The Anther ear1 (An1) gene product is involved in the synthesis of ent-kaurene, the first tetracyclic intermediate in the gibberellin (GA) biosynthetic pathway. Mutations causing the loss of An1 function result in a GA-responsive phenotype that includes reduced plant height, delayed maturity, and development of perfect flowers on normally pistillate ears. The an1::Mu2-891339 allele was recovere...

Rhododendron is one of the largest shrubs and is well known as a garden plant because of their evergreen leaves and various flower colors. The present study investigated the variation in amino acids in the differently colored flowers of Rhododendron schlippenbachii. Analysis of the Rhododendron flowers revealed 22 types of amino acids. The amino acid content varied greatly depending on the diff...

Nectar robbers are thought rarely to pollinate flowers, especially those with sexual organs hidden within corollas. In this study, we examined whether robbers pollinate flowers of distylous Primula secundiflora. Distylous plants have two floral morphs. Pin flowers have long styles and short stamens, and thrum flowers have short styles and long stamens. Flowers of P. secundiflora were commonly r...

Flowers, as repeated modules on a plant, may show population dynamics that correspond to ecological models for population growth. We hypothesized that rate of flower production (birth rate), number of open flowers per day (population size) and flower duration (longevity) should be related to plant resource status. With dioecious species, resource demands of male or female function would contrib...

In hermaphroditic plants, female reproductive success often varies among different positions within an inflorescence. However, few studies have evaluated the relative importance of underlying causes such as pollen limitation, resource limitation or architectural effect, and few have compared male allocation. During a 2-year investigation, we found that female reproductive success of an acropeta...