Abstract: The present invention provides a nucleic acid molecule encoding a CAULIFLOWER (CAL) gene product such as a nucleic acid molecule encoding Arabidopsis thaliana CAL and a nucleic acid molecule encoding Brassica oleracea CAL (BoCAL). The invention also provides a nucleic acid molecule encoding a truncated CAL gene product such as a nucleic acid molecule encoding Brassica oleracea var. botrytis CAL (BobCAL). The invention also provides a nucleic acid containing the Arabidopsis thaliana CAL gene, a nucleic acid molecule containing the Brassica oleracea CAL gene and a nucleic acid molecule containing the Brassica oleracea var. botrytis CAL gene. The invention further provides a kit for converting shoot meristem to floral meristem and a kit for promoting early flowering in an angiosperm. The invention provides a CAL polypeptide and an antibody that specifically binds CAL polypeptide.

Abstract: The invention includes plants having at least one cell transformed with a vector comprising at least a portion of an agamous nucleic acid. Such plants have a phenotype characterized by altered floral development such as an AG or AP2 phenotype. The invention also includes vectors comprising at least a portion of an agamous nucleic acid operably linked to a promoter other than the promoter naturally associated with the agamous nucleic acid. In an alternate embodiment, the vector comprises at least a portion of an agamous nucleic acid operably linked in an antisense orientation to a promoter. The invention also includes methods using such vectors for producing plants having altered floral development.