Question

Why do plants like Viola and Oxalis give assured seed sets even in the absence of pollinators? When an orange seed is squeezed, many embryos of different shapes and sizes are observed. Why?

Answer 1

1. Viola and Oxalis have cleistogamous flowers that never open. Because the anthers and stigma are close together, these flowers facilitate self-pollination, resulting in reliable seed sets even in the absence of pollinators.
2. Polyembryony, in which several embryos develop within a single seed, happens in oranges. Both adventive embryos (from somatic tissues like the nucellus) and zygotic embryos (from fertilisation) are responsible for this.