MORPHOLOGY OF FLOWER INITIATION OF BRODIAEA

The main axis of dormant brodiaea corms ( Triteleia laxa) harvested fr om the field in the summer comprises a leaf sheath, two leaf primordia , and a vegetative meristem. Floral induction, as indicated by initiat ion of bracts on the flanks of the apical meristem, occurs after corm dormancy is broken. The bracts enlarge and enclose the reproductive do me, which then divides to form floral primordia of different ages. The daughter corm, which forms from the basal portion of the stem, starts to enlarge early in the growing season. Unlike many other geophytes, there is little competition, in brodiaea, for assimilates between the vegetative propagules (daughter corm and cormels) and the developing i nflorescence.