Light micrograph of a section through a female pine cone, Pinus sp.. The micrograph shows egg-shaped ovules, the future seeds of the plant, nestled in between & at the base of the cone's scales. Pines belong to a group of plants called Gymnosperms, which means 'naked seeds'. This refers to the fact that the ovules are carried on the outside of the female flower, unlike the other large group of plants called Angiosperms, where the ovules are enclosed within a carpel. The exposed ovules of the Gymnosperms are accessible to wind-borne pollen, which falls between the covering of scales. Microcosmos P.84 fig.4.36