Editing Plant reproductive morphology (section)

== Plant sexual reproduction and terminology ==
[[File:Marchantia polymorpha gametophytes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Dioicous gametophytes of the liverwort ''[[Marchantia polymorpha]]''. In this species, gametes are produced on different plants on umbrella-shaped [[gametophore]]s with different morphologies. The radiating arms of female gametophores (left) protect [[archegonia]] that produce eggs. Male gametophores (right) are topped with [[antheridia]] that produce sperm.]]

Plants have complex lifecycles involving an [[alternation of generations]]. One generation, the [[sporophyte]], produces [[Spores|spores]] which then grow to become the next generation, the [[gametophyte]]. These produce [[Gamete#Plants|gametes]], the [[Egg cell|egg]]s and [[sperm]], which then unite and grow to become sporophytes, completing the cycle.

Spores may be identical ([[Spore#Classification_of_spore-producing_organisms|isospores]]) or come in different sizes ([[microspore]]s and [[megaspore]]s), but strictly speaking, spores and sporophytes are neither male nor female because they do not produce [[gamete]]s. The alternate generation, gametophytes, can be [[Monoicy|monoicous]] (bisexual), where an individual can produce both eggs and sperm, or [[Dioicy|dioicous]] (unisexual), where one produces only eggs and another produces only sperm.

In the [[bryophyte]]s ([[liverwort]]s, [[moss]]es, and [[hornwort]]s), the sexual gametophyte is the dominant generation. In [[fern]]s and [[seed plant]]s (including [[cycad]]s, [[conifer]]s, [[flowering plant]]s, etc.) the sporophyte is the dominant generation; the obvious visible plant, whether a small herb or a large tree, and the gametophyte is very small. In bryophytes and ferns, the gametophytes are independent, free-living plants, while in seed plants, each female megagametophyte, and the megaspore that gives rise to it, is hidden within the sporophyte and is entirely dependent on it for nutrition. Each male gametophyte typically consists of two to four cells enclosed within the protective wall of a pollen grain.

The sporophyte of flowering plants ([[Flowering_plant|Angiosperms]]) is often described using sexual terms (e.g. "female" or "male") {{em|based on the sexuality of the gametophyte it produces}}. For example, a sporophyte that give rise only to male gametophytes may be described as "male", even though the sporophyte itself is asexual, producing only spores. Similarly, flowers produced by the sporophyte may be described as "unisexual" or "bisexual", meaning that they give rise to either one sex of gametophyte or gametophytes of both sexes.<ref name="Hickey-2001"/>{{pn|date=March 2023}}