The Nature of Phenology 9/26/20: Jack-in-the-pulpit fruiting

Producers: Hazel Stark & Joe Horn
Host: Hazel Stark

Jack-in-the-pulpit’s single flower is mostly green and shaped like a pitcher. This odd structure is actually a modified leaf, called a spathe, which surrounds and forms a hood over the internal flower structure called a spadix. Evidently, whoever named the plant thought that the whole contraption looked something akin to a preacher ready to give his Sunday sermon to passers-by, but I will freely admit that I find that image to be a bit of a stretch of the imagination.

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