Chapter 8

Lecture Outline

Flowers, Fruits, and

Seeds

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 Outline
❖ Introduction-- Reproductive Organs

❖ Phylum Anthophyta-- Differences Between

Eudicots and Monocots

❖ Structure of Flowers

❖ Fruits

❖ Fruit and Seed Dispersal

❖ Seeds
 INTRODUCTION--REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS

❖ Sexual Reproduction
❖ Primitive Reproductive Organs
• Archegonia

• Antheridia

• Sporangia

❖ Complex Reproductive Organs of the Higher

Plants
• Cones

• Flowers of Angiosperms
PHYLUM ANTHOPHYTA--Eudicots and Monocots
❖ Two major classes of flowering plants:
• Eudicots (Magnoliopsida) and Monocots (Liliopsida)

Dicots Monocots
Two cotyledons One cotyledon
Flower parts in multiples of
Flower parts in multiples of three
four or five
Leaves with distinct network of Leaves with parallel primary
veins veins
Vascular cambium and cork Vascular cambium and cork
cambium present cambium absent
Vascular bundles of stem in Vascular bundles of stem
ring scattered
Pollen grains with three
 Structure of Flowers
❖ Flowers begin as embryonic primordium

PARTS
❖ Peduncles.
• pedicels
❖ Receptacle - Swollen end of peduncle or
pedicel

Other parts of flower attached to receptacle in

whorls: sepals, petals, stamens, and pistil.
 Structure of Flowers
❖ Sepals - Outermost whorl
• calyx
• function

❖ Petals - Next whorl inside sepals

• corolla
– Function of Showy corollas:
– Inconspicuous or missing corollas in plants that are:

• Calyx and
corolla
form
perianth.
❖ Stamens attached around base of pistil.
• filament
• anther
– Pollen grains developed in anthers.
❖ Pistil = female portion:
• Ovary:
– Ovules
• Style:
• Stigma:
2 Types of flowers: Perfect vs. Imperfect

Imperfect- a flower that has either all

male parts or all female parts
EX: cucumbers, pumpkin, and melons

a flower that has both male and

Perfect-
female parts in the same flower

EX: roses, lilies, and dandelions

OVARY …
– Superior Ovary –

– Inferior Ovary

– Ovary with ovules.

o Seeds develop from:

o Fruit develops from:

– Simple or Compound Ovary:

Inferior Ovary …
 Structure of Flowers
❖ Flowers can be produced singly or in
inflorescences.
• Inflorescence
– Spike:
– Raceme:

– Panicle:

– Umbel:
– Compound
Umbel:
– Head:

– Catkin:
Basic Flower Structure

stigma carpel
gynoecium
locule style Flower is perfect
pollen Flower is monoecious
ovule ovary
anther
filament stamen
androecium
petal
corolla
sepal perianth
receptacle
calyx Perianth is complete
pedicel
Some Example Stories:

Perfect Flowers: Pea exclusively self-pollinating

Hibiscus self-pollinating if not crossed
Cherry self-incompatible only outcrosses

Imperfect Flowers: Begonia unisexual but monoecious

Holly unisexual and dioecious

Variable: Cucumber male, perfect, female, parthenocarpic

Basic Flower Structure

stigma carpel
Pistil is simple
gynoecium
locule style Flower is perfect
pollen Flower is monoecious
ovule ovary
anther
superior
filament stamen
Flower is hypogynous androecium
petal
corolla
sepal perianth
receptacle
calyx Perianth is complete
pedicel
 Ovary Superior
Flower Hypogynous

Ovary Half-Superior Flower Perigynous

Ovary Half-Inferior

Flower Epigynous
Ovary Inferior
Flower Structure - review Ranunculus acris - buttercup
Basic Flower Structure

stigma carpel
Pistil is simple
gynoecium
locule style Flower is perfect
pollen Flower is monoecious
ovule ovary
anther
superior
filament stamen
Flower is hypogynous androecium
petal
corolla
sepal perianth
receptacle
calyx Perianth is complete
pedicel

This longitudinal section view does not

allow us to consider symmetry
Flower Formula: Symbol Sequence to Diagram Flower
Symmetry: *=radial †=bilateral
* 5, 5, , 5
Number of Parts per Whorl:
• sepals in calyx
• petals in corolla
• stamens in androecium
• carpels in gynoecium

Fusion within whorl:

curved line over number

Fusion between whorls:

square bracket below numbers

Attachment of flower parts relative to ovary:

horizontal line
 Ovary Superior
Flower Hypogynous
1

Ovary Half-Superior Flower Perigynous

1
Ovary Half-Inferior

Flower Epigynous
Ovary Inferior 1
Fruits and Seeds
Seeds
Ovule to seed
Mature Seed
Seed anatomy
 Seed dormancy
• Seeds can remain dormant in the soil for
long periods of time. Dormancy helps
ensure that seeds only germinate when
conditions are right.
• When we weed or cultivate a bare patch
of soil, the weeds that sprout up
immediately usually come from the “seed
bank” already in the soil.
 Breaking dormancy
• Seeds require moisture and the right
temperature to germinate.
• In addition, some seeds germinate only
after certain environmental signals:
• Drying
• Temperature (period of cold or heat)
• Disruption of the seed coat
Germination: monocot
Germination: dicot
Seed:
Seed Coat
Embryo
Storage Tissue (Endosperm)

Seed Hormones
CK-CytoKinin
cell division
GA-Gibberellic Acid
cell expansion
AbA-Abscisic Acid
dormancy
Fruit Composition
Superior Ovary
Hypogynous Flower
True Fruit Only

Half-Superior Ovary
Perigynous Flower
True + Accessory Fruit

Inferior Ovary
Epigynous Flower
True + Accessory Fruit
Fruit Origins: Simple Fruit Aggregate Fruit Multiple Fruit
[Link]

[Link]

achenes

[Link]
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[Link] [Link]
 From ovary to fruit

• The ovary of the flower contains the

ovules.
• As fertilized ovules develop into seeds,
the ovary wall develops into the fruit.
• In science, the term “fruit” refers to a
mature ovary that contains seeds.
Fruits
Fruit anatomy
 Types of fleshy fruits

Drupe Pome Pepo

(Peach) (Apple) (Cucumber)

Berry Aggregate Multiple

(Tomato) (Strawberry) (Pineapple)
Fruit Description:
Fleshy Fruits

Drupe: with pit Berry: with seeds Pome: with core

[Link] [Link] [Link]

Example: peach Example: tomato Example: apple

The Cherry flower is: complete perfect hypogynous
The cherry fruit is a drupe with a both fleshy and pit wall layers.
 Coffee fruits mature unevenly and so are
hand-picked…by Juan Valdez? This leads
to a social dilemma…to buy or to boycott
or…?

Coffea arabica - coffee

Coffee originated in
tropical Africa, but most
of the crop is now grown
in the South American
tropics. Why?
What South American
native is produced mostly
in Africa? Chocolate
 These grapes are a classic berry.
What is the tiny scar on the end of each fruit?
The location of the style attachment
So is the ovary superior or inferior?

Here is a berry from an inferior ovary!

[Link]

What is the difference

between the flesh of the
two berries shown here?
True vs Accessory
 Are the flowers perfect or
imperfect?
Is the pistil simple or
compound?
Is the ovary inferior or
superior?
Is the flower epigynous or
hypogynous?

This is the true fruit. accessory

What is the rest of the tissue?

Is the placenta axile, radial, or
parietal?
This is a seed or an ovule?
What is this stalk? funiculus
 The flowers of apple have a half-
inferior (half-superior) ovary.
So the fruit is going to be
partially an accessory fruit.
The apple fruit is a pome, which
has a cartilaginous core as the
true fruit. The accessory is tasty!

The bottom of the fruit shows the

remains of the five styles and
stigmata.
There are also five triangular
flaps that were the sepals,
 Types of dry fruits
Capsule
(Poppy)

Legume
(Bean pod) Achene
Follicle (Sunflower)
Silique
(Columbine)
(Money Plant) Nut
(Hazelnut)
Fruit Description:
Dry Fruits Dehiscent
Follicle-one side Legume-two sides Capsule-multiple

[Link] [Link] [Link]

Example: milkweed Example: honey locust Example: hibiscus
Dry Fruits Indehiscent
Achene - cypsela Grain - caryopsis Nut with involucre

[Link] [Link] [Link]

Example: sunflower Example: corn Example: oak
Both Kapok and Milkweed have a fruit that splits along one side:
…a follicle. The seeds of both
species have a
fibrous pappus
attached to the
seeds.
Kapok was used for
filling floatation
devices.
In WW2, the US
investigated using
milkweed as a
substitute to outfit
the Navy.
It was found
unsuitable.
Here are two fruits, dry at maturity, and
splitting along both sides of the fruit to shed
seeds.

This makes the fruits legumes. The examples

shown are lentil (left) and redbud (below).
 Is this pistil simple or compound?

stigmata

Papaver orientale- oriental poppy ovary

wall
Wounding this fruit causes
latex to bleed out. This is stamen
collected as raw opium. and petal
Morphine and codeine can be scars sepal
extracted from this. Heroin is
synthesized by reactions with
morphine as starting material.
Fragaria - Strawberry
Origin: Aggregate Fruit Composition: True + Accessory

flower
hypogynous

[Link]

style + stigma
superior ovary

[Link]
images/[Link]

[Link]

Descripton (true fruit!): Dry Indehiscent Achene

 Nut! Cypsela Caryopsis - grain
The most important
oak, filbert daisy family! fruit on earth!
(hazelnut),
rice, corn, wheat,
chestnut
etc.
scar of epigynous
stigma flower scar of style
style
ovary wall
ovary
inferior
wall
ovary wall
embryo

involucre pedicel scar hypogynous flower chaff

pedicel scar
 A. Self dispersal
Plants disperse their seeds by forceful ejection –
explosive fruits!
Witch hazel, squirting cucumber (jet propulsion)

copyright cmassengale
Self dispersal
The peanut plant sows
(buries) its own seeds!
Geocarpic: carpel grows
inside the earth (soil)

copyright cmassengale
 B. Wind dispersal
Fruit and seeds may have special devices for wind
dispersal
Plumes catch wind currents: Dandelion
Trees take advantage of their great heights for
wind dispersal. Fruits with wings are used to
slow the descent to land: maple, ash fruit

copyright cmassengale
 C. ___________ Dispersal
Fruits and/or seeds use flotation devices to travel
by water (in rivers, oceans, etc.)
Fruit may have air spaces and corky floats: for
example ________________

copyright cmassengale
 D. Animal dispersal
Plants have _____________ with animals to accomplish
seed dispersal
Many plants depend on animals for seed dispersal;
they may offer a nutritional reward
Animals learn to recognize ripened fruit colors
Fleshy fruits eaten and dispersed
with feces

copyright cmassengale
 Animal dispersal
Some dry fruit attach and cling to animals
(they hitchhike on the animals)
Some have Velcro-like hooks that cling to animal
fur (burdock, cockleburs)
Others have sticky substances that stick to host
(mistletoe)

copyright cmassengale
 Further Study on Seed Dispersal
What carries the dandelion seeds for miles?
What feature of trees gives them a particular
advantage when dispersing seeds by air?
How does the squirting cucumber disperse its seeds?
Although plants use wind and water, what do most
plants use as carriers for their seeds?
Blackberries on a tree do not ripen simultaneously,
why?
What plant do elephants help to disperse? How do
they do it? What percentage of these seeds
germinate in elephant dung? Why?
copyright cmassengale