Pollination
Science: KS3, topic 1.2.13
Movement in Plant Reproduction
Plants don't have muscles, and so are unable to move themselves. Plants rely on a variety of strategies to move their gametes and disperse their seeds.
Pollination
- Plants don’t want to self-fertilise because they have both male and female organs.
- Plants must get their pollen onto another plant.
Wind and insect pollination
- Wind can blow pollen onto neighbouring plants.
- Insects feeding on nectar pick up pollen on their bodies.
- When insects land on another plant, they brush off the pollen and fertilise it.
Seed dispersion
- Once fertilised, plants make seeds.
- Plants need to get seeds far from the parent plant.
- Going far away stops the seeds competing with the parent plant for light, water and minerals.
Animals in seed dispersion
- Fruit:
- Some plants have seeds in fruit.
- Animals eat the fruit and then walk some distance before depositing their faeces.
- The faeces contain the seeds and act as a great nutrient source.
Physical attachment
- Physical attachment:
- Some seeds have rough edges, much like velcro.
- The rough edges catch in an animal's fur as it walks past.
- The seeds then travel a long way from the original site.
Wind involved in seed dispersion
- Some plants' seeds have evolved to be blown in the wind.
- The seeds are often blown over great distances.
Gliding seed pods
- Some seed pods have evolved to glide when they fall from the tree.
- The seed pods can glide for some considerable time, taking them further away from the parent plant.
Test yourself on Pollination
Which of these is NOT a method of pollination?
Which of these are methods of seed dispersion?
Why do plants want to disperse their seeds?
Pollination