Plants are amazing. Wiki describes plants as a “major group of life forms and include familiar organisms such as trees, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. About 350,000 species of plants, defined as seed plants, bryophytes, ferns and fern allies, are estimated to exist currently.”

If I asked you how plants grew, you would probably tell me “with sunlight, water and soil”. Right? For the most part you would be right, but what about those plants that don’t require soil to grow just water or plants that can survive weeks without water, or how about plants that survive better in the shade than in the sunlight? Plants are as versatile in their growth as in their needs to grow. So, to know how a plant grows you must first learn what type of plant you have and what it needs to grow.

A good method to find out what kind of plant(s) you have is to take your plant or a picture of it to your local botanical garden and ask a gardener what it is and how to care for it or you can also go to the library and check out library books about plant identification. Once you find out what type of plant you have and what kind of care it needs to grow, label it with all this information so that you can care for it properly.

In the meantime here are the growth basics for the average plant:
It begins with a seed. The seed needs water to germinate. The seed begins to grow as the cells within the seed begin to multiply. In a few days (some plants seeds can take weeks) a seedling emerges from the ground. The taproot and the root hairs grow below the ground. Root hairs are cells that take water to the main root. When the main root receives the water it brings the water to the main plant. Roots are also important because they help keep the plant planted firmly in the ground.

Plants can’t move. So to reproduce they depend on elements like wind, rain, insects, animals, and yes even fire to help them along. Ovum and pollen fertilization produces a seed that creates a new plant. When the plant reaches maturity it is able to reproduce. Different types of plants mature at different rates. While some make take weeks or months, some take years.

There are a variety of ways a plant can reproduce. Some plants have both male pollen and female parts of the flower or are a separate male and female plant that are near each other. Pollen from these plants is carried by the wind, or by insects to fertilize the female parts of the plant. Once fertilized, a cone or seed is produced that is capable of creating a new plant.

But the above is not the only way a plant can reproduce according to Love To Know. They can also reproduce by:
a) Splicing two plants together- such as a Red Delicious apple with a rare apple variety
b) Runners or Stolons- as seen on the strawberry plant
c) Adventitious buds – such as those seen on the trunks of trees that have been cut down
d) Suckers- as seen on Elm trees, tomatoes and roses
e) Bulbs – plants like the onion, garlic and tulips reproduce by forming new bulbs
f) Corms – glads and crocuses reproduce by forming new corms
g) Tubers - similar to bulbs, the dahlia and potato reproduce more tubers

Take a look at your plants. What kind do you have? If you’re interested in kids crafts and educational material to teach your kids how plants grow? Click here and here and here.