How Do Plants Reproduce?

How do plants reproduce? Has your child expressed curiosity about plant reproduction, but you're not sure how to explain it? Try simplifying the reproduction of plants into these two categories:

Sexual Plant Reproduction
Most plants need both male and female parts to reproduce. In most cases, a plant will need the pollen from the male part of a plant to come in contact with the eggs contained inside the female part of a plant. The male part of the plant is called the stamen and the female part is called the pistil. Some species of plants contain both male and female parts on the same plant, while others may require cross-pollination from other plants, or plants of a similar but not identical variety. 

When the pollen contacts the ovum, fertilization happens, much like the fertilization of a human egg. The eggs, once fertilized, become pollinated seeds inside the female part of the plant. Seeds may be packaged inside a fruit or a pod or a vegetable, or they may form as part of a burr. Seeds are usually encased in a tough skin or shell for protection, until they find the proper requirements for growth into a plant: soil, water and warmth. 

Asexual Plant Reproduction
Some plants are capable of asexual reproduction, meaning the plant is capable of reproducing on its own, without needing pollinating. Some plants can reproduce from a cutting that is taken and placed in water or moist soil, forming new roots from the cutting that will become a whole, self-sustaining plant. Other plants can reproduce by sending out rhizomes, or offshoots that form roots and become independent plants. Strawberries are good examples of this type of asexual reproduction. Some plants can form new bulbs, like tulips, without needing to produce seeds first.

If you look carefully, you can probably find examples of both types of plant reproduction in your own yard or a local park.