Sexual and asexual propagation each have advantages and disadvantages. Sexual propagation using seeds is simple and inexpensive, but the seedlings have long juvenile periods and are not true to type. Asexual propagation through cuttings, grafting, and layering allows for identical, true-to-type plants to be produced quickly at large scale, though vegetative propagation limits evolution. The choice of method depends on factors like cultivar characteristics, scale of production, and horticultural goals.

1. SEXUAL AND ASEXUAL
PROPAGATION
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

2. ADVANTAGES OF SEXUAL METHOD OF
PROPAGATION:
In this method, plants are raised from seeds or embryos. When the
asexual method was not known, the plants were produced through
this method. Even today papaya, phalsa and guava are being
propagated through seeds.
The major Advantages are:
It is the simple and cheap method and can be employed by the
growers at their own fields.
Plants produced are hardy and have strong root system.
When the plant cannot be propagated through vegetative means,

3. Many commercial cultivars of mango, e.g. Dusehari and Langra
and Loquat e.g. Golden Yellow, etc. originated as chance
seedlings.
Hybridization work depends upon seed germination.
Polyembryonic seeds particularly in citrus, e.g. Cleopatra
pectinfera and Jatti khatti have 3-5 embryos per seed. Hence, to
Hence, to rejuvenate the declining clone use of nucellar embryos
can be made.
The presence of apomixis in some apple species and cleistogamy
in grapes can help in the production of true to type seedlings and
thus propagation through seeds.

4. DISADVANTAGES OF SEXUAL METHOD OF
PROPAGATION:
The Disadvantages are:
Plants raised through seeds have long juvenile period. It
takes long time to fruiting.
The seedling trees have very deep root system hence the
trees attain big size at maturity.
The bigger trees compel the growers to plant few trees/ acre.
Thus in early years little yield per acre and in latter years
trees get intermingled among themselves, producing poor
quality of fruits due to shade.
Some viruses are seed borne, for example, mosaic in peaches

5. Some seedless fruits cannot be propagated through seed. The
only method to. produce these plants will be asexual method.
The good affect of a rootstock particularly, darkness and
early bearing (precocity) cannot be achieved when fruits are
propagated through seeds.
The improved characteristics of a particular cultivar cannot
be perpetuated in plants raised from seeds.

6. ADVANTAGES OF ASEXUAL METHOD OF
PROPAGATION:
The regeneration and callus formation at cuts make it easy for
the propagation of plants through cuttings, layering, grafting,
etc. Such method helps in the production of identical plants in a
short time interval at a large scale.
The various Advantages are:
Plants producing seedless fruits e.g. Marsh Seedless
grapefruit, Thompson Seedless grapes. Banana, Flortasun
peaches, etc. can be propagated through vegetative means.
Vegetatively propagated fruit plants are true to type and have

7. The tree size remains smaller than the seedlings. More number of
plants can be accommodated per hectare leading to more income
from unit area.
Incidence of disease and pests can be minimized by using
resistant rootstocks, e.g. budding phylloxera susceptible Vitis
vinifera on St. George (Vitis rupestris) rootstock can avoid the
avoid the pest attack.
The difficulty of unsuitable soil could be overcome by using
rootstock, e.g. different rootstocks perform very successfully in
different areas of citrus cultivation. Chiku can be propagated on
Khirni (Manilkara hexandra) rootstock successfully in rocky
lands.

8. Some rootstocks are resistant to crease formation as Cleopatra
(Citrus reshni) and exocortis resistance in Jatty Khatti (Citrus
jambhiri). Trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata) is tolerant to citrus
to citrus nematode (Tylenchulus semipenetrans) and these
rootstocks are being used in difficult situation.
Inferior quality of fruit trees can be top worked to improve their
fruit quality on the same roots. If a rootstock is incompatible with
scion cultivars, then a compatible inter-stock can be inserted.
The benefit of precocity is taken by budding or grafting to see the
early performance of produced hybrids.

9. Fruit quality/maturity can be improved/hastened by using a particular
rootstock. Trifoliate orange and its hybrids can bring early maturity in
kinnow than on khama khatta rootstock. Quality of fruits is improved on
Cleopatra rootstock.
Sometimes roots of the bearing plants can get damaged. To save these
plants new plants of desired roots are grafted and damage is repaired.
Elite plants can be produced for kitchen garden by more than one
cultivar on the same rootstock. Sometimes pollinizer is required for fruit
set in such a situation it can be grafted on to shoot.

10. DISADVANTAGES OF ASEXUAL METHOD OF
PROPAGATION:
The Disadvantages are:
Vegetative propagation becomes a hindrance in the evolution
of new cultivars.
Although the asexually produced plants are precocious in
bearing, but these have short life period than the sexually
produced ones.
The size is small in vegetatively produced plants hence the
dead wood can fetch little price than the huge seedling trees.

11. COMPARISONS BETWEEN SEXUAL AND ASEXUAL MODE
OF PROPAGATION:
Asexual
Propagation
Sexual
Propagation
Number of
organisms
involved
One parent needed Two parents are required
to mate
Cell division
Cells divide by Mitosis,
Fission, budding , or
regeneration
Cells divide by Meiosis

12. Disadvantages
No variation - if the parent has a
genetic disease, offspring does too.
Requires two organisms, requires
more energy
Evolution
There is very little chance of
variation with asexual reproduction.
Sexual propagation leads to
genetic variation in new
generations of offspring. This is
fundamental to evolution.
role of gametes
no formation or fusion of gametes
(sex cell)
formation or fusion of gametes
(sex cell) occurs
found in
lower organisms higher invertebrates and all
vertebrates
unit of reproduction
may be whole parent body or a bud
or a fragment or a single somatic cell
Gamete
time period less More
number of offsprings
two(minimum) or more than two one(minimum) or more than one