Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants (2024)

Flowering Plants

Flowering plants usually include the angiosperms. The angiosperms have their seeds enclosed in a fruit. They are characterised by their flowers and seeded fruits. The flowering organs of an angiosperm are specially modified to facilitate evolutionary advantage. Thus, they become distinct from other seed plants.

Flowering plants produce flowers which ensures the fertilisation process. The male and female gametophytes of flowering plants are much reduced. This allows for more rapid pollination. After pollination and fertilisation, the embryo develops into a fruit containing seeds.

Non-flowering Plants

Non-flowering plants do not produce seeds, fruits or flowers. They usually reproduce through spores. They include the cryptogams and the gymnosperms. However, gymnosperms are a seed-bearing group of plants. They have unenclosed or naked seeds that often produce cones. Examples – Ginkgo and Conifers. The life-cycle of gymnosperms are sporophyte-dominant, and their gametophytic phase is short-lived.

Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants

Flowering Plants

Non-flowering Plants

They are commonly known as angiosperms.

They include the cryptogams and the gymnosperms.

They have seeds and flowers.

They do not produce seeds and flowers except for gymnosperms, which are seed-bearing and non-flowering.

They are highly evolved with true roots, leaves and stems.

Most of the non-flowering plants do not have true roots, leaves or stems.

Examples – Orchids, Grasses, Sedges.

Examples – Mosses, Ferns, Conifers

Also Read: Difference between Angiosperms and Gymnosperms

Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants (1)

Frequently Asked Questions on Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants

Q1

What are phanerogams?

Phanerogams or spermatophytes are seed-bearing plants. It includes both angiosperms (flowering plants) and gymnosperms (non-flowering plants). They have evident sex organs or phanerogamae. In gymnosperms, the seeds are naked, whereas in angiosperms, it is enclosed.

Q2

What are cryptogams?

The word Cryptogams means ‘hidden reproduction’. They are plants that do not have seeds. This includes the lower plants that reproduce through spores. Bryophytes, Pteridophytes, and Thallophytes come under this category.

Q3

What are bryophytes?

Bryophytes are non-vascular plants that are commonly found in shady and moist areas. This includes mosses, hornworts and liverworts. They are erect, thallus-like structures that are attached to the substratum by rhizoids. Moreover, these plants live in soil and depend on water for their reproduction. Thus, they are known as the amphibians of the plant kingdom.

Extended Reading: Bryophyta

Keep exploring BYJU’S Biology for more exciting topics.

Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants (2024)

FAQs

Difference between Flowering and Non-flowering Plants? ›

Flowering plants grow flowers and use seeds to reproduce, or make more plants like them. Nonflowering plants do not grow flowers, and use either seeds or spores, which are very tiny parts of a plant that can be used to reproduce, to grow more plants just like them.

What is the difference between flowering plants and other seed plants? ›

Angiosperms, also called flowering plants, have seeds that are enclosed within an ovary (usually a fruit), while gymnosperms have no flowers or fruits, and have unenclosed or “naked” seeds on the surface of scales or leaves. Gymnosperm seeds are often configured as cones.

What are three examples of non-flowering? ›

Non-flowering plants include mosses, liverworts, hornworts, lycophytes and ferns and reproduce by spores.

What counts as a flowering plant? ›

Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (/ˌændʒiəˈspərmiː/), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of broad-leaved trees, shrubs and vines, and most aquatic plants.

What are non-flowering plants called? ›

The plants without seeds and flowers are called cryptogams or non-flowering plants. Cryptogams include algae, bryophytes and pteridophytes that do not produce seeds and flowers.

What is the main difference between flowering and non flowering plants? ›

Flowering plants grow flowers and use seeds to reproduce, or make more plants like them. Nonflowering plants do not grow flowers, and use either seeds or spores, which are very tiny parts of a plant that can be used to reproduce, to grow more plants just like them.

What are the disadvantages of seedless plants? ›

Limited Genetic Variation: Seedless plants reproduce asexually, meaning they produce offspring that are genetically identical to the parent plant. This lack of genetic diversity can make seedless plants more susceptible to diseases, pests, and environmental changes.

Do non-flowering plants have pollen? ›

In non-flowering seed plants, pollen germinates in the pollen chamber, located beneath the micropyle, underneath the integuments of the ovule. A pollen tube is produced, which grows into the nucellus to provide nutrients for the developing sperm cells.

Is aloe vera a non-flowering plant? ›

This plant includes colorful flowers such as: yellow, orange, coral pink, red, and purple. The flowered part of the plant can reach four and a half feet tall. Caring for Aloe plants requires few and simple instructions.

Is onion a flowering plant? ›

Onion bulb is a modified stem because it has a large number of fleshy scale leaves, and onions are flowering plants. They belong to the monocot family Liliaceae. Onions are biennial. In the first year, the onion forms a bulb and develops a top but not a flower.

What makes a plant flowering? ›

At specific times of year, flowering plants produce a protein known as Flowering Locus T in their leaves that induces flowering. Once this protein is made, it travels from the leaves to the shoot apex, a part of the plant where cells are undifferentiated, meaning they can either become leaves or flowers.

Are vegetables considered flowering plants? ›

All vegetables produce flowers, even though most people with a vegetable garden have never seen them. When we look at vegetables as flowering plants, there are roughly two types. Most vegetables produce flowers in order to form an edible product. Peas, beans and pumpkins are examples.

What are most flowering plants called? ›

The term "angiosperms" is derived from two Greek words: angio, which means "covered," and sperma, which means "seed." The seeds grow inside an organ, which is then transformed into a fruit. Because of the presence of flowers, they are often known as flowering plants.

What are the 10 examples of non-flowering plants? ›

Non-flowering plants mostly fall into one of these groups: ferns, liverworts, mosses, hornworts, whisk ferns, club mosses, horsetails, conifers, cycads, and ginkgo. We can group those together based on how they grow.

Is a cactus a flowering plant? ›

Cacti are flowering plants that produce seeds. They are able to bloom every year, but they will produce an abundance of flowers in response to heavy rains. Flowers differ in appearance and scent to attract specific pollinators, such as insects and bats. Cacti are slow growers and can live for many years.

Are beans a flowering plant? ›

The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an annual plant, with a distinctive irregular flower form constructed of five petals, also known as the banner, wings, and keel (see below picture for flower structure).

Is it better to plant flower seeds or plants? ›

Larger plants do better being placed in the garden as seedlings versus seeds because of the length of time they need to grow. On the other hand, plants that are smaller in size (like lettuce plants) don't take as long to reach maturity and may do much better in your garden being direct sown from seed.

Is a flowering plant a seed plant? ›

Most plants grow from seeds. These seed plants fall into two groups, angiosperms and gymnosperms. Angiosperms are the flowering plants. Their seeds develop inside a female reproductive part of the flower, called the ovary, which usually ripens into a protective FRUIT.

What is the advantage of seeds in flowering plants? ›

The seeds protect the embryo from harsh environmental conditions. They provide nourishment and parental care to the developing embryo. The dispersal of the seeds to far-off places prevents competition among the members of the same species, thus preventing their extinction.

What are the two types of seed plants How are they different? ›

The seed plants are often divided arbitrarily into two groups: the gymnosperms and the angiosperms. The basis for this distinction is that angiosperms produce flowers, while the gymnosperms do not.

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