# A flowering plant reproduces sexually. Explain why the seeds produced by sexual reproduction in this plant are not genetically identical to each other or to the parent plant.

> Pearson Edexcel A-Level Biology A (9BI0) — 2.3 Sexual reproduction in animals and plants · Explain · 5 marks

> A gardener collects seeds from a single flowering plant and grows them the following year. She notices that the new plants show a range of different characteristics, even though they all came from the same parent plant.

## Mark scheme (5 marks)

1. Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of two gametes (fertilisation)
2. Gametes are haploid / contain only one copy of each chromosome
3. Gametes are produced from two different parent organisms (pollen from one plant, egg cell from another / or self-fertilisation combines differently formed gametes), so each gamete carries different genetic information / alleles
4. The zygote formed contains a new / unique combination of chromosomes / alleles from both parents
5. Because each fertilisation event produces a different combination, the seeds / offspring show genetic variation / are not genetically identical to each other or the parent

## Key terms

- [sexual reproduction](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/glossary/sexual-reproduction)

## Related

- [Revision notes for Pearson Edexcel A-Level Biology A (9BI0)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/learn)
- [How to answer "Explain" questions](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/tools/command-word-cheatsheet)
- [Practice this with AI marking (free)](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/start)

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Source: [GradeNine](https://www.gradenine.co.uk/q/a-flowering-plant-reproduces-sexually-explain-80c86f31) · Published by Druglandscape Ltd.