Question

Smallest flower title belongs to
(a) Rosa indica
(b) Wolffia microscopica
(c) Ranunculus sceleratus
(d) Colocasia antiquorum

Answer 1

Hint: This flower is commonly called watermeal or duckweed. These species are free-floating plants without roots.

Complete answer: The smallest flower belongs to Wolffia microscopica which is a bright green oval plant and is about the size of a grain of rice. It is the smallest genus of aquatic plants. It belongs to the family Lemnaceae. This plant is found floating in masses in freshwater lakes, streams, and marshes. They are rootless. They mostly reproduce when the main plant, or “mother frond,” grows a new segment, or “daughter frond,” from one end.

Fig: Wolffia microscopica

This tiny plant has a lot of importance; having a wide variety of uses. Duckweed is eaten by ducks and other aquatic birds, along with certain fish such as tilapia, but it can also be used in the diets of chickens, pigs, and cattle. These plants absorb the minerals they need for growth, as well as other organic nutrients, from the water they’re floating in.
They are especially good at taking phosphates and nitrogen out of water — the two substances that need to be removed during sewage treatment and from farming runoff. Yet when grown on sewage or animal waste, duckweeds normally don’t retain toxins, so they can be used as a feed or to fertilize crops.
So, the correct answer is ‘Wolffia microscopica’.

Note:
1. Wolffia also produces the world’s smallest fruit.
2. Duckweeds can be a source of renewable and sustainable fuel to replace fossil fuels.
3. This can also be used as bioplastics.