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Dispersal of Seeds And Fruits

Last Updated on July 3, 2023 By Mrs Shilpi Nagpal

Question 1 What is meant by dispersal of seeds?

Question 2 How do plants benefit from seed dispersal?

Question 3 Name three agents which help in the dispersal of seeds and fruits?
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Question 4 What are the special features of seeds or fruits which are dispersed by wind?
Name few plants whose seeds or fruits are dispersed by wind?

Question 5 What are the special features of seeds or fruits which are dispersed by water?
Name few plants whose seeds or fruits are dispersed by water?

Question 6 What are the special features of seeds or fruits which are dispersed by animals?
Name few plants whose seeds or fruits are dispersed by animals?

Question 7 What are the special features of seeds or fruits which are dispersed by explosive
mechanism?Name few plants whose seeds or fruits are dispersed by explosive mechanism?

Contents [hide]

1 Dispersal Of Seeds and Fruits

2 How seeds and fruits are dispersed 
2.1 (1) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Wind
2.2 (2) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Water
2.3 (3) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Animals
2.4 (4) Dispersal of Seeds by an Explosive Mechanism

Dispersal Of Seeds and Fruits

Dispersal of seeds means to scatter seeds over a wide area. The seeds of some of the
plants such (as seeds) but the seeds of other plants disperse in the form of fruits (because
fruits contain seeds inside them).
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The same kind of plants (and trees) grow at different places because their seeds
are dispersed to different places by the various natural agents such as wind, water and
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When the seeds become mature, then the whole fruit containing seeds or the individual
seeds fall from the parent plant to the ground below. A plant produces many seeds. If all
the seeds produced by a plant which fall directly underneath the plant germinate and grow
there, then a large number of new plants would grow up close together in a small area of
soil. The large number of new plants growing close together will compete with one another
for water and minerals (from the soil), and sunlight, leading to shortage of water, minerals
and sunlight. Due to insufficient water, minerals and sunlight, the newly growing plants will
not be healthy and many plants would die.

In order to prevent overcrowding at the same place , the seeds and fruits of many plants
have developed various ways which enable them to be carried a long distance away from
the parent plant. When the seeds of a plant are dispersed, the new plants which grow from
these seeds are far and wide and hence do not compete among themselves for water,
minerals and sunlight.

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Seed dispersal is beneficial to the plants because it provides the following advantages to the
plants:

(i) Seed dispersal prevents the overcrowding of plants in an area.

(ii) Seed dispersal prevents the competition for water, minerals and sunlight among the
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same kind of plants.

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(iii) Seed dispersal helps the plants to grow in new places (or new habitats) for wider
distribution.

How seeds and fruits are dispersed

The main agents for the dispersal of seeds and fruits are wind, water and animals.Some
seeds are also dispersed by an explosive mechanism in which the ripe fruits of some plants
burst on their own by making a little explosion and throw their seeds away from the plant
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with a great force.The various seeds and fruits have some special features in them due to
which they are adapted to be carried away easily by wind, water or animals.

(1) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Wind

The seeds and fruits dispersed by wind either have wing-like structures or they have hair or
they are very small and light, which helps them to be easily carried away by the blowing
wind.

For example: (a) The seeds of drumstick plant have wings so that they can be carried away
by wind to far away places and dispersed. Thus, drumstick plant has winged seeds.
Similarly, the seeds of maple plant also have wings which help in their dispersal by the
wind.

(b) The seeds of madar (aak) have hair which allow them to be carried away easily by the
wind.The fruits of sunflower have hair which enable them to be blown away by wind and get
dispersed. So, the sunflower plant has hairy fruits. The cotton plant has also hairy seeds
which are easily carried away by wind and dispersed.

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(c) The plants like grass, orchids and Begonia have very small and light seeds which can be
easily blown away by the wind for dispersal.

(2) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Water

The seeds and fruits which are dispersed by water develop floating ability in the form of
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spongy or fibrous outer coats.

The seeds of water lily plant and coconut plant are dispersed by water.

The seeds of water lily plant have a spongy outer coat which allows them to float in water
and move to other places along with water currents. The coconut fruits have a fibrous outer
coat which enables them to float in water and carried away by flowing water to far off
places. It is due to the dispersal of coconut fruits by sea-water that coconut trees grow in all
the coastal areas.

(3) Dispersal of Seeds and Fruits by Animals

Some fruits develop hooks on their surface by which they get attached to the hairy bodies of
the passing animals and carried away to distant places.

These fruits may be carried several kilometres by the moving animals before they are
rubbed off from their body and fall to the ground. When the fruits are dispersed by an
animal, the seeds present in them are automatically dispersed.

When the fruits of Xanthium and Urena are dispersed by animals, the seeds of Xanthium
and Urena present inside these fruits also get dispersed.

(4) Dispersal of Seeds by an Explosive Mechanism

When some fruits ripen, strain is set up in their walls until the fruits split into two halves
(making a small explosion) and their seeds are thrown away from the plant with a great
force in all directions. Thus, some seeds are dispersed when their fruits burst with a sudden
jerk.

The ripe fruits of castor plant burst suddenly with a jerk and scatter the seeds far away from
the parent plant. Similarly, the ripe fruits of balsam plant burst suddenly with a jerk and
throw their seeds far away from the parent plant. Thus, the two plants whose seeds are
dispersed by an explosive mechanism involving the sudden bursting of their ripe fruits are :
Castor and Balsam
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Filed Under: Class 7, Reproduction in Plants, Science

About Mrs Shilpi Nagpal

Author of this website, Mrs. Shilpi Nagpal is MSc (Hons, Chemistry) and BSc
(Hons, Chemistry) from Delhi University, B.Ed. (I. P. University) and has many years
of experience in teaching. She has started this educational website with the mindset of
spreading free education to everyone.

Comments

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February 4, 2020 at 7:55 pm

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Shruti Rathod says

March 15, 2020 at 3:04 pm

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 Swarnali Gogoi says
July 3, 2020 at 7:52 pm

awsome

Mangesh J. Ingle says

July 23, 2020 at 6:56 am

Thank you so much…. For beautiful content.

Bhavna says
January 1, 2021 at 11:47 am

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Bhavna says
January 1, 2021 at 11:48 am

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 Ketki says
May 15, 2021 at 10:38 am

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Roshan lal kakkar says

August 15, 2021 at 8:33 am

Explanation about dispersal of seeds away from parent plant is written in a fantastic way.
Great work. done.
Excellent efforts done
Keep it up in future too.

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