Question

Cucurbits and papaya plants bear staminate and pistillate flowers. Mention the categories they are put under separately on the basis of the type of flowers they bear.

Answer 1

Staminate and pistillate are the flowers that contain the male reproductive and the female reproductive system, respectively. Plants can be distinguished on whether they have both reproductive systems or only one of them.

Complete answer:
- The cucurbits or the Cucurbitaceae are the plant family that includes the melon, squash, cucumber, and gourds. They are monoecious, i.e. they bear flowers of both sexes. They exhibit both staminate and pistillate parts on the same plant.
- The papaya plant belongs to the Caricaceae family. They are dioecious, i.e. the plant bears flowers of either male or the female reproductive system. The papaya has both male and female plants separately.
- Both Cucurbitaceae and Caricaceae belong to the Angiosperms group.
- Other examples of monoecious and dioecious plants are banana and asparagus, respectively.
- The male reproductive parts of a plant are collectively known as androecium and the female reproductive parts are collectively known as gynoecium.
- The individual unit of the androecium is the stamen which consists of the filament, anther, and the pollen grain.
- The individual unit of the gynoecium is the pistil and consists of the stigma, style, and ovary.

Note:
- Monoecious plants are also known as homothallic plants and dioecious plants are also known as heterothallic plants.
- The male and female flowers on a monoecious plant can be distinguished visually. For example, the female flowers of the squash show the presence of a small fruit inside the flower.
- Plants can reproduce asexually as well as sexually. Sexual reproduction is a characteristic of angiosperms.