Studies on the Reopen Floret in Wheat

Abstract

In case of failure in pollination at flowering time in wheat, the ovary expands hypertrophously (Fig. 1, B) and the abdominal side push open the lemma, thus giving rise to so-called reopen floret about 3 days after flowering. During an early period (3∼5 days after flowering) the ovary retains the ability of fertilization. In natural conditions, however, there is little additional pollination on the stigma of reopen floret, and besides, the fertility of the pistil is lost since the 5∼6th day. Therefore, all of the reopen florets do not produce grains. The properties of the reopen floret obtained by the present experiments are able to be utilized for early surveying the empty flower percentage caused by failure of fertilization.