Sinningia 'Bewitched' with Joined Anthers

This is Sinningia 'Bewitched'. It's pretty interesting in a few ways. The plant, hybridized by Peter Shalit, is a complex hybrid from S. cardinalis 'Skydiver'  and S. macropoda. It has a peloric flower, meaning that it has
unusual regularity in the form of a flower that is normally irregular - all the petals are the same.

It's interesting in a few more ways too....




You will note that the stamen are joined in a ring and fused together. This doesn't happen is all flowers. Gesneriads are one of the families that this frequently happens in and it is a distinguishing characteristic of the family.

 Gesneriads as a rule have five petals fused at the base to form a tube and are zygomorphic - or able to be divided symmetrically along only one plane. If there is an exception the flower will present a recessive mutation and the flower will have five or more petals arranged to form a circular flower.

You will see that our flower has six petals and six filaments.

 


The stamen seem to help push the petals open and present themselves even before the flower is open.

Here you can see the effect from the front and side views. The stamen are held well away from the flower.


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