From Asa Gray 22 May 1877
Herbarium of Harvard University, | Botanic Garden, Cambridge, Mass.
May 22 1877
My Dear Darwin
I asked my good correspondent Prof. Bessey to see if Lithospermum longiflorum (= angustifolium) being cleistogenous later, is, like its relatives, also dimorphous.1 Here is his first reply just in season to send to you by this post.
I forgot to ask him to examine pollen. I will do so.
Yours ever | Asa Gray
[Enclosure]
Iowa Agricultural College. | Ames,
May 19th 1877
My dear Doctor Gray.
As to the dimorphism of Lithospermum longiflorum, Spreng. or L. angustifolium Michx. I send you measurements made upon freshly gathered specimens this morning.
I examined ten flowers from five different plants; enough to show that if there is any dimorphism it is a wonderfully irregular one.2 I copy my notes entire.
Plant No 1. | { | Length | of | Calyx | .32 | inch | |
Flower No 1. | " | " | Corolla | 1.04 | " | (tubular portion only) | |
" | " | Style | 1.03 | " | (from base of corolla) | ||
" | to middle of anthers | .87 | " | ||||
" | of anthers | .10 | " | ||||
Pollen falling freely from anthers. | |||||||
Flower No 2 | Calyx | .32 | |||||
Corolla | 1.00 | ||||||
Style | 1.00 | ||||||
Stamens | .82 | ||||||
Length | of | anthers | .10 | — | |||
Pollen falling freely. | |||||||
Stamens irregular in height: From top of uppermost to bottom of lowermost .15 inch | |||||||
Plant No 2. | Flower | 3d. | Calyx | .35 | |||
Corolla | 1.08 | ||||||
Style | 1.08 | ||||||
Stamens | .93 | ||||||
Anthers | .08 | ||||||
Anthers dried up and old. | |||||||
" | Flower | 4th. | Calyx | .35 | |||
Corolla | 1.18 | ||||||
Style | 1.06 | ||||||
Stamens | 1.03 | ||||||
Anthers placed irregularly, old and dried up. | |||||||
Plant No 3. | Flower | 5th. | Calyx | .30 | |||
Corolla | 1.09 | ||||||
Style | .92 | ||||||
Stamens | .95 | ||||||
Anthers | .06 | ||||||
Anthers old and dried up. | |||||||
" | Flower | 6th. | Calyx | .31 | |||
Corolla | 1.14 | ||||||
Style | .95 | ||||||
Stamens | .98 | ||||||
Anthers | .09 | ||||||
Pollen falling freely. | |||||||
Plant No 4 | Flower | 7th | Calyx | .39 | |||
Corolla | 1.37 | ||||||
Style | 1.05 | ||||||
Stamens | 1.20 | ||||||
Anthers old and dried up. | |||||||
The corolla fell as the flower was plucked. | |||||||
Flower | 8th. | Calyx | .39 | ||||
Corolla | 1.30 | ||||||
Style | 1.19 | ||||||
Stamens | 1.17 | ||||||
Flower in “full bloom” possibly a little past. | |||||||
Stamens of irregular height. Stigma in the midst of the anthers, and covered with pollen. Corolla 4 lobed! Anthers 4! Sepals of irregular size, one only the size of the others. | |||||||
Flower | 9th. | Calyx | .32 | ||||
Corolla | 1.18 | ||||||
Style | 1.03 | ||||||
Stamens | 1.05 | ||||||
Anthers | .06 | ||||||
Anthers shedding pollen, and of irregular height. | |||||||
Plant 5. | Flower | 10th. | Calyx | .39 | |||
Corolla | 1.06 | ||||||
Style | .83 | ||||||
Stamens | .90 | ||||||
Flower old. | |||||||
Calyx with five perfect sepals, and an additional one alternating with and within the normal whorl: this extra one smaller than the others and with yellow petaloid edge. | |||||||
Flower | 11. | Calyx— | .34 | ||||
Corolla— | 1.15 | ||||||
Style | .51 | ||||||
Stamens | .97 | ||||||
Anthers | .07 | ||||||
This flower had 6 perfect sepals, 6 slightly irregular corolla lobes, and 6 stamens. The short style appeared to be abortive, possibly from an injury, as the stigmatic end was black, and not lobed. Pollen falling freely from the anthers. | |||||||
Note. Two other flowers (young) on this plant had a 6-sepaled calyx. One had a 6-lobed corolla, both had but 5 stamens each.3 |
![diagram](/sites/default/files/dcp_lett_10969.jpg)
In order to show at a glance the relative lengths of corolla tube, style and stamens, I have constructed these diagrams. They are magnified ten times. Every inch in diagram represents .10 inch actual. To save space the lower six inches of the diagrams are cut off.
I will make further measurements as I have the time, but these show that there is great irregularity in these flowers. I notice that in the forms where the styles are generally shorter than the stamens—the styles are much longer than the stamens in the bud.
I think the small flowers (late ones) are cleistogamous.4 Will watch them when they appear.
This long flowered form seems to be thrown into a state of confusion by the vice of self-fertilization which is almost certainly indulged in by the small flowered forms. The long ones appear to be trying to be heterostylous, but are probably balked by the habits of the short ones.
Very truly | C. E. Bessey.
Thanks for pamphlets. I’ll inquire about artichokes.
Footnotes
Bibliography
Forms of flowers 2d ed.: The different forms of flowers on plants of the same species. 2d edition. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1880.
Forms of flowers: The different forms of flowers on plants of the same species. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1877.
Summary
Asked C. E. Bessey whether Lithospermum longiflorum was dimorphic like its relatives. Encloses CEB’s reply.
Letter details
- Letter no.
- DCP-LETT-10969
- From
- Asa Gray
- To
- Charles Robert Darwin
- Sent from
- Herbarium of Harvard
- Source of text
- DAR 110: B53–7, DAR 165: 196
- Physical description
- ALS 2pp, encl ALS 5pp
Please cite as
Darwin Correspondence Project, “Letter no. 10969,” accessed on 1 September 2024, https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/letter/?docId=letters/DCP-LETT-10969.xml