Most flowers of plants, grown from a bag of hybrid garden zinnias, look very different. I find this fascinating to observe.
A hybrid plant is a cross-bred plant. It is the result of cross-pollinating two unrelated plant species. Hybridization is done by using the stamen (the male part of one plant’s flower) to pollinate the pistil (the female part of a different plant’s flower). Before doing so, the breeder must decide which plant he wants to use as the female and from which he wants to take pollen. The fruits that form as result of the cross pollination are harvested and the seeds analyzed.
The aim of plant hybridization is usually to marry the positive attributes of two parent plants, but growers cannot control which traits will be passed on. However, hybrid plants tend to have more disease resistance, seasonal hardiness, and increased yield than their parent plants.