On Mon, 10 Jun 2013 00:16:25 +0200, kay wrote:


'Kath[_2_ Wrote:
;984892']I was sitting having a break from weeding (with a lovely cup of
tea) when I started to
notice that the Aquilegias have some flowers with 'horned' petals and
others where the
horns never emerge and are completely covered with the 5 back petals.

When these latter ones are beginning to open, they resemble small
Fratillaria flowers.
What could be the purpose for this difference? They are on the same
plant and even the
same stem.

A second question (bear with me, please). Are those flowers with whorls
of bright yellow
stamens, male and the ones with cone shaped clusters of none yellow oval
'bits' on stalks,
female? This is unrelated to the first query and does not fit in with
the shape of the
flowers.



Aquilegias are good at producing a wide range of flower types in their
seedlings, from the "clematis flowered" type with flat petals through to
various degrees of double-ness. I don't think there's much "purpose" to
it. Better to ask the purpose of the spurs, which are nectar
containing, thus limiting pollination to long-tongued insects (because
the pollinating insects come to the flowers to take the nectar) . The
advantage of limiting pollination to a smaller group of insects is that
the insects themselves will be feeding on a smaller range of flowers
(those which require a long tongue) and so there's a greater chance your
pollen gets taken to another aquilegia and not, say, a rose.

The flat flower type is more typical of other plants in the same family,
eg clematis, buttercup.

But I've never seen two flower types on one plant.

As to the second question - aquilegia don't have separate male and
female flowers - both male and female bits are in the same flower. Have
you considered that the flowers might not be the same age? I haven't
looked at aquilegia flowers closely enough so haven't seen what you are
asking about, but wonder whether the stamens devlope first, then die
back when they have shed their pollen, allowing easier access to the
stigma - a mechanism to avoid self-pollination? This is speculation. I
really should go and look at some aquilegia flowers first.

You're right though that when the male and female flowers are separate
(eg Skimmia, where they're on separate plants) the males are the ones
with fluffy stamens, and the females have a knob-like stigma. Primroses
do it a bit differently. All flowers are bisexual, but some have the
stamens longer than the stigma, and some have the stigma longer than the
stamens, so that if you look without dissecting the flower, you can be
forgiven for thinking there are separate male and female flowers.

Thank you for your thoughts and info. It has certainly intregued me. I may look into it a
bit deeper, if only to satisfy an awakened curiosity.

Kath