The Autobiography of Charles DarwinDarwin, Charles
Science
The Autobiography of Charles Darwin
Darwin, Charles
Darwin, Charles, 1809-1882; Darwin, Charles, 1809-1882. On the origin of species; Naturalists -- Great Britain -- Biography
During the same year I published in the ‘Journal of the Linnean
Society’ a paper “On the Two Forms, or Dimorphic Condition of Primula,”
and during the next five years, five other papers on dimorphic and
trimorphic plants. I do not think anything in my scientific life has
given me so much satisfaction as making out the meaning of the
structure of these plants. I had noticed in 1838 or 1839 the dimorphism
of Linum flavum, and had at first thought that it was merely a case of
unmeaning variability. But on examining the common species of Primula I
found that the two forms were much too regular and constant to be thus
viewed. I therefore became almost convinced that the common cowslip and
primrose were on the high road to become dioecious;—that the short
pistil in the one form, and the short stamens in the other form were
tending towards abortion. The plants were therefore subjected under
this point of view to trial; but as soon as the flowers with short
pistils fertilised with pollen from the short stamens, were found to
yield more seeds than any other of the four possible unions, the
abortion-theory was knocked on the head. After some additional
experiment, it became evident that the two forms, though both were
perfect hermaphrodites, bore almost the same relation to one another as
do the two sexes of an ordinary animal. With Lythrum we have the still
more wonderful case of three forms standing in a similar relation to
one another. I afterwards found that the offspring from the union of
two plants belonging to the same forms presented a close and curious
analogy with hybrids from the union of two distinct species.
In the autumn of 1864 I finished a long paper on ‘Climbing Plants,’ and
sent it to the Linnean Society. The writing of this paper cost me four
months; but I was so unwell when I received the proof-sheets that I was
forced to leave them very badly and often obscurely expressed. The
paper was little noticed, but when in 1875 it was corrected and
published as a separate book it sold well. I was led to take up this
subject by reading a short paper by Asa Gray, published in 1858. He
sent me seeds, and on raising some plants I was so much fascinated and
perplexed by the revolving movements of the tendrils and stems, which
movements are really very simple, though appearing at first sight very
complex, that I procured various other kinds of climbing plants, and
studied the whole subject. I was all the more attracted to it, from not
being at all satisfied with the explanation which Henslow gave us in
his lectures, about twining plants, namely, that they had a natural
tendency to grow up in a spire. This explanation proved quite
erroneous. Some of the adaptations displayed by Climbing Plants are as
beautiful as those of Orchids for ensuring cross-fertilisation.
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