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The programme that explains the present by exploring the past.

The Forum: Plant and flower shapes

Discussion & Talk

Andrew Zuckerman: Jimson Weed, Thorn Apple Image

12/01/2013 GMT

Plant and flower shapes

BBC World Service - The Forum, Plant and flower shapes

What makes a plant leaf or flower either flat and simple or curly and complicated?

Are we any closer to understanding how and why did the amazing diversity of living shapes evolve?

The amazing shapes of plants and flowers, one of nature’s biggest mysteries: why are they so varied and beautiful? Joining Bridget Kendall are Enrico Coen, who has been making exciting discoveries about how small buds transform themselves into remarkably complex leaves and flowers; Andrew Zuckerman, who explains his quest to capture the essence of a flower’s shape in a single photograph; and Lars Chittka, who invites us to look at flowers through the eyes of bees and other pollinating insects. Photo by Andrew Zuckerman (Jimson Weed, Thorn Apple)

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