Question

What does basidium mean?

Answer 1

Basidiomycetes:

1. The class of Kingdom fungi is which occur commonly are mushrooms and puffballs.
2. They grow in soil, on logs and trees, and in the living plants as parasites.
3. Asexual spores are not formed but vegetative reproduction takes place by fragmentation.
4. Sex organs are absent but the fusion of two vegetative cells results in the formation of the basidium which divides by meiosis to form basidiospores.

Basidium:

1. Basidium is an organ in the members of the phylum Basidiomycetes.
2. Basidium is made up of sexually reproduced bodies called basidiospores.
3. Thus, basidium is a club shaped organ which is involved in sexual reproduction in basidiomycete fungi.
4. The main function of basidium is that it serves as the site of karyogamy and meiosis.
5. Examples of fungi having basidium are: Mushrooms, toadstools, etc.