1790 (1849)