Greetings,
A member of my wildflower class brought to my attention a discrepancy in
the literature I gave out about the sex life of the Jack-in-the-Pulpit.
In a write up from Marilyn Mollicone to JBS, 1992, she states that the
male Jacks have two leaves and the females one leaf as a rule.
In another article (Paulette Bierzychudek, Natural History Magazine,
1982) it is stated that the males have one leaf and the females two.
So, being the curious botanist, I went into my own garden (yes, ideal
growing conditions for all my Jacks for years) and found that they all
have two leaves and that there are 3 males, 9 females, and several
single leaves with no inflorescence.
Please shed some professional light on this quandary and reply to all of
us.
Many thanks,
Susan