What is meant by emasculation ? How is it useful in plant breeding programme?

Emasculation is a method of plant hybridization that includes removing anthers from bisexual flowers while preserving the female reproductive part (pistil).

Plant breeders employ bisexual flower emasculation to develop the desired plant variety by crossing a specific plant with the desired pollen grain.

The anthers are removed from the flowers by covering them with a bag before they open.

This guarantees that the flower is fertilised only with pollen grains from favourable species.

The mature, viable, and stored pollen grains are then dusted on the bagged stigma, allowing artificial pollination and the creation of the chosen plant variety.

Plant breeders use emasculation in bisexual flowers to create the desired variety of a plant by crossing a specific plant with the desired pollen grain