Spreading mode of plant seeds

Plant seeds spread in two ways: one is carried by external forces, such as wind, water, animals and humans; The other is to rely on the power generated by itself.

self-propagation

The so-called self-propagation is spread by the plant itself and does not depend on other media.

For example, Cucurbitaceae plants usually bear a small "melon" with a burr. When the melon is ripe, it will fall off with a little touch, and the seeds in the melon will be sprayed out with mucus from the top, with a range of up to five meters.

Wind-borne

Plants that rely on wind to spread seeds: dandelion, Chrysanthemum indicum, Emilia sonchifolia, Sophora alopecuroides, reed, yellow quail, willow, kapok, etc. The seeds of these plants are relatively light, and each seed has fluffy fibers or thin wings. As soon as the wind blows, it will start a trip that says go and go. When it meets the right soil and climate, it will take root and grow into new plants.

animal transmission

Let's talk about the plants that spread seeds by animal fur: Xanthium sibiricum, Peach Blossom, Bidens bipinnata, Crocodile grass, etc. The seeds of these plants have barbs on the outside, which stick to people's clothes or animal's fur and are carried far away to complete the spread of seeds.

Some plants also rely on animals to spread seeds: Nianzi, Solanum nigrum, Guava, Watermelon and so on. Their characteristics are sweet and delicious, attracting animals to eat and spreading seeds through animal excretion.

The seeds spread by birds are mostly fleshy fruits, such as berries, drupes and hidden flowers and fruits. Birds peck at the seeds of Lauraceae and spit them out. After the fruit is eaten, the seeds pass through the digestive tract and are excreted at will.

ants usually play the role of secondary disseminators in seed transmission. Some birds eat and spread seeds, but they don't consume all the nutrients. There are some nutrients left on the surface of the seeds that fall to the ground for ants to eat. At this time, ants become second-hand communicators.

Most of the transmission of mammals belongs to some medium and large fleshy fruit or dried fruits. Generally speaking, mammals are relatively large in size and need a large amount of food, so they will choose some large fruits. For example, macaques like to eat the fruits of persimmon and banana, and also help these plants spread. Pine nuts are spread by squirrels when they store winter grain.

catapult propagation

There are also seeds of some plants, which are spread by their own explosive force, such as fried sauce grass, impatiens balsamina, sesame, and most beans such as red beans and mung beans. These seeds generally have shells. When the seeds are mature, the fibers in the shells will be dehydrated and tightened, and the shells will burst at the slightest sign of trouble and eject the seeds.

hydraulic transmission

finally, let's talk about plants that spread seeds by the flow of water: coconut, lotus seed, euryale seed, etc. These plants generally grow near the water, and their seeds have hard shells. When it matures, it falls into the water, floats with the waves, and takes root after being washed to the shore.