3. Reproduction in plants
3.1. Asexual reproduction in plants
Asexual reproduction is more common in plants than in animals.
It involves the formation of new individuals from the cells of a single parent.
There are three main types:
a) Spore formation:
It is typical of mosses and ferns.
A spore is a cell, surrounded by a hard protective covering.
When it falls on the ground, grows into a new individual.
b) Vegetative reproduction:
New plants are formed from parts (buds) of the original plant.
Plants can increase its distribution and when environmental cconditions
are too hard to survive, they stay alive in latent form, until these conditions
return to be good.
These vegetative structures can be:
- Tubers: They can be roots or undergrownd stems with a reserve of nutrients
and buds.These tubers become new plants. E.g. Potato.
- Bulbs: They are underground stems with thick leaves containing nutrients.
These nutrients feed the shoot which will become a new plant. E.g. Onion.
- Stolons: They are aereal stems which root when they touch the ground.
If stolons are separated from the mother plant they become new plants.
E.g. Strawberry.
- Rhizomes: They are undergrownd stems that grows horizontaly. E.g. Iris
c) Fragmentation
The new plant is created from a fragment of the mother plant.
READING ACTIVITIES
After reading the text, copy and answer the following questions into your notebook:
Remember: you must make complete sentences.
3.1. What advantages do plants obtain reproducing in a vegetative way?
3.2. Identify the vegetative structures that are represented in the pictures.
Then, listen and relate
each description with the correspondant structure.
1.3. Listen and indicate if the following sentences
are true or false.
Now,
check
your
answers!
LISTENING ACTIVITIES
Download this worksheet
and complete it,
while you listen this audio.