A single grass plant is growing on an area of bare sand. No other plants of its species are present. It produces new plants asexually from underground stems.
Several years later, plants of the same species from another population become established nearby, so pollen can pass between the plants and seeds can be produced.
At first, conditions on the sand are stable. Later, rainfall may decrease and a new disease may arrive.
Name the type of cell division that produces the new plants from the underground stems.
Explain one advantage to the grass plant of reproducing asexually while it is the only plant of its species on the sand.
Explain how sexual reproduction between the plants could help the grass population survive if rainfall decreases or the new disease arrives.
92 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Biology 3.1 Reproduction and meiosis, covering 3.1.1 Advantages and disadvantages of reproduction and 3.1.2 Role of meiotic cell division. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.