Late Breaking News Commission Shop or Surf Email Return to Table of Contents Routes For Sprouts by Julia Liljegren, Public Affairs Planes, trains and automobiles. No, we are not talking about the movie. These are some of the modes of transportation that humans use to travel to various destinations. All life forms have their means for meandering. Wildlife flies, walks, slithers or swims.
Seeds are little more than protective coatings for tiny plant embryos.
For plants, the production of seeds is job one, with seed dispersal running a close second. This hierarchy is not without reason. Due to competition for resources, young plants have a greatly reduced chance for survival if they take root directly at the base of the parent plant. The milkweed pod spread open to let fly hundreds of seeds that float away like bubbles on a breezy day. Plants rely on four main modes of dispersal, each a one-way ticket to a place to put down roots.