VST - Plant Reproduction

How Plants Reproduce

An Interactive Exploration

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How do plants reproduce to create new plants?

Plants provide oxygen, food, and homes for animals. Through reproduction, they produce new plants, ensuring they continue to grow and support life on Earth.

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Select one of the plant's flowers.

Most plants produce new plants through a process called sexual reproduction, using flowers as their reproductive parts.

Most flowers have both male and female parts that produce gametes, the cells needed for reproduction.

Select the diagram of the plant's reproductive system above.

The pistil is the female part in the middle of the flower.

pistil

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Select the pistil of the orange flower in the image on the left.

The ovary, at the bottom of the pistil, holds ovules, which contain the female gametes (egg cells) needed to make seeds.

pistil

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Select the ovulein the diagram above.

ovule

pistil

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Select one of the stamen of the orange flower in the image on the left.

Several stamens, the male parts of the flower, are found around the pistil in the center of the flower.

stamen

pistil

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Select the pollen at the tip of one of the stamen in the flower image on the left.

The tip of the stamen makes pollen, a powdery substance that contains the male gamete cells needed to make seeds.

stamen

pollen

Select any of the pollen grains on the flower.

For a plant to reproduce sexually, pollen from the stamen must attach to the pistil in a process called pollination.

Select the bee.

In cross-pollination, pollen is transferred from the stamen of one flower to the pistil of another flower, often with the help of wind or pollinators like bees.

Pollinators are attracted to the brightly colored pedals of the flower and the scent of the flower.

Select the bee again.

While enjoying the nectar inside the flower, the pollinator brushes against the stamens and picks up pollen grains.

Select the bee again.

Looking for more nectar, the pollinator travels to another flower.

Select the bee again.

The pistil has a sticky top called the stigma, where pollen from a bee or another pollinator sticks.

Select the spot where the pollen is attached the the sticky stigma.

pollen attached to stigma

stigma

ovary

Select the stigma to show the male gamete travel to the ovary.

Once the pollen grain sticks to the stigma, a pollen tube forms, allowing the male gamete from the pollen to travel down to the ovary. There, it fertilizes the egg cell within an ovule.

stigma

ovary

Select the fertilized ovulewithin the ovary of the flower.

Select the seed.

The fertilized ovule develops into a seed.

The ovary surrounding the seed becomes a fruit.

Select the fruit.

Each type of fruit is adapted to help a plant spread its seeds in an effective way.For example, oak trees produce acorns, which are often buried by squirrels. Some of these acorns are forgotten and later grow into new oak trees.

Select the squirrel.

When bears eat berries, the seeds pass through their digestive system and are later excreted in a new location. This helps spread the seeds and allows new plants to grow far from the parent plant.

Select the berries.

Dandelions use the wind to spread their seeds. When the seeds are released, the wind carries them away, allowing new dandelions to grow far from the parent plant.

Select one of the seedsbeing carried away by the wind.

Peas spread their seeds through a process called explosive dispersal. When the pea pods mature and dry out, they eventually burst open, flinging the seeds away from the parent plant.

Select one of the pea pods.

Depending on the type of plant, fruit can take various forms: juicy fruits like berries, dry fruits like acorns, pods like peas, or grains like wheat.

If the seed lands in the right place, it can start to grow. During this process, the tiny plant inside the seed pushes through the seed coat and begins to develop into a new plant.

Select the new plant.

Although most plants reproduce sexually using flowers that develop into fruits, some, like pine trees, use cones instead. Male cones release pollen, which the wind carries to female cones, where it fertilizes ovules to form seeds that are later released.

Select one of the pine cones.

Ferns and mosses don’t use seeds at all; they reproduce with spores, which can grow into new plants without the need for seeds.

Select the moss growing on the tree.

Some plants reproduce asexually, meaning they create new plants without seeds or spores.For example, potatoes grow new plants from their 'eyes,' which are small buds that sprout and develop into new potato plants.

Select one of the sprouting potato eyes.

Tulips can reproduce both sexually through seeds and asexually through bulbs.Bulbs store nutrients and produce new shoots, which grow into new plants. Over time, bulbs can divide, creating more plants and allowing tulips to spread without seeds.

Select one of the sprouting tulip bulbs.

Strawberry plants can reproduce both sexually through seeds and asexually through runners. Runners are long stems that grow along the ground and form new plants at various points. This allows strawberry plants to spread and reproduce without using seeds.

Select one of the runners that lead fromone strawberry plant to another.

Most plants reproduce sexually through seeds, while some use spores or asexual methods like bulbs or runners. These methods help plants spread, grow, and thrive in different environments, ensuring their survival.

Select here to review what you've learned!

Some plants can reproduce asexually, meaning they create new plants without using seeds or spores.

Great work learning about how plants reproduce!