Rape embryogenesis I. The proembryo development

The development of the proembryo of rape Brassica napus L. from the zygote to the young embryo proper is described. A number of regularities were found in the direction, succession, and distribution of segmental and differentiating divisions of the proembryo. The direction of the divisions seems to foe determined by the direction of growth and the shape of the cells. The termyoung embryo proper is proposed to denote the globular embryo which already possesses separate plerome and periblem mother-cells and mother-cells of the iec layer and of clumella. The body of the embryo proper is derived from the apical cell ca which arose from the first division of the zygote and from the hypophysis - the only suspensor cell which closes the spheroid of the embryo. The development of the Brassica napus L. proembryo follows the sub-archetype Capsella bursa-pastoris in the IV megarchetype of Soueges