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Flowers, pollination and seeds
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Flowering plants reproduce using flowers. Pollen carries the male sex cell to the female part of a flower.
Parts of a flower
Stamen (male part): the anther makes pollen and the filament holds it up.
Carpel (female part): the stigma catches pollen, the style joins it to the ovary, which contains ovules (with egg cells).
Petals are often brightly coloured to attract insects.
Carpel (female part): the stigma catches pollen, the style joins it to the ovary, which contains ovules (with egg cells).
Petals are often brightly coloured to attract insects.
Pollination and fertilisation
Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther to a stigma.
Insect-pollinated flowers: bright petals, scent, nectar, sticky pollen.
Wind-pollinated flowers (like grasses): small, dull petals, anthers and stigmas that hang outside the flower, lots of light pollen.
Then a pollen tube grows down the style. The male nucleus joins the nucleus in an ovule: this is fertilisation.
Insect-pollinated flowers: bright petals, scent, nectar, sticky pollen.
Wind-pollinated flowers (like grasses): small, dull petals, anthers and stigmas that hang outside the flower, lots of light pollen.
Then a pollen tube grows down the style. The male nucleus joins the nucleus in an ovule: this is fertilisation.
Seeds, fruits and dispersal
After fertilisation, each ovule becomes a seed and the ovary becomes a fruit.
Seeds are dispersed (spread out) so new plants do not compete with the parent for light, water and minerals.
Wind: sycamore wings, dandelion parachutes. Animals: juicy fruits that are eaten, or hooks that catch on fur. Explosion: pea pods that burst open.
Seeds are dispersed (spread out) so new plants do not compete with the parent for light, water and minerals.
Wind: sycamore wings, dandelion parachutes. Animals: juicy fruits that are eaten, or hooks that catch on fur. Explosion: pea pods that burst open.
A student drops model sycamore seeds and measures how far they travel: 32 cm, 35 cm, 29 cm and 36 cm. Find the mean distance.
- Add: 32 + 35 + 29 + 36 = 132
- Divide by 4: 132 ÷ 4
Answer: 33 cm
Stamen = anther + filament (male). Carpel = stigma + style + ovary (female). Pollination moves pollen to a stigma; fertilisation joins nuclei in the ovule. Ovules become seeds, the ovary becomes a fruit, and seeds are dispersed.
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