• Pollination is when pollen grains from an anther, the male portion of a flower, are transferred to a female part in the flower, known as the stigma.
• In order for pollination to be successful, the pollen grains transferred must be from a flower of the same species.
Types of Pollination:
| Self-pollination |
Cross-pollination |
| This type of pollination occurs when pollen grains from the anther fall directly onto the stigma of the same flower |
A more complex type of pollination that involves the transfer of pollen from the anther of one flower to the stigma of a different flower. |
| Although this type of pollination is simple and quick, it does result in a reduction in genetic diversity because the sperm and egg cells of the same flower share genetic information. |
This type of pollination results in an increase in genetic diversity because the different flowers are sharing and mixing their genetic information to create unique offspring. |
Significance of Pollination
• Pollination is the act of transferring pollen grains from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma.
• Pollination is a very important part of the life cycle of plants. Insects, birds, bats and the wind take pollen between flowering plants, which means the plants can make seeds and reproduce.
• Its significance is to carry the pollen grains to the stigma for the process of fertilisation.
• It is of two types self pollination (from the anther to the stigma of the same flower) and cross pollination (anther to the stigma of another flower of a different plant of same species).
