Column (botany)
The column, or technically the gynostemium, is a reproductive structure that can be found in several plant families: Aristolochiaceae, Orchidaceae, and Stylidiaceae.
It is derived from the fusion of both male and female parts (stamens and pistil) into a single organ. This means that the style and stigma of the pistil, with the filaments and one or more anthers, are all united.
Read more about Column (botany): Orchidaceae
Famous quotes containing the word column:
“I stand on top
of our back steps and breathe the rich air—
a mother skunk with her column of kittens swills the garbage pail.
She jabs her wedge-head in a cup
of sour cream, drops her ostrich tail,
and will not scare.”
—Robert Lowell (1917–1977)