Metamorphosis of Plants

Attempt to explain the metamorphosis of plants is the title of the written by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe in 1790 botanical writing. Goethe goes with his work as co-founder of comparative morphology. 27 years later Goethe published the document a second time as an article in the series On the morphology with the headline: The Metamorphosis of Plants.

Content of Scripture

Been " the secret relationship of the various parts of plants, as the leaves of the calyx, the crown, the stamens, which develop after each other and to speak from each other, has long been recognized by researchers in general, and even more processed: Goethe writes in his introduction and it has the effect of making one and the same organ can see changed manifold us, called the metamorphosis of Plants " Goethe distinguishes three kinds of metamorphoses. regular, irregular or retrograde and the random metamorphosis from the outside, especially by insects is effected.

The construction of the writing follows the development of plants from seedling through the green -to- flowering plant, followed by fruit and seeds. Goethe compares cotyledons, stem leaves, bracts, sepals, petals, stamens and pistils in the sense of a metamorphosis series and sets in the fruit, seeds and eyes to new. This is followed by the grown rose and carnation grown by two examples of irregular, retrograde metamorphosis. Finally Goethe Linnaeus discusses representation of metamorphosis. Linnaeus was assumed that the various circles of floral organs are formed by a metamorphosis of the circularly arranged layers of tissue of the stem and not by a transformation of the foliage leaf. In the last section Goethe sums up his reasoning as follows: " Just as we now have the various organs of the budding and flowering plant all wanted from a single namely the leaf, which usually develops at each node, to explain; so we also have those fruits which maintain their seeds to be closed firmly in itself, daring derive from the leaf shape. " Scripture deals primarily with the metamorphosis of the sheet, the metamorphosis of the stem is striped in the formation of composite flower and fruit stalls, the root and its metamorphosis not treated Goethe.

Importance of writing, content

The morphology has made great strides since Goethe. Today is the writing in terms of their content mainly of historical interest, plus a few examples. Goethe puts stamen and style on the same level of education, he notes a metamorphosis from the stamen to the stylus. The stamen is, as we know today, with the carpel - including pen - to compare. The discovery of the generation change by Wilhelm Hofmeister was to reject the equality of stamen and Stem Leaf for Julius Sachs reason. Goethe studied the stamen as a transformed Stem Leaf. Sachs differs in addition to the basic vegetative organs roots, stem axis and leaf nor the generative organs sporangia and gametangia reason, this can not be derived from the leaf. Another major advance was the distinction between homologous and analogous structures.

Meaning of Scripture, methodically

The comparative morphology has proven to be a method. Goethe with his work influenced the morphology. It has been repeatedly published by morphologists: Adolph Hansen ( 1907); Wilhelm Troll (1926) and Agnes Arber ( 1946). A major work of Wilhelm Troll's called Comparative morphology of higher plants.

Goethe's influence goes beyond morphology. The geneticist Eliot Meyerowitz and Enrico Coen rely in their work specifically to Goethe. Goethe emphasized the importance of irregular metamorphosis for understanding the regular metamorphosis. The molecular genetics is specialized malformations cause she needs this for the understanding of the intact organism. In her works, the geneticist with reference to Goethe by the leaf nature of dust and carpel.

For Goetheanism the Scripture is of central importance. Goethe's methodology, questions, comparing cause an inward Understand the shape transformations. The internal mobility of presentation is encouraged. The miterlebende Understand is an important methodological component of a Goethean observation.