How do Plants grow?

Plants grow from seeds that contain the most basic ingredients for whatever type of flower, grass or tree that we will see. That’s the easy answer. Plants need water and nutrients from the soil as “fuel” for the process that pushes the visible part of the plant above the ground. Plants also need the sunlight and oxygen above ground so they can remain healthy and become larger. All of this usually ends in production of flowers and/or fruit, along with the leaves that act as the “factories” for plant life. (There are other types of plants that don’t grow from seed and some that don’t need soil, but this is a different story.)

When the seed germinates and pushes roots out into the soil it begins to take certain chemicals from the soil. In addition, smaller roots gather moisture from the earth. The moisture and nutrients help the main body of the plant grow and eventually push through the surface of the soil. At this point the roots send the water and food to the main part of the plant.

Of course, this is just a simple overview of plant growth. There are many details involved in the life cycle of a healthy plant. The young roots appear after a seed germinates. During germination the seed “wakes up” from the dormant state and breaks through the hard outer surface that protects the plant see. Germination, in general terms, means that this living thing is growing, expanding from something smaller.

When the “skin” of the seedling breaks open the first vertical part of the plant appears. It is commonly referred to as a “shoot,” a term that may have given us the phrase that explains how something “shoots upward.” Many plants have a main root that develops at this point and numerous smaller roots that are as fine as hair serve this larger, life-giving piece.

One of the keys to understanding plant growth lies in understanding the role that moisture plays in this amazing process. Water (oxygen and hydrogen) is essential in the chemistry of plant growth. If the seed is placed into dry ground it will remain in its dormant stage. But with sufficient moisture and the correct nutrients the plant will start to break from the seed covering.

After the plant emerges from the surface of the soil it will continue its journey upward and outward through a process called photosynthesis. To do this, plants use the light of the sun and chlorophyll that is already part of its chemical structure.

In basic terms, photosynthesis involves put water and carbon dioxide together, producing sugars and expelling oxygen. This is where leaves come to the fore. Oxygen exits the plant through openings in the leaves, just as carbon dioxide is taken in.

Finally, it’s also important to understand that many plants can spread, producing similar, growing plants in another location. But they need wind or bees to carry the pollen from their flowers to other flowers. Some plants spread by pushing “runners” underground to other spots. But in general, plants grow by taking the best of what nature has to offer – water, sunlight and soil nutrients – and converting them into the green and colorful things we see every day.