\Sper`ma*toph"y*ta\, n. pl. [NL.; spermato- + Gr.
? plant.] (Bot.)
A phylum embracing the highest plants, or those that produce
seeds; the seed plants, or flowering plants. They form the
most numerous group, including over 120,000 species. In
general, the group is characterized by the marked development
of the sporophyte, with great differentiation of its parts
(root, stem, leaves, flowers, etc.); by the extreme reduction
of the gametophyte; and by the development of seeds. All the
Spermatophyta are heterosporous; fertilization of the egg
cell is either through a
{pollen tube} emitted by the microspore or (in a few
   gymnosperms) by spermatozoids.
Note: The phrase ``flowering plants'' is less distinctive
      than ``seed plants,'' since the conifers, grasses,
      sedges, oaks, etc., do not produce flowers in the
      popular sense. For this reason the terms {Anthrophyta},
      {Ph[ae]nogamia}, and {Panerogamia} have been superseded
      as names of the phylum by Spermatophyta.