November 14, 2010 - Sowing Seeds
Welcome to the Nature Notebook.

Fields and forests are filled with seedy characters each autumn. Some hang around trees, others skitter before the wind. Still others lay in wait for you. Seeds are a plant’s lifeline to the future. In autumn seeds are dispersing from the parent plant. Since seeds can’t move on their own, they rely on some environmental mechanism to help them. Animals store acorns and other wild nuts, at least the ones that aren’t eaten, for use during the winter. Some of these are forgotten and eventually sprout in the spring. Some seeds have fluffy filaments that catch the wind, carrying the seeds far and wide to new habitats. Other seeds have tiny hooks that catch fur and clothing. These “hitchhikers” go for a free ride only to hop off somewhere along the way. These are just natural ways of sowing seeds.

This is PPL's naturalist, Jon Beam, with the Nature Notebook for WVIA.