Schotia brachypetala buds

The missile-like Schotia brachypetala buds seen here are all aimed in the same direction on their pedicels, like a cluster of offensive weapons prepared for action. Blood red, membranous surfaces belie such a comparison.

It appears as if the back part elongates into the floral tube after the bud bulging is done and before the flower opens. The small, dark bracts on the pedicels are hard to consider as functional at this developmental stage. They may have covered the sepals when this floral growth was still minute, compact and quite differently shaped.

The sepals doing the covering duties at this stage will feature as the main protective facility of these flowers throughout henceforth, as the petals of S. brachypetala are insignificant.

Brachy is a Greek word meaning short, while petala means petals. The insignificant floral part gives this species its name (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Schmidt, et al, 2002; Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; Pooley, 1993).