Plant Reproduction

 

Article:

This article is about Plant Reproduction and Sexual reproduction and Asexual reproduction in plants. In this article basic and appropriate knowledge of reproduction is provided.

Plant Reproduction:

Plant Reproduction occur through two main methods. There are two main methods.

i) Sexual Reproduction

ii) Asexual Reproduction

iii) Hybrid Reproduction

i)Sexual Reproduction:

Sexual reproduction involves fusion of male and female gametes and formation of new plants. This typically involves following steps.

A) Pollination:

Pollination is the movements of gametophytes or pollen grain from the anther to the stigma part of the flower female sex organ. This can happen in several ways.

a) Insect Pollination

b) Wind Pollination

c) Water pollination

d) Self Pollination

B) Fertilization:

Pollen tube germinate and grow through the style to bring the sperm to the ovule of the overy. This process is known as Fertilization and entail the fusion of the male sex cell with the female sex cell or egg cell to form zygote.

C)Seed Development:

The fertilized ovule is the seed that is formed hence the name seed plant. It is common to find out that the ovary around the ovule forms the fruit. Inside it there is a portion of what that is called the embryo which is the start of the new plant. The fruit has the role of seed protection and its dispersal as well.

D) Seed Dispersal:

The seed remain in soil until it mature however, it would need to find a good place to germinate. Dispersal mechanism includes 

Wind (e.g. dandelion seed)

Seeds (fur or being eaten and later excreted by animals)

Water- For instance when seed floats on water

E) Germination:

When the seed gets to the appropriate place it starts to grow. This is the process when seeds takes water and nutrients and the embryo starts to swell and later turn in to new plants.

                                                             Figure: Plant Reproduction


ii)Asexual Reproduction:

Vegetative propagation enable the production of plants without relying on gametes and most times the offspring produce is similar to parents plants. More preferred conditions for this methods are usually more efficient and quicker then the other plants.

a)Runner/Stolon: Some plants such as strawberries produce low growing branches known as runners which produce new plants.

 b)Rhizomes: These plant structures e.g. ginger, can grow new plants from any of their nodes, which are point of emergence of roots, shoots, leaves or branches.

c)Tubers: Tissues like potatoes also contain food reserve and they also possess buds called eyes by which new plants come up.

d)Bulbs: For instance, onion plants bring forth new plants from bulbs, which are known as modifies underground organs of perceptions. 

B. Cloning from Cuttings:

There are some plants that can be propagated through stem, leaf or root cutting. When a cutting is put in water or in soil it is capable of growing into a new plant.

C. Apomixis:

Certain embryonic plants are capable of forming seeds although they are not pollinated – a feature referred to as apomixis. In their germination process, these seeds are without doubt, the same genes as its parent plant. 

iii) Hybrid Reproduction:

In some occasions a hybrid can be made by cross breeding between different species of plants or between two varieties. This is encouraged in agriculture to arrive at a favored phenotype; for instance, one with disease resistance or high productivity.











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