Germinate Your Own Seeds

Do you know what a plant needs to grow? If you think of the word plants, it can help you remember what is needed: Place, Light, Air, Nutrients, they get Thirsty and most of the time we plant them in Soil (PLANTS).

If a plant needs those things, what does a seed need to begin growing? It needs water, oxygen and the proper temperature to germinate. In this activity, you will have the chance to learn how to germinate your own seeds and experience the first stages of plant growth.

Activity Supplies

• Hold punch or scissors

• Mini zip-close bag

• Wet cotton ball

• Bean seeds

• Corn seeds

• Yarn

Activity Steps

1. Punch or cut a hole in the mini zip-close bag above the zipper. Place the wet cotton ball inside the bag, then put one bean seed and one corn seed on the cotton ball.
2. Push as much air as possible out of the bag, then seal it.
3. Then, thread the yarn through the hole in the top of the bag and tie in a loop.
4. Hang the bag from the yarn loop in a consistently warm location and wait.
5. Observe the seeds as they sprout. Once they’ve sprouted, check to see if they are monocots or dicots.  

“Mono” means one, “di” means two and “cot” is short for cotyledon. The corn seed is a monocot with one cotyledon, and the bean seed is a dicot with two cotyledons.

Alternate Activity: Wet some of the bean seeds and allow them to soak overnight. The next day, dissect the seeds to analyze the tiny plant inside the seeds.

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