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Questions and Answers: 2022

Question: Tulip tree is apparently a dicot or eudicot. But its flower has 6 petals and 3 tepals if you count …

• Question

  Tulip tree is apparently a dicot or eudicot. But its flower has 6 petals and 3 tepals if you count the 3 petals under the 6 main petals. I just carefully inspected 8 flowers from 3 tulip trees and confirmed the above observation. Now the 6 or 6 + 3 petal arrangement is typical of a monocot plant. Am I making a mistake in my observation or is the 3 x n rule for monocot frequently broken? Thank you so much for you time and help.

  Answer

  Dear plantaware, good morning. While Liriodendron tulipifera is has two cotyledons, it is not a eudicot. It belongs to a group of plants known as the magnoliids that appeared prior to the monocots. It shares with the monocots the typical pattern of perianth parts in multiples of three. Monocots arouse (evolutionarily) from within dicot plants. Keep in mind that what was formerly classified as dicots is now split into multiple groups (the vast majority of the former dicots are called "tricolpates"). I hope this helps.