Pollination

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bee pollinating

Pollination is the process in which plants make fruit to reproduce. When this happens, the grains of pollen are moved from the stamens of one flower to the carpel another one from a different plant. These are like the male and female parts of plants. Most plants have both, but cannot pollinate themselves. Each pollen grain has half of the DNA that is needed to make a new plant. This combines with the DNA that is already there, and the carpel begins to grow seeds. Pollination is important in botany (study of plants), horticulture (study of growing plants), entomology (insects), and ecology (living environments). In most plants (angiosperms), the part of the carpel that collects the pollen is called a stigma.

Ways of pollinating

Pollination needs something to take the pollen from the male parts of a flower to the female parts of another. A pollinator is something that does this. There are two different ways that plants can be pollinated. These are biotic pollination and abiotic pollination. Biotic is where an animal is used to transport the pollen. In abiotic pollination, the pollen travels from one flower to another by using the wind or water.

Biotic pollination is where animals are used to carry the pollen. The animal pollinaters go to lots of flowers, and each one gives it something in return. Usually this is some nectar (sugary food). Entomophily is the type of biotic pollination where small insects like bees and wasps are used. Some insects are used less commonly, such as ants, flies, butterflies and moths. The flowers that are pollinated by insects have a strong smell, and a lot have blue petals. The other type of biotic pollination is called zoophily. This is where pollination is done by vertebrates (animals with bones). Most commonly, they are birds and bats. The flowers that are pollinated by birds mostly have red petals, as this color attracts birds. Most of them do not have a smell, because birds cannot smell them.

Abiotic pollination is where no animals are involved. Anemophily is a type of abiotic pollination where the pollen is blown between plants by the wind. This form of pollination is very common in grasses, conifer trees, and many other trees. Hydrophily is where pollen from aquatic plants (plants that live in water) travels through water.

80% of plants are pollinated use biotic pollination, and only 20% use abiotic pollination. Of these abiotic pollinations, 98% is done by wind and just 2% by water.

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