March 10th, 2010: Great Masterwort 'Roma' (Astrantia major) by kniphofia

Kell San Leandro, CA(Zone 9b) Mar 10, 2010

The Bloom of the Day for March 10th, 2010 was Great Masterwort 'Roma' (Astrantia major).

View the bloom of the day here: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/botd.php?date=2010-03-10

Post #7617883

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ApopkaJohn Apopka, FL(Zone 10a) Mar 10, 2010

http://www.bhg.com/gardening/plant-dictionary/perennial/masterwort/

Masterwort has a flower like no other, delicately colored and with a shape that has been described as both a pincushion and dustmop. This cottage charmer grows best in cool climates -- it struggles in the South. The domed flower clusters bloom atop wiry branched stems. White, rose, and pink flowers can occur in the same planting from self-sown seedlings.

Light:Part Sun Zones:5-7 Plant Type:Perennial Plant Height:24-36 inches tallPlant Width:12-18 inches wideLandscape Uses:Containers, Beds & Borders Special Features:Flowers, Cut Flowers, Dried Flowers

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artmar09/bj-masterwort.html
(nice macro pics)
Since family members have flower clusters in which each flower is joined by its stalk to a common point, they are commonly referred to as Umbelliferae.
Appearances can be deceiving! In fact, each of the �flowers� is not a flower at all, but instead a flower-head composed of very many tiny flowers. What appear to be the flower�s petals are actually a whorl of bracts surrounding the cluster of real flowers.