Primroses – heralds of spring
by Lewis, 2 March, 2017, 1 comments
Mediaeval scholars used to refer to the primrose as ‘prima rosa’ or the first rose of the year. The term ‘first rose’ is a misnomer as the primrose does not belong to the Rose family, but to the Primulaceae - a family that includes some 68 plant genera. The common primrose is of botanical interest as its flowers occur in two forms - a phenomenon known as heterostyly or dimorphism.
The two forms of the flower are known as pin and thrum eyed forms. In the thrum eyed flower, the long stamens are visible (see featured image above) and the short stigma lies below them; whereas in the pin eyed flower the stigma projects above the shorter stamens (see image below). Read more...
