Abstract: In plants that preform inflorescences (form inflorescences one or more years before maturation and function) reproductive allocation may potentially be adjusted through abortion of the preformed inflorescences.  Amianthium muscaetoxicum, a herbaceous perennial which preforms its inflorescences aborts a large number of flowers and seeds.  Plants was dissected to determine which plants preform inflorescences and if preformed inflorescences are routinely aborted.  A long leaf length and not having flowered in the previous year were found to be good predictors of which plants preform inflorescences.  Abortion of a large number of inflorescences as a means of adjustment of resource allocation was not supported.  A resource reduction experiment was performed on flowering plants, and the number of buds they aborted and the number of seeds they set were counted.  Numerous experimental plants became infected with a fungus during the course of the study, and this was factored into the analysis.  Totally defoliated plants set less seed than control plants, the basal sections of inflorescences set more seeds than the distal portions, and fungal infected plants opened fewer flowers than uninfected plants.  Amianthium was shown to be dependent on current intake of resources to produce seed.  Support was given to the hypothesis that an unpredictable environment selects for production of surplus flowers and seeds.