Describe double fertilisation in plants.
Answer:
Soon after pollination the pollen grains start germinating and form a pollen tube. The pollen tube grows within the style till it reaches the ovary.
On reaching the ovary it enters the ovule through an opening called micropyle. In the meantime, two male gametes are formed in the pollen tube. One of the male gametes fuses with the egg, the process is called syngamy. The product formed is termed as zygote. The other male gamete fuses with the two polar nuclei, one from each end of embryo sac, to form endosperm nucleus. This process is called triple fusion. In this process three nuclei, two polar nuclei and one male gamete is involved, so it is called triple fusion. Thus, inside each embryo sac two fusions, i.e., syngamy and triple fusion take place. This mechanism of two fusions occurring in an embryonal sac is called double fertilisation. After fertilisation, the ovule develops into seed and the ovary develops into a fruit.