Page 20 - Science Coursebook

1.7 Fruits

Look at the diagram on page 16. You will
see that the ovule is inside an ovary. ovary fruit
When an ovule develops into a seed, it
is still inside the ovary. While the ovule
is developing into a seed, the ovary is
changing too. The ovary changes into
a fruit. This means that fruits
contain seeds.
ovule seed

After fertilisation, the ovary develops into a
Dispersal fruit with one or more seeds inside it.
Seeds contain embryo plants. When they
start to grow, each plant will need a little
space of its own. Each plant will need
water, light and mineral salts in order to
grow well.

If all the seeds just fell off the plant onto

the ground, they would all be trying to
grow in the same place. The new little
plants would all have to compete with each
other for water, light and mineral salts.
They would have to compete with the
parent plant, too.
If seedlings (young
If seedlings (young Seedlings have a better
Seedlings have a better
The new plants have a better chance of plants) grow next to the chance of survival if
chance of survival if
plants) grow next to the

growing if they are in a different place. parent plant, they may not they grow away from
They need to be dispersed away from get enough water, light or their parent and from
the parent plant. mineral salts to grow well. each other.
Activity 1.7A
Adaptations of fruits

Your teacher will give you several different fruits. You may be surprised that

some of them are fruits! Remember that in science a fruit is something that
contains seeds.
1 Look at each fruit carefully. Think about how this fruit might help the seeds
inside it to be spread away from the parent plant. Some possibilities are:
• Does the fruit have adaptations that would encourage animals to carry
it away?
• Does the fruit have adaptations that help it to be blown away by the wind?
• Does the fruit have adaptations that help it to float away on water?

2 Make a large, labelled diagram of at least two of the fruits. Label your
diagrams to explain how each fruit is adapted to help to disperse the seeds
inside it.

18 1 Plants