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#1
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no comprendez
I don't understand how a fruit tree, say an apple might end up getting
pollinated by as many different types of apple trees in the area close enough for bee travel or wind and yet all the apples will be the same, even with all the possible different types of pollen that could have been involved in fertilization. I suppose I should have concentrated more in botany class. |
#2
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Think of it like the reproduction of any organism -- the male parent affects
the offspring's characteristics, but not the appearance of the mother. Apples are maternal tissue, except for the seeds (which do differ, at least genetically, based on the source of pollen). But there's no reason for the pollen source to have any effect on the rest of the fruit. There are a few plants in which the pollen source does affect fruit characteristics -- "Indian" corn, dates, etc. But not so in most plants. |
#3
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no comprendez
I don't understand how a fruit tree, say an apple might end up getting
pollinated by as many different types of apple trees in the area close enough for bee travel or wind and yet all the apples will be the same, even with all the possible different types of pollen that could have been involved in fertilization. OK, suppose you have a 'Granny Smith' apple tree, and your next-door neighbors have 'Empire,' 'McIntosh,' and 'Cortland.' When the flowers on your tree are pollinated, your tree will produce only 'Granny Smith' apples. The genes in the fruit producing part of the tree have not changed. Only the seeds in the apples are affected. If you planted the seeds of your open-pollinated 'Granny Smith' apples, you would get a mishmash of all different varieties. Even if you could fertilize a 'Granny Smith' flower with its own pollen (most apples are self-sterile), the offspring would not be 'Granny Smith.' They might be similar or different, but would not be the same cultivar, which can only be reproduced vegetatively. Iris, Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40 "If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming train." Robert Lowell (1917-1977) |
#4
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no comprendez
In article , whiteMemphis
writes I don't understand how a fruit tree, say an apple might end up getting pollinated by as many different types of apple trees in the area close enough for bee travel or wind and yet all the apples will be the same, even with all the possible different types of pollen that could have been involved in fertilization. I suppose I should have concentrated more in botany class. The fruit of an apple (or any other plant) is composed of maternal tissue, and displays the maternal phenotype. It's only the seed (maybe only the embryo) that has a different genotype, and might be expect to display a varying phenotype. -- Stewart Robert Hinsley |
#5
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no comprendez
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