Plant Reproduction

Question 1

What is fertilisation? (Plants)

Answer 1

When a pollen grain lands on the stigma of a flower of the correct species, a pollen tube begins to grow. It grows through the style until it reaches an ovule inside the ovary. The nucleus of the pollen then passes along the pollen tube and fuses (joins) with the nucleus of the ovule. This process is called fertilisation.

Question 2

What does the ovule eventually grow into?

Answer 2

The seed

Question 3

What does the ovary eventually grow into?

Answer 3

The fruit

Question 4

Draw the structure of a flower, highlighting which are male and female

Answer 4

Include:
Stigma
Petals
Anther (pollen grain inside)
Filament
Style
Sepals
Stem
Ovule (egg inside)
Ovary

Question 5

What are the male parts of a flower part of?

Answer 5

The stamen

Question 6

What are the female parts of a flower part of?

Answer 6

The carpel

Question 7

Draw the structure of a seed

Answer 7

Include:
Plumule- embryo shoot
Radicle-embryo root
Testa-seed coat
Cotyledon- food store
Micropyle- formed by pollen tube

Question 8

What is the male gamete in plant reproduction?

Answer 8

The pollen grain nucleus

Question 9

What is the female gamete in plant reproduction?

Answer 9

The egg cell in the ovule

Question 10

Why is self-pollination avoided?

Answer 10

Cross-pollination helps with genetic variation so that changes in the environment do not affect the species. Self-pollination inhibits this, and is therefore avoided

Question 11

How do plants avoid self pollination?

Answer 11

• They have their stamen above the stigma so that pollen can be blown away easily.
• the stigma matures after the stamen, so that the stamen of the plant has already gone when the stigma is matured,

Question 12

Draw a diagram of fertilisation of pollinating plants

Answer 12

Include:

• pollen tube
• male gamete (pollen grain)
• ovary
• stigma

Question 13

What are characteristics of insect pollinated flowers?

Answer 13

• brightly coloured
• have a nectary + scent
• have a sticky and small stigma
• have only a few anthers
• pollen has barbs to hook onto pollinators
• e.g roses, tulips, lily, sunflower

Question 14

What are the characteristics of wind pollinated flowers?

Answer 14

• petals are small or don’t exist because they aren’t needed and could get in the way
• no nectary or scent
• large and feathery stigma on outside of flower to catch pollen
• many exposed anthers so that pollen can easily be blown away
• produce a lot of pollen, which are small and light to easily be carried in the wind

Question 15

What is the difference between self-pollination and cross-pollination?

Answer 15

Cross pollination is when the pollen from one plant pollinates another plant, self pollination is when a flower pollinates itself by accident.

Question 16

What is fertilisation?

Answer 16

When the male and female gametes fuse to create a zygote (which then undergoes cell division to form an embryo)

Question 17

What is the micropyle?

Answer 17

It is where the pollen tube entered the ovule

Question 18

What is a seed also known as?

Answer 18

An embryo plant or fertilised zygote

Question 19

What is the function of the testa?

Answer 19

To protect the seed

Question 20

What is meant by the term germination?

Answer 20

Germination is when a new plant grows from a seed. The testa splits and a root and shoot emerge.

Question 21

What happens during germination?

Answer 21

• water enters the seed through the micropyle and activates enzymes
• the water also softens the testa to allow it to split
• the enzymes break the starch in the cotyledon down into maltose and then glucose. This glucose is then used in respiration to provide energy for growth.
• the radicle grows first, so that it can get water
• then the plumule grows…

Question 22

What is meant by the term dry mass?

Answer 22

The mass of an object when completely dried, without any water

Question 23

Explain what a graph showing the dry mass of a seed during germination would look like and why

Answer 23

• the graph line would start high, then curve down and then steadily grow again
• the graph line would start high because the seed starts full of starch and stores, because it needs this energy as it cannot yet photosynthesise
• the graph line curves down because the seed loses stores because it is using up energy to grow
• the graph line steadily grows because the plant is growing and increasing in mass as it photosynthesises

Question 24

What is the difference between sexual and asexual reproduction?

Answer 24

• Asexual reproduction is where only one parent is required, unlike sexual reproduction which needs two parents.
• sexual reproduction involves gametes/ sex cells, asexual doesn’t
• sexual reproduction produces genetically different offspring, asexual produces genetically identical/ clones

Question 25

How can plants reproduce asexually naturally?

Answer 25

Using runners

Question 26

How is pollination different to fertilisation?

Answer 26

Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigma, whereas fertilisation is when the male and female gametes fuse

Question 27

What are three conditions which are essential for germination to take place?

Answer 27

water, oxygen and warmth

Question 28

How does mitosis work?

Answer 28

Mitosis is when a cell reproduces itself by splitting to form two cells with identical sets of chromosomes.
When a diploid cell divides by mitosis you get two cells that are both diploid.
Here’s how mitosis works:
1) In a cell that’s not dividing, the DNA is spread out in long strings.
2) If the cell gets a signal to divide, it needs to duplicate its DNA - so there is one copy for each new cell. The DNA forms X shaped chromosomes. Each ‘arm’ of the chromosome is an exact duplicate of the other.
3) The chromosomes then line up at the centre of the cell and cell fibres pull them apart. The two arms of each chromosome go to opposite ends of the cell.
4) Membranes form around each of the sets of chromosomes these become the nuclei of the new two cells.
5) Lastly, the cytoplasm divides
6) you now have two new cells containing exactly the same DNA - they’re genetically identical.

Question 29

What is an anomaly?

Answer 29

• something that deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected
• Result that doesn’t fit the pattern/odd result