Plant groups, identification, classification, and evolutionary relationships. Cultivation belongs in Gardening.
Test your knowledge with these top questions!
Dandelion comes from French for "lion's tooth." Which feature inspired the name?
Dandelion leaves grow in a low circle called a rosette, helping the plant survive mowing.
What color is the sap released when a dandelion's stem is broken?
The sap is latex, a sticky liquid that helps protect the damaged plant tissue.
What makes up a fully open dandelion's yellow flower head?
Each tiny flower can produce one seed, which is why a single dandelion puffball holds so many seeds.
Which dandelion structure can regrow the plant if part remains after weeding?
A dandelion's taproot stores food, so cutting off the leaves may leave enough reserves for new growth.
Air plants called Tillandsia belong to the same plant family as which fruit?
Both are bromeliads, a family native mainly to the Americas with members that grow on trees or in the ground.
What is the main job of roots in many air plants growing on tree branches?
A branch gives an air plant support without supplying its food, so the plant is not a parasite.
Despite its name, Spanish moss is what kind of plant?
Spanish moss produces tiny flowers and seeds that travel on silky hairs, unlike true mosses, which produce spores.
Air plants such as Tillandsia absorb most of their water through which parts?
Tiny scales on air plant leaves capture moisture, helping the plants live without a pot of soil.
In cork oak bark, what fills most of the space inside mature cork cells?
The closed cells make cork light and help it spring back after squeezing, useful traits for a bottle stopper.
What causes the foul smell beneath some female ginkgo trees?
The odor comes partly from butyric acid, a compound also found in rancid butter.