Pollination

Question 1

What is pollination?

Answer 1

• the transfer of pollen from an anther to a stigma
• thereby enabling fertilisation and reproduction

Question 2

What are the two kinds of pollen transfer?

Answer 2

• cross-pollination
• self-pollination

Question 3

What occurs in cross-pollination?

Answer 3

• the pollen is transferred from the anther of a flower of one plant to the stigma of the flower of another plant, of the same species
• results in genetic variation in the offspring

Question 4

What occurs in self-pollination?

Answer 4

• the pollen is transferred from the anther to the stigma of the same flower or to another flower on the same plant
• does not result in genetic variation in the offspring

Question 5

How can self-pollination be prevented in nature?

Answer 5

• in bisexual flowers, the anthers and stigmas ripen at different times (most commonly the anthers ripen first)
• flowers are unisexual and therefore cannot pollinate themselves
• the stigma is positioned above the anthers

Question 6

How do plant breeders prevent self-pollination?

Answer 6

• they remove the anthers