Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”
Luke 12:27, KJV
If we climb aboard our bird once more (I think I’ll go with a peregrine falcon today), we will fly over the Kingdom of Plants. The smell of millions of flowers fill the air, as you fly among the trees and ferns, the grasses and bushes. The kingdom is full of green, green, and some more green, with flowers exploding in a burst of color here and there. Why are all these plants so green? I mean, the trees have some brown bark and sometimes grass or leaves turn yellow and red, but that just emphasizes the point that all of the creatures here are mostly green.
It is because inside of each of them are tiny things called chlorophyll which allows the plants to make their own food using the energy from the sun, a process we call photosynthesis. All that chlorophyll makes the creatures look green: nearly all creatures (that aren’t animals) that are green have chlorophyll and can do photosynthesis, including some bacteria and protists.
What do you think of when you think of plants? You might think of the flowers, trees, grass, and bushes in the backyard, or of the towering redwood trees in California and four-leaf clovers, or even of the cacti and aloe of the desert. There are other types of plants that you might not think of, though, such as moss – that fuzzy green stuff that grows short along the soil and on the sides of trees and rocks. There is seaweed and its cousin the green algae – very similar to the algae that are protists. There are even quite funny-looking creatures known as hornworts and liverworts – green leafy plants that grow right near the ground.
Returning to more familiar plants, we find that most plants that we see every day have a similar shape, whether it’s a poppy or or a poplar. Imagine a daisy (as I often like to do) – can you picture it’s sunny face standing tall on a body of green? Coming out of the ground is a long green part known as the stem. The stem holds up the plant and allows food and water to move throughout the plant. Along the stem of the daisy, you would find long green things growing out of the side with wavy edges – the leaves. The leaves are where the plant makes its food through photosynthesis. Many plants also have branches – like smaller stems coming out along the side. The branches help to move around food and water like the stem.
If we were to pull the daisy up (you wouldn’t do that to my daisy, would you?), we would find stringy whitish pieces hanging down – the roots. The roots help the plant get water and nutrients from the soil and help the plant to stay standing. At the end of the stem, you might see a bud, a small ball where there is new growth, like branches, leaves, or flowers. Once that bud opens to the glorious sunshine and soft wind and rain, you will see the lovely white and yellow flower, that bright, fragrant feature which attracts bees, butterflies, and other animals. After a while, the flower will die, and the plant will produce seeds. Not all plants produce seeds or flowers, but many of our favorites do. Seeds, if planted with good soil and sunlight and rain, will grow into new plants.
Thanks for your blog, nice to read. Do not stop.