Background Information

Pollen Structure: Pollen is produced inside of the anther of angiosperm flowers. Pollen grains come in all shapes and sizes. The pollen structure of different plants can help us figure out how closely related any given species are. Pollen grains can be anywhere from 6 micro-meters to 100 micro-meters. When pollen is released through the pollen wall, it goes through structures called apertures. By counting the numbers of apertures, we can also look at how closely related each species is. Pollen cells protected by a unique pollen wall. The pollen wall is made up of three parts: the outer exine wall, which is multilayered and broken up by apertures, an inner intine made mostly of cellulose, and a pollen coat made of lipids, proteins, and aromatic compounds. To capture pollen, stigmas engage biotic and abiotic pollinators and use adhesive interactions to retain pollen.