Question

Spathe is present in the flowers of
(a) Banana
(b) Rice
(c) Marigold
(d) Sunflower

Answer 1

A spathe and spadix in plants are unique flowering structures and form the inflorescence of a flower. A spathe is a modified leaf that surrounds the spadix, which is a flowering spike and is typically thick and fleshy in appearance.

Complete answer:
An inflorescence is unique to every flower. It is the entire flowering structure of a plant and these can vary quite a lot from one type of plant to the next.
The spathe generally looks like a large flower petal but actually it is a bract which is a modified leaf which performs specific functions and is often brightly coloured and stands out more than the actual flower does.
In cultivated bananas, the female (pistillate) flowers appear first and the ovary develops into a seedless fruit by parthenocarpy (without being pollinated). As it lifts, the bract or spathe it exposes a cluster of female flowers that are normally arranged in two rows.

Additional information: The spadix along with spathe forms the characteristic inflorescence of the remarkable arum family (Araceae). It's main part include a thickened, fleshy axis (spike) bearing clusters of sessile, apetalous, unisexual flowers.
The little unisexual flowers are packed together along the lower region of an erect, phallus-like central spike, typically with male flowers above the female. The upper region of the spadix is often devoid of flowers.
Male (staminate) flowers have numerous stamens packed together, while female (pistillate) flowers have numerous individual pistils. Mostly the individual flowers are reduced to a single stamen or pistil (gynoecium). The spadix is a spike-like structure that emerges from a funnel-shaped modified leaf or spathe which is often brightly coloured. The spadix of some arums emits a putrid odour that attracts carrion flies for pollination.
So, the correct answer is ‘(a) Banana’.

Note: The spadix of some aroids generates a remarkable amount of heat during cold weather. Sometimes, the temperature of the spadix can be up to 30 degrees Celsius above a cool air temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. This helps stimulate the activity of pollinator insect visitors and helps to vaporize the stench of the flowers. This heating mechanism may involve male flowers packed around the spadix.