Anatomy and Development of Tomato Flower

Abstract

1. The inflorescence of the varieties of tomatoes studied is a racemose cyme bearing 7-12 flowers. 2. The floral organs are developed in a low spiral arrangement of four turns around the receptacle. The six primordia of the calyx develop successively, passing around the receptacle in a clockwise manner. The primordia of the succeeding cycles develop in a like manner, except that they alternate with those of each preceding cycle. 3. Each zone later becomes completely meristematic, so that the floral organs of each whorl are laterally coalesced, so to speak. Finally the staminal and corolla zones become radially and laterally one continuous zone, so that the stamens appear to be adnate to, or outgrowths from, the corolla tube. 4. Each calyx lobe, corolla lobe, stamen, and carpel is supplied with one bundle from the vascular cylinder in the receptacle. 5. The calyx consists of a short tube surmounted by six linear to lanceolate lobes, 12-15 cell layers in thickness. The mesophyll is loosely arranged, and contains numerous chloroplasts. 6. The corolla is a short tube bearing six broadly lanceolate lobes, about eight cell layers in thickness. 7. The six stamens are connivent, and form a cone around the pistil. They may be said to be inserted on the throat of the corolla, but their primordia are at first free from it. Dehiscence is introrsely longitudinal. 8. The pistil is composed of six united carpels. 9. Glandular hairs are found on the calyx and corolla. Multicellular non-glandular hairs occur on the calyx, corolla, and style. All of the organs bear single celled papillary hairs. Stomata were found on the calyx, pedicel, and style, but not on the corolla or ovary.