Bevorzugtes Studienobjekt zu den Gesetzmässigkeiten der Laubblattmetamorphose sind die Halbrosettenpflanzen. Hochblätter erscheinen dort als reduzierte Formen gegenüber den Blättern der grundständigen Rosette. In dieser Arbeit wird der Blick darauf gelenkt, dass sich ihnen scheinbar fehlende Elemente in metamorphosierter Form in benachbarten Bildungen - z.B. in Stängelinternodien - finden. Diese geordnete Abgabe von Elementen schafft mit dem Spross, der die reduzierten Blattorgane in sich vereinigt, ein «Blatt höherer Art». Dennoch können, einer Anregung Bockemühls folgend, auch im Hochblatt selbst Kompensationen der «Unvollständigkeit» aufgefunden werden. Sie sind in einer den anderen Blättern so nicht zukommenden Anlage zur Vervielfältigung zu sehen. Zur vollen Entfaltung kann diese Anlage allerdings nur bei anderen Wuchsformen als den Halbrosettenpflanzen gelangen. So erklären sich die Besonderheiten der Blattformen verschiedener Pflanzenarten jeweils im Hinblick auf das grössere Ganze des Sprossbaues ohne Spekulation auf formende Kräfte, die der Morphologie allein nicht zugänglich wären.
N1 -Plants with a semi-rosette of leaves are favoured subjects for studying the laws of leaf-metamorphosis. Compared to rosette-leaves, their bracts are usually considered to be reduced forms. This article points out that the seemingly missing elements in bracts can be found in a metamorphosed form in neighboring formations e.g. the internodes. With this orderly allocation of elements or functions, the shoot as a coalescence of reduced bracts can be seen as a “leaf of a higher order”. However, following Bockemühl’s suggestion, compensation for the “reduction” can also be found in the bract itself, namely as a potential to amplify which is not typical for the other leaves. This potential can be fully realized only by plants with a habit of growth that is different from the semi-rosette. The special leaf-shapes of diverse species can thus be explained with regard to the whole habit of growth, without speculating about formative forces which could not be discovered by means of morphology alone.
Plants with a semi-rosette of leaves are favoured subjects for studying the laws of leaf-metamorphosis. Compared to rosette-leaves, their bracts are usually considered to be reduced forms. This article points out that the seemingly missing elements in bracts can be found in a metamorphosed form in neighboring formations e.g. the internodes. With this orderly allocation of elements or functions, the shoot as a coalescence of reduced bracts can be seen as a “leaf of a higher order”. However, following Bockemühl’s suggestion, compensation for the “reduction” can also be found in the bract itself, namely as a potential to amplify which is not typical for the other leaves. This potential can be fully realized only by plants with a habit of growth that is different from the semi-rosette. The special leaf-shapes of diverse species can thus be explained with regard to the whole habit of growth, without speculating about formative forces which could not be discovered by means of morphology alone.