Life Cycle of an Apple Seed
Apples originated in Central Asia. They have been domesticated for thousands of years and are now found around the world. Apple trees can live to be 100 years old and reach approximately 25 feet in height. Does this Spark an idea?
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Seeds
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An apple cut horizontally reveals seeds in five compartments. The core of each apple contains five compartments, each of which holds one to three small, hard, black seeds.
Fallen Apples
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An apple begins to rot. When fruit is ripe, it falls from the tree and decomposes, exposing the seeds and allowing them to develop roots in the soil.
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Seed Transport Systems
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Raccoons and coyotes sometimes eat apples. Wandering animals and birds eat fallen fruit, which passes through their digestive systems. The animals act as seed transport systems, depositing seeds to grow in new locations.
Baby Tree
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A young tree grows blossoms and branches. Once the roots take hold in the soil, the seed sprouts a stem that pushes upward towards the light and becomes a sapling.
Apple Blossoms
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Spring apple blossoms cover branches. The sapling grows taller, and develops branches that will eventually spread across 25 feet. In spring, the tree puts out white or pink flowers.
Completion of the Cycle
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A bee pollinates a flower. Bees and birds pollinate the flowers, which lose their petals. Over the summer, fruit develops around the seeds in the plant's ovaries. In autumn, the fruit ripens and falls, and the cycle begins again.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit apples image by Olga Shelego from Fotolia.com apple image by berean from Fotolia.com apple rott image by Robert Harrak from Fotolia.com raccoon image by antoine perroud from Fotolia.com blooming apple-tree 6749 image by jazzid from Fotolia.com apple bloom image by Soja Andrzej from Fotolia.com bee on apple flower image by Slobodan Djajic from Fotolia.com
