A new interaction between insects and carnivorous plants is reported from Brazil. Larvae of the predatory flower fly Toxomerus basalis (Diptera: Syrphidae: Syrphinae) have been found scavenging on the sticky leaves of several carnivorous sundew species (Drosera, Droseraceae) in Minas Gerais and São Paulo states, SE Brazil. This syrphid apparently spends its whole larval stage feeding on prey tr...

Description: Annual herb, 30-150 cm high, slightly aromatic stems erect, robust, much branching, cylindrical, furrowed, densely leafy. Leaves alternate , with special odor, with broad leaf sheath, lower leaves pinnate, with narrowlyliner lobes; middle and upper leaves 2-3 pinnate, with filiform lobes. Inflorescence dense umbel with numerous rays( to 120 or more) slender in flower, thickened and...

Beech leaves were sampled at the end of a prolonged hot dry period at a tree decline site in the Black Forest, Germany to investigate the potential role of flavanols in defense mechanisms against environmental stress. Green and yellowing leaves were harvested from the uppermost canopy of trees that were more than 200 years old and 30 m high. Yellowing leaves had a 7.4-fold higher concentration ...

The influence of scoring during the flower induction phase was investigated. Pear trees, Pyrus communis L. cv. Doyenne du Comice, Forelle and Rosemarie were used in the study, conducted in the Western Cape, South Africa. The yield of ‘Doyenne du Comice’ increased by 38% in scored trees compared to the control. The increase in yield was due to 50% more fruits on the scored trees than on the cont...

What is the flowering transition? It marks the end of vegetative growth and the beginning of reproductive development in flowering plants. The physiological changes that cause it are referred to as floral induction. What is SAM? The shoot apical meristem — a group of undifferentiated progenitor cells that occupies the tip of the stem. It gives rise to both vegetative organs (leaves) and reprodu...

Leaves exhibit a wide range of form and function: as well as the flattened photosynthetic organs we are most familiar with, modifications of leaf morphology produce the rigid spines of cacti, the cup-shaped insect traps of pitcher plants, colorful flower parts such as petals and some of the tendrils used for attachment by climbing plants. One fundamental choice in leaf architecture is whether t...

In situ RNA hybridization and immunocytochemistry were used to establish the cellular distribution of monoterpenoid indole alkaloid biosynthesis in Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus). Tryptophan decarboxylase (TDC) and strictosidine synthase (STR1), which are involved in the biosynthesis of the central intermediate strictosidine, and desacetoxyvindoline 4-hydroxylase (D4H) and deacetyl...

In order to investigate the seasonal changes and the possible role of the free polyamines in the leaves and stems on the alternate bearing habit of the ‘Kinnow’ mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco) trees, a comparative study was conducted to analyze the levels of free polyamines  (putrescine, spermidine and spermine) in the leaves and stems tissues of “on” and &ldquo...

Effects of exogenously applied methyl jasmonate (MeJA) and sucrose on vase life and non-structural carbohydrate concentration in petals and leaves of cut ‘First Red’ roses were investigated. Roses were placed in sealed plastic containers and received MeJA vapour treatment (0.1 μL MeJA L-1) for 24 h at 20°C. Flowers were then placed in individual bottles containing 0 or 2% (v/v) sucrose solution...