Brongniart[275] records ovules of Delphinium elatum existing in the form of marginal lobes of the carpellary leaf itself; so that each ovule corresponds to a lobe or large tooth of this leaf, the funiculus, as well as the raphe, being formed by the median nerve of the lateral lobe. M. Clos[276] mentions a similar instance in Aquilegia Skinneri; and another is figured in Lindley's 'Elements of Botany,' p. 88, f. 180.
Fig. 143.—Portion of an open foliaceous carpel of Delphinium, with ovules on the lobules.
Cramer[277], from an examination of several ovular malformations, as well as from the investigation of the mode of evolution of the ovules, is led to a similar conclusion with reference to the production of ovules from the modified lobes of the carpellary leaf. Figs. 143–145, copied from Cramer, show how the nucleus of the ovule is formed as a new growth from the surface of the lobes of the leaf in Delphinium elatum.
Fig. 144.—Section through marginal lobe of carpel (Delphinium), showing the nucleus (n).
