Flowering and fertilisation

Wheat ear pictures


Spikelets are arranged on alternate sides of the rachis. The collar is a rudimentary spikelet which only rarely sets grain. The last-formed, terminal spikelet is set at ninety degrees to the lateral spikelets, making the wheat ear a determinate structure. More spikelets are found on the mainstem than on the primary tillers. The final number is genetically limited; in cv Mercia it is, on average, 22 plus the terminal spikelet. Cultural conditions will determine how many florets within each spikelet remain viable at anthesis.
All the events around anthesis must be well co-ordinated for the successful release of pollen and fertilization of the ovule. The ear is quickly raised above the crop canopy by the growth of the last stem internode or peduncle. It remains protected inside the sheath of the flag leaf until the anthers are almost mature.
Each spikelet initiates between eight and twelve florets of which only four or five will be potentially fertile at flowering. The outer glumes are barren, their function is to protect. Similarly the lemma and palea of each floret protect the delicate structures inside.