Flowers, pollination, feralization, fruits (yesterdays post)
Flowers
Flowers are the reproductive organs of flowering plants. Their main role is to make reproduction possible.A typical flower has four main parts:
Sepals – protect the flower when it is a bud
Petals – usually colorful and scented to attract pollinators
Stamens (male part) – produce pollen grains
Pistil/Carpel (female part) – contains the ovary with ovules
Inside the ovary are ovules, which can later become seeds. However, seeds cannot form unless pollen reaches the female part of the flower. This leads to the next stage.
Pollination
Pollination is the transfer of pollen grains from the anther (male part) to the stigma (female part) of a flower.
There are two main types:
Self-pollination – pollen comes from the same flower or plant
Cross-pollination – pollen comes from a different plant of the same species
Pollination can happen through:
Wind
Water
Insects (bees, butterflies)
Birds and animals
Pollination is essential because without it, fertilization cannot occur. Once pollen lands on the stigma, it begins the process that leads to fertilization.
Fertilization
After pollination, the pollen grain germinates on the stigma and forms a pollen tube that grows down through the style to the ovary.
Inside the ovule:
The male gamete from pollen fuses with the female egg cell
This fusion is called fertilization
In flowering plants, double fertilization occurs:
One male gamete forms the zygote (future plant embryo)
The other forms endosperm, which nourishes the developing seed
After fertilization:
The ovule becomes a seed
The ovary begins to change, leading to the formation of fruit
This directly connects fertilization to fruit formation.
Fruits
A fruit is the ripened ovary of a flower formed after fertilization.Its main functions are:
To protect the seeds
To help in seed dispersal
Changes after fertilization:
Ovary → fruit
Ovule → seed
Flower parts usually dry up and fall off
Types of fruits include:
Fleshy fruits (mango, apple, tomato)
Dry fruits (nuts, grains, legumes)
Fruits often attract animals, which eat them and help spread the seeds to new places, allowing new plants to grow.