Question map
The colourful part of the Sunflower or Marigold plant is
Explanation
The colourful part of the Sunflower (Helianthus annuus) or Marigold (Tagetes) is not a single flower but a complex structure known as an inflorescence. Specifically, these plants belong to the Asteraceae family, which is characterized by a specialized composite flower head called a capitulum or calathium. What appears to be a single large flower is actually a collection of numerous individual sessile flowers called florets. The capitulum consists of two types of florets: the peripheral ray florets, which possess the showy, colourful petal-like structures, and the central disc florets, which are typically responsible for producing seeds. This arrangement creates a pseudanthium, or 'false flower,' designed to attract pollinators more effectively than individual small flowers. Therefore, the entire colourful head is botanically classified as an inflorescence.
Sources
- [1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/sunflower