Plants

Asexual Reproduction Requires only one organism Offspring will have the same genetic structure as the parents Not as complex and requires far less energy Organisms that are genetically identical to their parent are known as clones.

Rhizomes Grasses, cattails and sedges Produce underground stems or rhizomes Buds produce at the nodes If dies, a new separate plant will form

Rhizome

Tubers Modified rhizomes Irish potatoes Specialized stem branches grow down into the ground and swell with starch cells Buds will grow into new plants Buds are commonly termed “eyes”

Tubers

Runners Horizontally growing stems produce few leaves The stems run along the ground Runners can be cut from the parent plant Wild strawberry and spider plant

Runners

Cuttings Vegetative plants that have been removed and rooted in soil or other suitable material Made from stems, roots or leaves Geranium, Coleus, African violet

Cuttings

Bulbs Onions, chives and lilies Very short stem surrounded by fleshy leaves In the spring the shoot apex begins to grow using the nutrients stored in the leaves

Bulbs

Corms Similar to bulbs except that there are no storage leaves Nutrients are stored in the swollen stem

Corms

Cell Culture Sometimes just one cell can regenerate into an entire plant One cell from a carrot taproot is put into a tube of water with plant nutrients The one cell divides and forms a bunch of cells The small carrot plant will from into a carrot identical to the carrot from which the one cell came

Cell Culture

Tissue Culture Engineered cells of plants Petunias, tobacco and tomatoes Place the engineered cell in an environment with special hormones and nutrients that encourage growth Tissue culture will form leaves and roots and finally and entire plant will grow.

Tissue Culture