Large-leaved aristolochia or kirkazon (Aristolochia macrophylla Lam.) Bloomed in the Summer Garden.

This is a liana with large heart-shaped leaves and flowers, similar to pitchers. Under natural conditions, large-leaved aristolochia grows in North America. Since the end of the XIX century in Europe, this plant is being actively used for vertical gardening. True, in St. Petersburg, kirkason is rarely used to decorate the city.

Aristolochia is also interesting in an original way of pollination of flowers. In kirkazona, flowers are pollinated by flies. An insect that has climbed into the flower pitcher cannot get out of it until it pollinates the flower. The fly is disturbed by downward-directed hairs covering the inner wall of the flower. When pollination occurred, the hairs fade and the fly, sprinkled with pollen, flies into the next jug. And the flower closes the entrance with the curved ends of the corolla so that insects no longer fall into it.

#GardensoftheRussianMuseum #MikhailovskyGarden #summergarden #Russianmuseum #rusmuseum_gardens #igardens