Flower head of Sunflower- A unique set.Floral Biology of Asteraceae/Compositeae family

  

Asteraceae represents the largest dicot family, distributed worldwide. It includes herbs, shrubs, trees, epiphytes, vines, and succulents.

The inflorescence is Flower head or Capitula which is a compound inflorescence.

The main characteristic is the arrangement of flowers on the receptacle of flower.

The flowers are of two types mainly- Disc florets and Ray florets.

Outer ray flowers are, mainly, unisexually female, while inner disc flowers are bisexual. Both have bracts and both have a pistil with a double stigma and an ovary below other flower parts. The bisexual disc flower, cut open, shows the pistil’s ovule.