Cleistogamous and Chasmogamous Flowering Strategies in Plant Reproduction

Plants exhibiting cleistogamous and chasmogamous flowering strategies employ a mixed‐mating system in which individuals produce both obligately self‐fertile closed flowers (cleistogamy) and open flowers capable of outcrossing (chasmogamy). This dual strategy affords reproductive assurance under adverse conditions while retaining genetic diversity through occasional cross‐pollination. Chasmogamous flowers tend to be larger, energetically costly and reliant on pollinators, whereas cleistogamous flowers are morphologically simplified, less resource‐intensive and secure seed set even when biotic vectors are scarce. The temporal and spatial distribution of each flower type is often regulated by environmental cues—light, temperature, moisture and nutrient availability—resulting in adaptive plasticity. Mixed‐mating species are found across diverse taxa and habitats, from ruderal weeds to endangered perennials, and research has highlighted trade‐offs between reproductive output, energy allocation and inbreeding depression. Understanding these dynamics has implications for conservation biology, crop improvement and predicting plant responses to climate change.

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Cleistogamous and Chasmogamous Flowering Strategies in Plant Reproduction publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in cleistogamous and chasmogamous flowering strategies in plant reproduction across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Cleistogamy: production of closed, self‐pollinating flowers that never open.

Chasmogamy: production of open flowers that facilitate cross‐pollination and potential outcrossing.

Mixed‐mating system: reproductive system combining self‐fertilisation and outcrossing strategies within a single plant.

Phenotypic plasticity: capacity of an organism to alter its morphology or physiology in response to environmental conditions.

References

1. Competition and drought affect cleistogamy in a non-additive way in the annual ruderal Lamium amplexicaule. AoB Plants (2024).
2. Spatiotemporal variation of chasmogamy and cleistogamy in a native perennial grass: fecundity, reproductive allocation and allometry. AoB Plants (2023).
3. Climate change is associated with increased allocation to potential outcrossing in a common mixed mating species. American Journal of Botany (2022).