Pollen

Cross section of a male cone of a pine tree. The scales of the cone support microsporangia, which produce a large number of pollen grains

Pollen is a powder made of pollen grains. They produce sperm cells (male cells used for reproduction) of seed plants. The pollen grains are actually haploid male gametophytes. This is to do with alternation of generations. All plants go through a cycle with a haploid gametophyte alternating with a diploid sporophyte. In the case of flowering plants the gametophyte stage is very small and brief.


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