Why is cross-pollination better for a plant?

A flower is a wondrous object. Both the stamens that contains pollen, and pistils that bear egg cells, are found in the same flower. Naturally, such a flower is equipped for a reproduction. However, usually such pollination hardly happens.

Pollen from the stamen of a flower usually does not go to the pistil of the same flower. Insects and small birds carry the pollen from one flower to the other. This kind of pollination is known as cross-pollination.

Cross-pollination is important, because it guarantees better and more efficient seeds and fruits. Charles Darvin, the great scientist and naturalist, has demonstrated this phenomenon through his experiments.

 

Picture Credit : Google