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Botanical Twins, Tetracots, and Tricots
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Posted by Cyanea z11 HI (My Page) on Sun, Sep 5, 04 at 14:22
| I got seeds from a rare endangered Hawai'ian species called Bonamia menziesii (Convolvulaceae). I have about seven seedlings now. "One" of these seedlings produced two radicals and two sets of cotyledons. It looks as if two plants germinated from one seed. One of the "twins" has four cotyledons, and the other has three. I am hypothesizing that two seperate plants came from one seed. I don't want to seperate them because I might be wrong and do some damage. However, I don't want the plants to compete with each other if they are seperate plants.
Is it safe to seperate these plants?
This was not the first time I experience "tricots", or "Botanical twins". With the set of seeds I got of Bonamia menziesii I also got seeds of an endemic Hawai'ian lava flow colonizer, Rumex skottsberghii. Both species were given to me from the same Botanical garden, but I don't think this has to do with their abnormal growth. I have about ten seedlings of Rumex skottsberghii. One of these seedlings germinated with three cotyledons.
Another odd occurence of this tipe was experienced with another endemic Hawai'ian plant, Argemone glauca. It produced two radicals and two cotyledons. I considered this to be one plant. The plant died (about a year ago). From what it looked like it died because it was pot bound. These plants do not like pots. It had developed healthey leaves, and it was not the only plant of this species and this set of seeds that died in a four inch pot at the age it was at.
Argemone glauca has close relatives in North America. It was once classified as A. alba.
What is the correct terminology for plants I like to call tetracots, tricots, and botanical twins? Where can I read about these plants?
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Botanical Twins, Tetracots, and Tricots
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| Read about all this stuff on the net, it's got everything.......Or u might check out the Texas Aggies site......Their into this...I would'nt separate the twins now, maybe later.......Thad |
RE: Botanical Twins, Tetracots, and Tricots
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| Here s an interesting link HTH |
Here is a link that might be useful: Polyembryony
RE: Botanical Twins, Tetracots, and Tricots
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| Hi. Im an independent plant breeder and researcher. Im a former Texas Aggie as well. We're the top plant people on the web it seems. Thanks for telling me of your conjoined twins of those two species of native Hawai'ian plants. This adds to my list of species that tricots have been found in. It is just two siamese twin plants. It occurs about 2 to 3 percent in all plant species. So far i have found this same ratio in radishes, marigolds, tomatoes, artemisia and prickly pear seedlings in the regular plant populations. I selfed a tricotyledon marigold and the incidence of tricotyledons went from 1 in 43 seedlings being a tricotyledon or deformed leaflets to 1 in 13 seedlings having tricotyledon or deformed seedlings. If the tricots reach maturity leave as one plant as you could lose one or both of the conjoined twins. I also would be interested in the ratio of F1 progeny of tricotyledon or malformed leaves among the progeny of the selfed plant. |
RE: Botanical Twins, Tetracots, and Tricots
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| I wonder if such twins would prove useful in species that have resisted the efforts of tissue culturists. Perhaps they would be more responsive? |
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