What is a seed?

Have you ever wondered how a tiny little speck can become a giant, towering tree? Join Mira and Finn on a wild botanical adventure to discover exactly what seeds are, how they are made, and how they grow into brand new plants! You might think all seeds are just small brown dots, but nature is full of huge surprises. Did you know the Coco de mer palm tree makes a giant seed that weighs as much as a Golden Retriever dog? Or that some orchid seeds are so microscopic you could fit a million of them on a single spoon? In this exciting episode, you'll uncover the secret "lunchbox" packed inside every seed and learn how busy flying friends like bees help flowers make them. Plus, get ready for some unbelievable seed survival stories! You'll hear about an Ice Age squirrel that buried fruit 32,000 years ago—which scientists actually grew into a flower today! Finally, take cover from the explosive Sandbox tree, a botanical cannon that shoots its seeds out at 150 miles per hour! Tune in to find out why seeds are the ultimate action heroes of the natural world!

Transcript

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Welcome to Science Is Not Boring by Kidopoly.com. I'm Mira. And I'm Finn. Before we start, a big hello to Ioni in San Clemente, California. She asked us how seeds are made. And hello again to her brother Henry. This episode is for you, Ioni and Henry. It sure is. Now Finn, imagine a seed as big as a golden retriever dog. What? A seed that big? No way! Yes, way! The Coco de Mer palm tree makes seeds that weigh up to 40 pounds! That's heavier than my backpack! But get this, other seeds are so incredibly tiny, you could fit a million of them on a single spoon. Wait, how can a seed be a giant boulder and a speck of dust? Because nature is wild! Today we're opening up the amazing world of seeds, how they're made and how they become whole plants. So, what exactly is a seed? Think of it like a tiny living time capsule. A time capsule? Like the one we buried in the backyard? Exactly! A seed has three main parts. First, there's a baby plant inside, called an embryo. A whole baby plant? Just squished inside. Yep, and it needs snacks for the journey. So the second part is the food supply, called the endosperm. Oh, I get it. It's like packing a lunchbox for a road trip. That's a perfect way to describe it. Finally, there's a tough outer shell called the seed coat to keep it safe from drying out or freezing. How tough is it? So tough that some seeds can be eaten by a bird, go all the way through its stomach, and get pooped out totally unharmed. Ew, wait, really? It survives being pooped? Yes, and the best part is, when it lands on the ground in that poop, it has a built-in pile of fertiliser to help it grow. That is hilarious and brilliant. But where do these lunchboxes come from? How are they actually made? It all starts inside a flower. Flowers have male and female parts. The male part makes powdery stuff called pollen. A choo! Pollen always makes me sneeze. Well, for a seed to be made, that pollen has to travel to the female part of a flower, called the pistil. This is called pollination. But flowers don't have legs. How does the pollen get there? With help from some flying friends, bees, butterflies, and even bats. A single honeybee can visit up to 5,000 flowers in just one day. 5,000 flowers? Those bees are working overtime. They really are. As the bee drinks sweet nectar, the pollen sticks to its fuzzy body and gets carried to the next flower. Once the pollen lands perfectly, a part called an ovule becomes a seed inside a hidden chamber called an ovary. Okay, so the bee delivers the pollen and the seed grows. But what about that 40-pound seed you mentioned earlier? Where exactly does that come from? Ah, the Coco de Mer! It only grows in one place on earth. Two tiny islands in the Seychelles, out in the Indian Ocean. Just two islands? That's so rare! It really is. The seed takes up to seven years just to grow on the tree. And when it falls, it can be up to 18 inches long. Imagine one of those falling on your head. Ouch! It would definitely leave a bump. But here is the craziest part. While the Coco de Mer is the biggest, the smallest seeds in the world belong to tropical orchids. How small are we talking? They are like microscopic dust. They are only one three hundredth of an inch wide. You could fit one million of them in a single tablespoon. A million seeds in a spoon! But wait, if they're that tiny, how do they pack a lunchbox? That's the genius part, they don't. Orchid seeds are so small, they don't have any food inside at all. But then how do they survive? They have to team up with a special underground fungus. The fungus acts like a nurse, feeding the tiny seed nutrients until it's strong enough to grow its own leaves. Wow! So the fungus is basically sharing its lunch. That is so cool! It is! And once a seed is ready, it waits for the perfect moment to sprout. A process called germination. And some seeds can wait a very, very long time. How long can a seed wait? Like a whole year? Oh much longer! Finn, let's take a trip to Siberia in Russia. In 2012, scientists were digging deep underground in the freezing permafrost. Freezing dirt? How deep were they? About 125 feet down. And they found an ancient, frozen burrow. But it wasn't made by humans. Who made it then? An Arctic ground squirrel, but not a normal one. This squirrel lived 32,000 years ago, during the ice age. What? A squirrel from the time of woolly mammoths. Exactly! And inside this burrow, the scientists found a stash of seeds and fruit the squirrel had buried for winter. They had been frozen solid for 32,000 years. Were they dead? I mean 32,000 years is a long time without a jacket. That's what everyone thought. But the scientists carefully took cells from the frozen fruit back to their lab, warmed them up and gave them special nutrients. And what happened next? Did they turn to mush? No, they sprouted. The cells actually grew into small plants with beautiful white flowers called the narrow-leafed campion. Wait, wait, wait. You're telling me a plant alive today was planted by an ice age squirrel. Yes, it's currently the oldest plant tissue ever to be successfully grown into a plant. The squirrel basically planted a living time machine. That squirrel is the greatest gardener in history. Seeds are incredible survivors, and they are super important because almost all the food we eat comes from seeds. Like apples and oranges? Yes, the seeds inside grow new fruit trees. Plus, seeds give us wheat for bread, rice, beans, and even the cocoa beans used to make chocolate. Without seeds, we wouldn't have pizza dough or tomato sauce. A world without pizza? That's a disaster! Thank goodness for seeds. To make sure seeds spread out and grow, plants have developed wild ways to travel. Because if a seed drops right next to its parent tree, they would have to fight over sunlight and water. Oh, so they have to move. Like the helicopter seeds from maple trees that spin down from the sky. Exactly! Wind can carry some seeds for hundreds of miles, but some plants are way more extreme. Have you heard of the sandbox tree? A tree made of sand? Nope, a tree with exploding seed pods. When its pumpkin-shaped fruits dry out in the sun, they build up intense pressure. Exploding? How intense are we talking? I might need to hide. They burst open with a loud pop, like a little firecracker, shooting their seeds out at 150 miles per hour. 150 miles per hour? That's faster than a sports car on the highway. They can shoot their seeds over a hundred feet away to make sure they have plenty of room to grow. It's literally a botanical cannon. Note to self, do not stand next to a sandbox tree. Seeds are basically action heroes. Alright, Finn, it's time for the quiz. Are you ready? Okay, I'm ready. Hit me with those seed facts. First question: what do we call the food packed inside a seed? Next one. How many flowers can a single honey bee visit in one day? Question three. Which seed can weigh up to 40 pounds? Is number four. What animal buried the 32,000-year-old fruit that scientists grew into a flower. Last question. How fast does the sandbox tree shoot its seeds? Great job! Let's see how you did. The first answer is the food inside a seed is called the endosperm. For question two, a single honeybee can visit up to 5,000 flowers in a day. Number three, the answer is the giant cocoa de myr seed. Question 4. An ice age Arctic ground squirrel buried it. And the final answer is the sandbox tree shoots seeds at 150 miles per hour. Wow, I will never look at a flower the same way again. Or a squirrel. I know, right? Nature's time capsules are pretty amazing. If you guys liked learning about exploding seeds and giant 40-pound coconuts, please leave us a five-star review. Yes, just scroll down on your podcast app and tap the five stars. It really helps us out. And hey, don't forget to head over to our site kidopoly.com. We have tons of fun learning games and activities waiting for you. Plus, if you want a shout out like Ionian Henry, or just want to tell us your favourite science fact, send us an email at hello at kidopoly.com. Keep exploring, keep asking questions, and watch out for exploding trees. See you next time on Science is Not Boring. Bye!