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COVER SLIDE
Respected Professor and my fellow classmates, a very good day to you all. Welcome to our
presentation on the external morphology of the flower.

When we look at a plant, what is the very first thing that usually catches our eye? More often
than not, it’s the flower. Flowers are the most colorful, diverse, and beautiful parts of a
plant—but they aren't just there to look pretty. They have a brilliant design, and every single part
has a specific job to do.

For our Plant Morphology course, we are Group 5—consisting of myself and my teammates [
Anisa, Nazia, Ontim and myself Sadika ; IDs: 2502059, 2502065, 2502071, and 2502074].

Today, we are going to peel back the layers and take a closer look at our presentation topic: The
External Morphology of Flowers. Over the next few minutes, we’ll guide you through the outer
structure of a flower, explore what its different parts are called, and discover how they all fit
together.
So, let’s dive in and start exploring!

SLIDE 1

Why does flower morphology matter?

Let’s start with a foundational truth: a flower is not just an ornament; it is a highly modified shoot
and the ultimate reproductive organ of a plant. Every single variation we see in the plant
kingdom—the massive trees, the unique crops, the evolutionary adaptations—happens because
of reproduction.

The primary goal of any plant species is to ensure the survival of its next generation by
producing seeds. Flowers are the specialized biological tools designed to manufacture those
seeds. By studying flower morphology, we aren't just learning what a flower looks like; we are
unlocking the code behind plant evolution, diversity, and crop reproduction.

SLIDE 2
Different whorls of flowers

A typical flower is organized into four distinct layers or concentric rings called whorls. Moving
from the outside to the very inside, these are the Calyx, the Corolla, the Androecium, and the
Gynoecium.

Botanists group these into two operational categories based on their function. The outer two
whorls—the Calyx and Corolla—are known as the accessory parts because they protect and
assist the flower but don't directly create seeds. The inner two whorls—the Androecium and
Gynoecium—are the essential parts because they harbor the actual male and female
reproductive organs.”

SLIDE 3
 The accessory whorls

Let's closely examine the accessory whorls of flowers now. The first, outermost layer is the
Calyx, made up of individual units called sepals.

●​ These are usually green and leaf-like.

●​ Their vital job is to protect the tender young flower bud before it opens.
●​ and because they are green, they also contribute to photosynthesis.

Moving inward, we meet the Corolla, composed of individual units called petals. These are the
showstoppers—colorful, scented, and often secreting sugary nectar. Their biological job is
highly strategic:

●​ to attract insects and other animal pollinators to facilitate reproduction.

Note that when a flower's calyx and corolla are fused or indistinguishable—such as in rice or
onions—we use the term Perianth, and its individual units are called tepals.

SLIDE 4
The essential whorls

Now we step into the inner part of the flower to look at the essential whorls. The Androecium is
the male reproductive component, consisting of units called stamens. Each stamen is split into
two structural elements:

➔​ a slender stalk called the filament, which holds up a bi-lobed structure called the anther.
➔​ The anther is the biological factory where pollen grains develop and are stored.

At the dead center of the flower is the Gynoecium, or Pistil, representing the female
reproductive system. Its basic unit is the carpel, which is divided into three zones:

➔​ The sticky stigma at the top to trap pollen grains

➔​ The elongated style that supports the stigma and provides a pathway for the pollen tube
➔​ And the swollen ovary at the base. This ovary contains the ovules, which contain female
reproductive cells, and it will eventually mature into the fruit we eat

SLIDE 5
The foundational supporting parts of a flower

Now, we must understand the foundational supporting parts of a flower as shown in the slide.

First is the pedicel, which is simply the stalk supporting the flower.

A flower with a stalk is called pedicillate, while a flower sitting directly on the stem without one
is termed sessile.

At the very top of this stalk sits the thalamus, or receptacle. This can be flat, concave, or
convex, and it acts as the landing pad or floor from which all other floral parts arise.

Finally, look closely at the base, and you might find a bract—a reduced, modified leaf
subtending the flower or inflorescence.

Flowers possessing this are bracteate, and those without are ebracteate.”

SLIDE 6
Completeness of a flower

Now that we have learnt and understood all the whorls of a flower, it will allow us to classify
flowers on the basis of different types of variations in these parts.

If a flower boasts all four whorls—calyx, corolla, androecium, and gynoecium—it is called a
Complete flower. If it misses even one of these, it is Incomplete.

Look at the first figure on the slide. This flower has all the whorls and that's why we can call it a
complete flower.

However the flower on the second figure is lacking androecium which makes it an incomplete
flower.

SLIDE 7
Sexuality of a flower

Similarly, look at sexuality: a flower featuring both stamens and pistils together is Bisexual,
Hermaphrodite, or Perfect.

If it contains only one sex, it is Unisexual or Imperfect.

A unisexual flower with only stamens is a staminate or male flower; one with only pistils is a
pistillate or female flower.

SLIDE 8
Classification of unisexual flowers

When both separate male and female flowers coexist on the exact same plant body—like
bottle gourd, sweet gourd—the plant is Monoecious.
But if the male and female flowers live on completely different individual plants—like pointed
gourds, teasel gourd—it is classified as Dioecious.

SLIDE 9
Regular/Irregular flower

If a flower exhibits uniform size and shape of sepal, petal and stamens, then it is called a
regular flower.

However, if a flower does not have a uniform shape and size of sepal, petal and stamens, then it
is called an irregular flower.

In the figure, we can see that the first flower exhibits the properties of a regular flower: the
sepals, petals and stamens all have uniform size and shape. But that's not the case for the
second flower. So it's an irregular flower.

SLIDE 10
Floral symmetry

Flowers also diverge beautifully in their external symmetry.

If a flower can be divided into equal halves along multiple radial planes passing through the
center, it displays Actinomorphic or radial symmetry—like mustard flowers.

However, if a flower can only be divided into two equal halves along a single specific plane
due to irregular or dissimilar part sizes, it shows Zygomorphic or bilateral symmetry—like a
bean flower.

SLIDE 11
Hypogynous Vs Epigynous

In the flower world, everything revolves around the ovary—specifically, whether the other floral
parts are above it or below it.

We call a flower Hypogynous when the sepals, petals, and stamens arise from a position
directly below the base of the ovary. In this configuration, the ovary is on top, which is
morphologically termed as superior ovary.
Conversely, in an Epigynous flower, the sepals, petals, and stamens arise from a position way
up above the ovary. This leaves the ovary buried underneath, which we define as an inferior
ovary.

SLIDE 12
Androecium types

The male whorl of the flower exhibits complex structural variations.

Stamens can fuse by their filaments into bundles:

❖​ a single bundle is Monadelphous, like cotton;

❖​ two bundles is Diadelphous, like beans;
❖​ and multiple bundles is Polyadelphous.

Alternatively, stamens can fuse entirely by both filaments and anthers, forming a single
structure called Synandrous

Or they might fuse only by their anthers while keeping filaments free, termed Syngenesious.

When stamens and petals are fused, they are Epipetalous.

SLIDE 13
Androecium types continuation

Filament attachment to the anther lobes also varies.

★​ It can connect directly at the very base, known as Basifixed;

★​ along the entire back length, called Dorsifixed;
★​ or pivot loosely right at the center point, creating a swinging Versatile attachment
perfectly adapted for wind pollination, like we see in rice.

SLIDE 14
Aestivation types

Next, we examine Aestivation—the positional arrangement of sepals and petals within a flower
bud before it has opened.

We observe four major aestivation types in crops.

➔​ First is Valvate, where margins touch edge-to-edge cleanly without overlapping.

 ➔​ Second is Twisted, where one margin of every single petal systematically overlaps the
next one in a continuous direction.
➔​ Third is Imbricate, a mixed layout where margins overlap irregularly.
➔​ And fourth is Vexillary, an advanced arrangement seen in legumes featuring five petals:
a large superior standard petal called the vexillum, two lateral wings or alae, and two
inner fused petals forming a keel or carina.

SLIDE 15
Placentation types

Now, let's take a look at all the placentation types in flowers.

What is placentation? Placentation is the arrangement of the placenta within the ovary
Looking at all these figures, we can see some distinct patterns.

●​ In Basal placentation, a single ovule develops directly from the base of the ovary, as
seen in sunflower, marigold.
●​ Marginal placentation features ovules arranged in a line along the ventral suture of an
ovary, for example peas and beans.
●​ Parietal placentation features ovules growing directly along the inner walls of the ovary,
such as cucumber, mustard.
●​ Finally, Axile placentation occurs when the ovary is split into multiple internal chambers,
and ovules attach along the central axis line. Examples are china rose, tomato, lemon
etc.

Understanding these internal structures is crucial, as they directly tell us the seed and fruit
configurations of our agricultural crops.

SLIDE 16
Number of carpels

Now, let's find out how to determine the number of carpels of a flower.

This depends on the following three things:

●​ Number of chambers in ovary

●​ Number of stigmatic lobes
●​ Number of joints in the style.

ENDING
With this, we have reached the very end of our presentation. In conclusion, understanding the
external morphology of the flower unlocks our understanding of plant reproduction, taxonomy,
and crop breeding behavior. So working on this presentation was very enlightening for all of
us. Thank you all for your time and attention.

And lastly, we would like to extend our deepest gratitude to the Department of Crop Botany for
providing us with this fundamental course. A special thank you to our course teacher Professor
Dr. Md. Sabibul Haque Sabuz Sir for guidance, to our laboratory assistants for helping us in
practical sessions, our groupmates and to everyone who supported us in assembling this
presentation.

We are happy to take any questions!!