Pollination and fertilisation
The fertilisation of flowers by passing on their pollen. is the transfer of pollen grains from an Part of the stamen that produces the pollen grains containing the male gamete. to a stigma. Pollen can be transferred by an animal or by the wind.
Fertilisation takes place inside the ovary when the nucleus of pollen grain fuses with the nucleus of an ovule to produce a zygote.
Shown below are the steps involved in pollination and fertilisation of a flowering plant.
Step one: After pollen has landed on the stigma, it grows a pollen tube down through the style to the ovary.
Step two: The nucleus of the pollen grain travels down the pollen tube and fertilises the nucleus in the ovule.
Step three: The fertilised ovule develops into a seed. The seed contains the plant embryo, which contains genetic material from both parents. The ovary develops into the fruit.