High macro view of a Prunus flower showing pollen laden anthers, stamens, stigma
Image details
Contributor:
Scenics & Science / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
G08FT6File size:
30.2 MB (1.3 MB Compressed download)Releases:
Model - no | Property - noDo I need a release?Dimensions:
3571 x 2953 px | 30.2 x 25 cm | 11.9 x 9.8 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
20 April 2016More information:
A cherry blossom is the flower of any of several trees of genus Prunus, particularly the Japanese cherry, Prunus serrulata, which is called sakura after the Japanese. Cherry blossom is speculated to be native to the Himalayas. Currently it is widely distributed, especially in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere including Japan, China, Korea, Europe, West Siberia, India, Canada, and the United States. Along with the chrysanthemum, the cherry blossom is considered the national flower of Japan. Many of the varieties that have been cultivated for ornamental use do not produce fruit. Edible cherries generally come from cultivars of the related species Prunus avium and Prunus cerasus. Cherry blossom are also closely related to other Prunus trees such as the almond, peach, plum and apricot and more distantly to apples, pears and roses. The stigma receives pollen and it is on the stigma that the pollen grain germinates. Often sticky, the stigma is adapted in various ways to catch and trap pollen with various hairs, flaps, or sculpturings. The pollen may be captured from the air (wind-borne pollen, anemophily), from visiting insects or other animals (biotic pollination), or in rare cases from surrounding water (hydrophily). Stigmata can vary from long and slender to globe shaped to feathery. Pollen is typically highly desiccated when it leaves an anther. Stigmata have been shown to assist in the rehydration of pollen and in promoting germination of the pollen tube. Stigmata also ensure proper adhesion of the correct species of pollen. Stigmata can play an active role in pollen discrimination and some self-incompatibility reactions, that reject pollen from the same or genetically similar plants, involve interaction between the stigma and the surface of the pollen grain.