Never heard of them!

See this lovely bougainvillea? The flowers are white (the inflorescence here comprises of 2 or 3 flowers), and the bracts are the surrounding (what I thought were) pink ‘petals’. Since teaching myself botanical art, I’m learning about a world I’ve loved but never took the time to. Time is one of the biggest hurdles in my life, and so is energy. I don’t have a lot of either, so happily, by learning about art, I’m learning about botany.

What is a bract in botany?

According to Wiki, it is a modified or specialised leaf.

According to ‘The Fundamentals of Horticulture: Theory and Practice’ (Royal Horticultural Society) edited by Chris Bird, a bract colours up and helps show off the flower.

My other two books on botany say similar things, one of which states that a bougainvillea’s ‘inconspicuous flowers are set against a cloud of colourful bracts’. See Botany for Gardeners, Fourth Edition, An Introduction of the Science of Plants.

What is the purpose of a bract?

It looks like the bracts here lend themselves to the reproductive structure of the inflorescence. Basically, they may be there to attract pollinators. For bats, and I’m not saying they like the bougainvillea, dish-shaped bracts may mean they detect acoustic signals. Cool.

Bracts may also protect the flowers before blooming.

Well, that’s it for now. I will sketch and then render a colour image to upload as well. I’m not sure what medium I’ll use yet.

Happy moments.

Image taken in Tasmania, Hobart, near the Botanical Gardens with an iPhone 12 Pro (10 December 2024, 26mm f1.6 12 MP)