BIOLOGY
by Miller & Levine
[complete Table of Contents]

Use the pull-down menu to jump to any of the Book's 40 Chapters: Chapter Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 Ch 12 Ch 13 Ch 14 Ch 15 Ch 16 Ch 17 Ch 18 Ch 19 Ch 20 Ch 21 Ch 22 Ch 23 Ch 24 Ch 25 Ch 26 Ch 27 Ch 28 Ch 29 Ch 30 Ch 31 Ch 32 Ch 33 Ch 34 Ch 35 Ch 36 Ch 37 Ch 38 Ch 39 Ch 40

Additional Resources:

Understanding Flowers
From the Backyard Nature web site.

Flowering Plants
From the UC Berkeley Museum

Chapter 24
Reproduction of Seed Plants

In this chapter, students will read about the sexual reproduction of seed plants and the natural and artificial asexual propagation of plants. The links below lead to additional resources to help you with this chapter. These include Hot Links to Web sites related to the topics in this chapter, the Take It to the Net activities referred to in your textbook, a Self-Test you can use to test your knowledge of this chapter, and Teaching Links that instructors may find useful for their students.

What are Web Codes?

Web Codes for Chapter 24: • Active Art: The Structure of a Flower • Miller & Levine: Flowers by Design • Science News: Plants • SciLinks: Seed Structure and Function • Self-Test

Section 24-1: Reproduction With Cones and Flowers
Reproduction in gymnosperms takes place in cones, which are produced by a mature sporophyte plant.
Flowers are reproductive organs that are composed of four kinds of specialized leaves: sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels.
Reproduction in angiosperms takes place within the flower. Following pollination and fertilization, the seeds develop inside protective structures called fruits.
Most gymnosperms are wind pollinated, whereas most flowering plants are pollinated by animals.

Section 24-2: Seed Development and Germination
As angiosperm seeds mature, the ovary walls thicken to form a fruit that encloses the developing seeds.
Seeds dispersed by animals are typically contained in fleshy, nutritious fruits.
Seeds dispersed by wind or water are typically lightweight, allowing them to be carried in the air or to float on the surface of the water.
Environmental factors such as temperature and moisture can cause a seed to end dormancy and germinate.

Section 24-3: Plant Propagation and Agriculture
Vegetative reproduction includes the production of new plants from horizontal stems, cuttings, leaves, plantlets, and underground roots.
Horticulturists use plant propagation to make many identical copies of a plant or to produce offspring from seedless plants.
Most of the people of the world depend on a few crop plants, such as wheat, rice, and corn, for the bulk of their food supply.

Click Here for Science News articles on Plants

(Complete Index of Articles)