The cladogram identifies the classification of the four major groups of plants, and it shows the evolutionary relationships among the groups
Cone-bearing
Flowering plants
plants
Mosses
Ferns
Flowers
Seeds
Vascular
.L.IS
Ancestor Embryo tissues
of all plants
Herschel wants to describe the most recent common ancestor of cone-bearing plants and flowering plants. Which description is most accurate?
O A The ancestor had seeds and flowers, because these traits are derived characters for either the clade of cone-bearing plants or the
clade of flowering plants.
B. The ancestor had seeds but not flowers, because only seeds are a derived character for the clade of cone-bearing plants and flowering
plants
OC. The ancestor lacked both seeds and flowers, because these traits evolved later in the evolutionary lineages of cone-bearing plants and
flowering plants
OD. The ancestor had flowers but not seeds, because flowers evolved before seeds in the evolutionary lineage of flowering plants.

The most accurate description of the common ancestor of cone-bearing and flowering plants would be that the ancestors lack both seeds and flowers because these traits evolved later in the evolutionary lineages of cone-bearing and flowering plants.

According to the cladogram, the common ancestors to both cone-bearing and flowering plants is mosses and ferns. Embryo evolved in mosses but there are no vascular tissues, seeds, and flowers. Advancement occur in ferns with the development of vascular tissues in addition to embryo but still, there is no seeds neither flowers.

The evolution of seeds only started in cone-bearing plants in addition to embryo and vascular tissues while the development of flowers in addition to the rest of the features is only found in flowering plants.

Hence, the correct option is C.