All materials for this lab are easily obtained or produced. Not all pollen types will easily produce pollen tubes. It is important to test the pollen or to introduce this to the students as a lab in which you are finding out which pollen will form tubes. Fossil pollen grains are identifiable more than 100 million years after they were formed. Scientists study these grains to help determine the climate and ecology of past geological eras.
Ancient hieroglyphics record the application of pollen in the rituals of ancient civilizations.
People still blame certain plants and their pollen for seasonal hay fever and allergies. Pollen produces the fruits, grains, and vegetables that keep us alive and healthy. Pollen is an important part of the human and non-human environment. Pollen is not plant sperm. This module will focus on the pollen from angiosperms.