Phenological Studies on Vegetative and Reproductive Parts of Dendrophthoe Falcata (L.F) Ettingsh

Abstract

Dendrophthoe falcata (L.f) Ettingsh is an important hemi-stem parasitic angiosperm belonging to the family Loranthaceae. Phenological study is one of the most important traits in relation to plant growth, development and pollination system and considered as an important tool for the ecology and evolution. The complete development of leaf took 50 days from the initiation till the expansion, while the flower initiation to maturation period was 44 days and the fruit maturation period was 37 days in D. falcata. The cold climatic conditions initiate more flowering and the peak flowering was recorded in the month of January. The red ants and honey bees are the major pollinators in this taxa. The present investigation deals with the phenological observations made on the leaf, flower and fruit of Dendrophthoe falcata from August 2012 to March 2014. Keywords: Dendrophthoe falcata, phenological, leaf, flower, fruit Cite this Article Ramanaiah P, Rajanna L. Phenological Studies on Vegetative and Reproductive Parts of Dendrophthoe Falcata (L.F) Ettingsh. Research & Reviews: Journal of Botany . 2018; 7(2): 22–28p