Question

Write the importance of vegetative reproduction.

Answer 1

Hint: Reproduction is the essential system of any human being, mammals and organisms be it vertebrates or invertebrates. It possesses the ability to produce new organisms of their own species hence maintaining the line of its species and further life processes. Vegetative reproduction is a mode asexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction refers to the non-involvement of gametes or where no fusion takes place between individuals.

Complete answer:
Vegetative reproduction as we know also known as vegetative propagation or multiplication or cloning is any form of asexual reproduction occurring in plants in which new plant can grow from a plant part or from a fragment of plant. Many plants naturally reproduce this way but it can be grown or culture artificially too.
Horticulturalists techniques are being used to culture it or produce it artificially. This uses the vegetative parts to replicate plants. Success rates of culturing such plants are very great. Typically, monocotyledons are not vascular and therefore more difficult to propagate.
Advantages of vegetative propagation are- mainly to produce offspring which are also called clones of their parents. Clones are basically the exact copies both genetically and morphologically similar individuals chopped off or came out of their parents. If the plant gets favorable conditions it can pass on the advantageous traits or genetic information to their offspring. It can be economically beneficial and commercially too. It is also cost effective and takes less time to reproduce.
Disadvantages of vegetative propagation- is that it prevents species genetic diversity, like the same line or lineage of species will continue to grow years after years until and unless artificially propagated. If naturally they propagate it maintains the genetic traits and avoids any kind of mutation or diversity which can be seen. The chances of getting diversity are less or rare. This defect can lead to reduction in crop yields and its productivity.
Some examples of vegetative propagated crops are- strawberries, Kalanchoe pinnata, Muscari, rose, Hibiscus.

Note:
As we discussed about the types of vegetative propagation its advantages let us know more about the types of vegetative propagation. There are two types of methods – natural means and artificial means. Natural means are- runners, bulbs, tubers, corms, suckers, plantlets, apomixis.
Artificial includes-grafting, cutting, layering, suckering, tissue culture etc.