How do plants without flowers pollinate?

Answer 1

I'm not sure what you really mean by this question (is the plant one that does not produce petals? is the petal missing because it was removed?) but it might help to think about what function petals play in plants in order to get at some reasonable possibilities. Petals are typically a sort of advertisement or signal from the plant to animals that it is attracting for the purpose of pollination. A plant with white petals, for example, might be attractive to pollinators that fly at dawn/dusk or night, because they can be seen more easily under darker conditions than other flower colors. Flowers can also have nectar guides on them, sometimes even reflective in the UV spectrum and so seen by insects but not by us. They essentially can point to the source of nectar, orienting the insect to where to land for a quick, efficient meal (which also, for the plant, results in the insect landing the same way on each flower, thus putting the pollen it collected on a previous plant into the right position for getting that pollen onto the female parts of the next plant). Petals can even make getting to the nectar (or other) reward more difficult, making it difficult for nectar theives to come in and get the reward without pollination. Once the petals have done thier job of attracting pollinators, and there is fertilization success, the petals can become a cue to the pollinators that "this plant has no more nectar", by changing shape or color. This signal makes it possible for the plant to stop making nectar in that flower, and the pollinator to move on to a different flower and not come to the conclusion that "this plant is not worth visiting", but instead, "this flower is not worth visiting". Usually, after successful fertilization, the petal's job is done, and they fall off as the fruit develops. So, removing a petal from a plant before it is pollinated may make it less likely to get its eggs fertilized, but removing it after might not make any difference at all, since the petal's job is (typically) done.

Answer 2

Pollination is not affected by the absence (or damage) of petals.

Petals attract pollinators and act as rudimentry protection for the sectual parts of the flower. Flowers that do not have petals use wind or water to disperse the pollen.

Answer 3

Most gymnosperms (AKA conifers and cycads) produce large quantities of lightweight pollen that can be carried on the wind. More primitive flowerless plants (such as liverworts and mosses) require moist environments so that water can mix the gametes together, instead of using pollen.

Answer 4

You are probably thinking of gymnosperms. Gymnosperms still have pollen, but it is not protected by a flower like angiosperms. This pollen is transferred and fertilization occurs like any other plant.

Answer 5

If the petals are reduced or absent, the plant relies on the wind or water for pollination

Answer 6

Even if a flower doesn't have showy petals, it can still be pollinated. Bees can detect the nectar in a flower using their ultraviolet vision.