allogamous
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Relating to cross-fertilization in plants: Describes the process or condition in which a plant is fertilized by pollen from a different plant of the same species.
Usage
- The term is used in botany and plant biology to describe a reproductive mechanism.
- It is the opposite of "autogamous" (self-fertilizing).
- It can describe a plant species, its flowers, or its reproductive system.
Examples
- Adjective:
- Many fruit trees are allogamous and require pollinators like bees to produce fruit.
- The study compared the genetic diversity of allogamous and autogamous plant populations.
- To ensure seed production, farmers must plant two different varieties of this allogamous crop close together.
Advanced Usage
- Allogamy (n): The noun form referring to the cross-fertilization process itself.
- Allogamy promotes greater genetic variation within a species.
- Obligately allogamous: A term used for plants that are strictly dependent on cross-fertilization and cannot self-fertilize.
- The plant is obligately allogamous, so isolated individuals will not set seed.
Variants and Related Words
- Allogamy (n): Cross-fertilization.
- Allogamousness (n): The state or quality of being allogamous. (Less common)
- Xenogamous: A synonym, specifically meaning fertilization by pollen from a genetically different plant.
Synonyms
- Cross-fertilizing
- Xenogamous
- Outcrossing (often used as a verb or noun, but can describe the same concept)
Antonyms
- Autogamous: Self-fertilizing.
- Self-fertilizing
- Self-pollinating
Adjective
- relating to cross-fertilization in plants