What Are Some Plants That Make Spores Instead of Seeds?

Ferns hold their spores on the undersides of the leaves.

Not all plants produce flowers or grow from seeds. Some members of the plant kingdom reproduce by the production and dispersal of spores. This dispersal is usually aided by the wind or by water.

Alternating Generations

Spore-producing plants have alternating generations. The gametophyte generation that forms the plant's leaves creates the sperm and egg cells, called gametes. When soil, water and temperature conditions are right, these gametes join and grow into the sporophyte. This structure bears the spores.

Mosses

Mosses are non-vascular land plants typically found on a moist forest floor. Their sporophyte grows at the end of the stalk-like seta. The sporophyte capsule releases spores as it dries.

Liverworts

Also found on the forest floor, liverworts also carry their sporophyte on the end of a stalk. It is usually egg-shaped and black in color. The capsule splits into four sections when mature and the spores are released.

Hornworts

Liverworts and hornworts tend to look alike with the exception of their sporophytes. Hornworts create their spores inside a curved stalk, which releases the mature spores by splitting down the sides.

Ferns

Ferns are vascular plants that prefer low light, high humidity and lots of moisture. Their sporophyte stage is the plant that we recognize as a fern. The spores are held on the underside of the fronds. The gametophyte generation is tiny, usually less than an inch wide.

Horsetails

Horsetails are related to ferns but are a much hardier plant and are able to survive in a wider range of environments. Horsetails hold their spores in cones on the tips of branches or on separate stalks.

References

• Encyclopedia Britannica: Spore Biology
• Natural Perspective: Plant Biology
• Hidden Forest: Horsetails