How Many Ovaries are There in a Typical Flower

How Many Ovaries are There in a Typical Flower

Edited By Team Careers360 | Updated on Apr 05, 2023 02:15 PM IST

Introduction

There is only one ovary present in a typical flower. The reproductive system of angiosperms, also referred to as flowering plants, is the flower. The ovary is a crucial component of the Carpel, a female reproductive structure, within the flower. Particularly, it refers to the portion of the Pistil that is above, below or connected to the base of the Petals and Sepals and contain the ovules. One carpel could make up this pistil. Carpel consists of,

  1. Stigma, which is a sticky platform to receive pollen.

  2. Style, which is a stalk that connects stigma to ovary.

  3. A swollen or enlarged based part called the ovary.

The flower would have tended to develop in a spiral shape, be bisexual (in plant, this means both male and female parts on the same flower) and have the ovary (female part) as its dominant organ.

Fruit development process

The ovary, where the ovule is developing into a seed, develops into a fruit. During this phase of development, every other major component of the flower, including the style, stigma, sepals, stamens and petals dies.

Classification of the ovary based on the position

  1. Superior ovary - An ovary that is attached to the receptacle earlier than other floral components is said to be superior. Types of fleshy fruits, such as true berries, drupes, etc. have superior ovaries. A flower in this configuration is thought to be Hypogynous.

  1. Half inferior ovary - Nearly equal amounts of ovary are present above and below the insertion point in a half inferior ovary. Other fractions can be used to describe other inferiorities of varying degrees. It is also known as half-superior ovary. These are known as Perigynous or Half-Epigynous flowers.

  1. Inferior ovary - An inferior ovary located beneath the attachment of other floral parts. Epigynous flowers have inferior ovaries. Orchids, Fuchsia and Bananas are examples of flowers with a defective ovary.

Conclusion

Ovary matures and forms fruit after fertilization. In a typical flowering plant, a single flower gives one fruit. As a result, the female reproductive structure of a typical flower has only one ovary.

Get answers from students and experts
Back to top