Reproduction in plants: Flowers and Pollination

• Most plants have female and male sex cells which join at fertilization to produce seeds
• This is known as sexual reproduction
• Flowers are the reproductive organs of plants
• The structure of flowers has adapted to increase the chances of fertilisation
• Although there are different kinds of flowers most have similar structures
• Just as in animals the male sex cells must reach the female sex cells for fertilisation to begin and reproduction to occur
• The male sex cells are in the form of pollen
• The pollen are carried from the anthers of a flower to the stigmas of other flowers of the same type.
• The process by which the pollen is transferred is called pollination
• In most plants pollination is carried out by insects such as bees or by the wind
• Insects pollinated flowers have special characteristics that make them attractive to insects
• Otherwise the plants would die out and become extinct if pollination failed
• Wind pollinated flowers are very small with no petals
• Both the male and female organs are exposed so that they can release and collect pollen from the air easily

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