Traveling Seeds

Fall is a great time of year to study seeds. Many seeds have a way to travel to a new spot instead of staying right near the plant which made them. 


How would this help the plants which will grow from the seeds?

Some seeds are in fruits which are adapted to fly on the wind. Can you find any of the fruits below? Note: the pictures on this page are not all in scale.

 

Goldenrod

 

Basswood

 

Maple

 

Ash


Some seeds are in fruits which travel on water:

 

Bladdernut

 
 
Some seeds are in fruits which hitch a ride on the fur or clothes of animals:

 
 
 
 

 

Cocklebur

 

Tick Trefoil


Some fruits are machines which shoot their seeds away from the plant which they grow on:

 

Witch-hazel

  

Wisteria


Some fruits are eaten by birds or other animals so the seeds travel inside the stomach of a bird or mammal:

 

Mountain Ash

 

Crab Apple


See if you can find other fruits and seeds which travel by wind, water, fur or stomach.

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