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Currently, the existence of more than 300,000 different species of plants is counted. This enormous variety, which continues to grow day by day, would be impossible without the sexual reproduction of plants. There are many plants that can reproduce both sexually and asexually, and although both methods are very important for their survival and propagation, only sexual reproduction allows the appearance of new species of plants capable of adapting to changes in the environment.
If you want to learn how plants reproduce sexually, keep reading us in this article by Ecologist Verde on the plants that reproduce sexually, their characteristics, examples and differences with those who do it asexually.
What is sexual reproduction in plants and its characteristics
Sexual reproduction in plants is one in which the union of gametes, special germ cells, occurs. When talking about characteristics of sexual reproduction in plants and of the phases of plant reproduction, the most common is to take the example of angiosperms. How do flowering plants reproduce? In this case, the most popular, you have to count the following stages:
- First, pollen forms in the stamens.
- After this, pollination occurs, which occurs when a grain of pollen reaches the pistil. How does pollen get from one plant to another? Here each species has its strategy: it can depend on the wind, rain or pollinating animals.
- The male gametes then come into contact with the ovules, within the gynoecium.
- Male and female gametes unite, leading to fertilization.
- Finally, the formation of the seeds begins in the fertilization phase, after which the gynoecium will turn into a fruit with the seed or seeds inside. These seeds will spread through the land thanks to the fruits that will be consumed by animals.
It is also necessary to differentiate the form of fertilization in types of plant reproduction: autogamy and allogamy.
Autogamy It is the plant fertilization in which the pollen grain generated fertilizes the same flower in which it was generated, so that the plant self-fertilizes. This allows the plant to multiply in conditions to which it has already adapted, rapidly increasing its number of individuals when it is already in a beneficial ecological niche.
AlogamyInstead, it occurs when the pollen grain travels to a different flower. By combining genetic material from two different individuals, there is a greater capacity for adaptation, since mutations and natural selection will allow adaptation to a hostile environment or that has undergone changes. It must be borne in mind, however, that within allogamy it is necessary to differentiate xenogamy, which is when we speak of different parent individuals, and geitonogamy, which is when pollen fertilizes a different flower, but from the same individual.
Names of plants that reproduce sexually
There is a huge amount of examples of plants that reproduce sexually. In fact, all flowering plants, angiosperms, they do. Examples of this are the following flowering plants, among many others:
- Daisies
- Roses
- Violets
- Dahlias
- Hydrangeas
- Cactus
The daisies, of scientific name Bellis perennisIt is an evergreen herbaceous plant that reaches heights of up to 20 cm and has showy flowers, which are also edible. The daisy plant is very decorative and is often used to make herbal teas with beneficial properties.
The roses They are a whole genus of shrubs, almost always with thorns on their stems, of the Rosaceae family. It is common to call the flower that the bush gives pink, which is called a rose bush. There are more than a hundred species of rose bushes, some of them especially valued for their large and fragrant flowers, a symbol of love in a large number of countries.
The Cactus They deserve special mention and is that, although these succulents are capable of reproducing asexually through the generation of suckers, a method widely used to propagate them as indoor or garden plants, they are also capable of reproducing sexually through their flowers. It is true, however, that some cacti need a long time and very specific conditions to produce their flower, since they are plants originating from very harsh and dry environments, where this investment of energy and nutrients cannot be done lightly. Here we show you many types of cacti.
In these other articles you can meet many more flowering plants, and therefore they reproduce sexually: 15 plants with red flowers and 20 plants with yellow flowers.
Difference between sexual and asexual reproduction in plants
As you may already know, plants can reproduce sexually and asexually as well. The types of sexual reproduction in plants They allow to expand genetic diversity, giving rise to new species and individuals with new characteristics that allow them to better adapt to their conditions or, simply, to be more beneficial for human cultivation. However, not all types of sexual reproduction in plants involve the participation of two individuals of different genetic material.
The asexual reproduction in plantsInstead, it is always based on cell division by mitosis. It can occur by excision, when a part of the original body separates and gives rise to the rest of the new individual, or by budding, which is when the parent gives rise to a bud or bud from which a new complete individual is born, which does not have for what to separate from the first.
Now that you have learned all this about plants that exhibit sexual reproduction, we encourage you to learn much more by reading these other articles on Plant Reproduction and Plants with asexual reproduction: characteristics and examples.
If you want to read more articles similar to Plants that reproduce sexually, we recommend that you enter our Biology category.
