Geitonogamy is a form of self-pollination, but unlike the process of autogamy where a single flower can fertilize itself, the flowers on a geitonogamy plant are fertilized by other flowers on the same plant. The single blossom of the plant is not solely self-fertile. A vector must be used to transport pollen from flower to flower on the same plant.
The predominate pollinator can be insects or the wind. Most plants that rely on geitonogamy are monoecious.
Geitonogamy in Greek translates geiton which means neighbor and gamos which means marriage. Maize is a common plant that relies on geitonogamy for pollination. Plants that depend on this pollination method all boast a similar genotype. Plants that are created by this method tend to not be as robust as their predecessors so the plants are weakened considerably over generations.
Many researchers assume that because geitonogamy is not self-serving the process probably just accidentally occurs because of an abundance of blossoms on one plant or a single branch.
Synonyms
Self-Pollination
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