Oxalis campylorrhiza beginning to flower

The bright yellow flowers of Oxalis campylorrhiza grow in a branched inflorescence on a dark purple flower stalk. The top group of buds appears like a developing umbel, but similar clusters can be seen emerging lower down as well. Shiny hairs, some glandular, are conspicuously covering the sepals with their acute angled tips. The sepal tips are also purple, lower down green.

The base of the corolla is funnel-shaped; flowers have the familiar Oxalis shape. The petals open widely at the throat where faint dark vertical lines from the base are evident, disappearing on the way to the petal tips. The five petals are roughly angular with flat tips, rounded at the corners.

The two series of stamens don’t look clearly sorted out with the same regularity of length as in other specimens shown here. The branching tips around the end of the central column may be the stigma and not anthers? The unopened buds are bigger here, not pink as the colouring of smaller buds shown in another photo. The photo was taken near the end of April (iSpot).