2008 Volume 59 Issue 3 Pages 231-238
The flowers and floral phenology in the closely allied Tricyrtis maculata (s. str.) (Liliaceae) from Nepal and T esquirolii (s. str.) from China were compared. The flowers of the two species proved to be adichogamous (homogamous), as their stigmas and anthers mature simultaneously. In T. maculata, the practical duration for pollination of each flower is approximately one day. The distal stigmatic branchlets of the style are comparatively short, and the stigmas are conduplicate and open. In T. esquirolii, the flowers are open for two days. The stigmatic branchlets are moderately long, and the stigmas are closed along the suture, as in many other species of Tricyrtis with dichogamous (protandrous) flowers. The characteristics of the flowers of T. maculata as noted above appear to be more advanced than those of T. esquirolii. The adichogamous flowers of T. esquirolii are presumed to have originated from protandrous flowers.
