Given below are two statements: One is labelled as Assertion A and the other is labelled as Reason R: Assertion A: A flower is defined as modified shoot wherein the shoot apical meristem changes to floral meristem. Reason R: Internode of the shoot gets condensed to produce different floral appendages laterally at successive nodes instead of leaves. In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below: (NEET 2023)

Solution & Explanation

Answer: A. Both statements are true. A flower is a determinate modified shoot in which the shoot apical meristem switches to a floral meristem (Assertion A). The mechanism is that the internodes of this shoot become condensed, so the floral appendages (sepals, petals, stamens, carpels) are produced laterally at successive nodes instead of leaves (Reason R) — this condensation of the shoot is precisely what converts it into a flower, so R is the correct explanation of A. (The modified-shoot description is foundational angiosperm morphology underpinning this chapter, which treats the flower as the seat of sexual reproduction.) NCERT: Ch 1, p.4, lines 6-7 — "To a biologist, flowers are morphological and embryological marvels and the sites of sexual reproduction."