If a plant isn't self-fertile, will it be pollinated by a plant grown from a
cutting of itself which is effectively a clone of the same plant?

I guess question this only applies to plants which have male and female
parts on the same plant. If I propagate by cuttings from a male holly for
example, I can only ever get more male plants right?

Martin

In article ,
"Martin & Anna Sykes" writes:
| If a plant isn't self-fertile, will it be pollinated by a plant grown from a
| cutting of itself which is effectively a clone of the same plant?

In general, yes, but plants occasionally and spontaneously 'break
clone'. Whether this affects inter-fertility, I don't know.

| I guess question this only applies to plants which have male and female
| parts on the same plant. If I propagate by cuttings from a male holly for
| example, I can only ever get more male plants right?

In general, yes, but sexuality in plants is more complex than even
that of the human race. It is possible that a very few plants may
have shoots that are entirely one sex, and that propagating from
those shoots takes up that sex. Like the growth pattern in ivy.
And it might be possible to reverse the specialisation, too.

I don't know that it DOES happen - merely that I wouldn't rule
it out.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren,
University of Cambridge Computing Service,
New Museums Site, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QH, England.
Email:
Tel.: +44 1223 334761 Fax: +44 1223 334679

In article , Nick Maclaren
writes

In article ,
"Martin & Anna Sykes" writes:
| If a plant isn't self-fertile, will it be pollinated by a plant grown from a
| cutting of itself which is effectively a clone of the same plant?

In general, yes, but plants occasionally and spontaneously 'break
clone'. Whether this affects inter-fertility, I don't know.

If a plant is self-incompatible then it won't be interfertile with a
cutting of itself. A sport with a changed self-incompatibility factor
may be interfertile (and may not be morphologically distinguishable from
the original).

If a plant is not self-fertile for some other reason a cutting might be
interfertile. For example, in the hypothetical case of a plant which
bears male and female flowers sequentially, rather than simultaneously,
vegetatively propagated plants grown in different microenvironments may
flower sufficiently out of synchronisation for cross-fertilisation to
occur.

Perhaps someone else can say how heterostylous plants would behave when
vegetatively propagated.

--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

In article , Hussein M.
writes

With the only monoecious plant I have any experience of (ie female
plants with exclusively female flowers and male plants with
exclusively male flowers), the female plant under conditions of stress
may produce a sprinkling of male flowers so the plant has the
potential to turn hermaphrodite.


s/monoecious/dioecious/

monoecious is both sexes on ONE plant (but separate male and female
flowers)

dioecious is one sex on each of TWO plants.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

It's vexing. My local Homebase offers just one sort of Blueberry
cultivar. They really should do a "special offer" of 2 different ones at
3 times the price :-)

Steve Harris - Cheltenham - Real address steve AT netservs DOT com

In article ,
Stewart Robert Hinsley wrote:
In article , Hussein M.
writes

With the only monoecious plant I have any experience of (ie female
plants with exclusively female flowers and male plants with
exclusively male flowers), the female plant under conditions of stress
may produce a sprinkling of male flowers so the plant has the
potential to turn hermaphrodite.

s/monoecious/dioecious/

monoecious is both sexes on ONE plant (but separate male and female
flowers)

dioecious is one sex on each of TWO plants.

And then you get delights like whether monoecious plants are self
fertile or even apomictic - and, no, I have NO idea how the last
works! It is what most blackberries are, where pollination is
necessary only to trigger the development of the seed and does not
contribute genetic material.

Kinky.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren,
University of Cambridge Computing Service,
New Museums Site, Pembroke Street, Cambridge CB2 3QH, England.
Email:
Tel.: +44 1223 334761 Fax: +44 1223 334679

In article , Hussein M.
writes

I don't quite know what you mean by heterostylous (monoecious? not
self fertile?).

Heterostylous means that the species is polymorphic for style length.
It's associated with outcrossing, but I forget the details. Many
Primulas are heterostyles, and the trait turns up in other taxa as well.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

In article , Stewart Robert Hinsley
writes
In article , Hussein M.
writes

I don't quite know what you mean by heterostylous (monoecious? not
self fertile?).

Heterostylous means that the species is polymorphic for style length.
It's associated with outcrossing, but I forget the details. Many
Primulas are heterostyles, and the trait turns up in other taxa as well.

In primroses, you get the pin and thrum flowers, depending on whether
the stigma is above or below the stamens (as a technique to encourage
cross-pollination). Is this what you mean?

--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/

In article , Kay Easton
writes
Heterostylous means that the species is polymorphic for style length.
It's associated with outcrossing, but I forget the details. Many
Primulas are heterostyles, and the trait turns up in other taxa as well.

In primroses, you get the pin and thrum flowers, depending on whether
the stigma is above or below the stamens (as a technique to encourage
cross-pollination). Is this what you mean?

Yes.
--
Stewart Robert Hinsley

On Wed, 4 Dec 2002 01:59:05 +0000, Stewart Robert Hinsley
wrote:

In article , Hussein M.
writes

With the only monoecious plant I have any experience of (ie female
plants with exclusively female flowers and male plants with
exclusively male flowers), the female plant under conditions of stress
may produce a sprinkling of male flowers so the plant has the
potential to turn hermaphrodite.


s/monoecious/dioecious/

monoecious is both sexes on ONE plant (but separate male and female
flowers)

dioecious is one sex on each of TWO plants.

Aha!

Well, guess what I'm getting for Christmas?

1 of Principles of Horticulture
C.R., BSc Adams, et al; @ £15.99 each

About time don't you think?

A rose by any other name ... can confuse.

Funny the way that homo sapiens is habitually treaches it's infants
to think in the manner of finding pidgeon holes for everything when
reality is so incondusive to such regimentation . I'm wondering if it
is a basic requirement for language.

Rspct

Hussein

In article , Hussein M.
writes

Funny the way that homo sapiens is habitually treaches it's infants
to think in the manner of finding pidgeon holes for everything when
reality is so incondusive to such regimentation . I'm wondering if it
is a basic requirement for language.

I think its a reflection of the limited capacity of human memory

--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/