Plants & Trees Facts for Kids
Fascinating facts about the plant world
Turmeric, a spice used in curries, has been used for over 4,000 years as both a food colouring and a traditional medicine in Asia.
Century plants (agave) grow for many years, then produce one giant flower spike and die — despite their name, this usually happens after 10–30 years.
Mosses in Antarctica can survive temperatures below -20°C and months of total darkness, making them among the toughest plants on Earth.
Most fig species are pollinated by a specific wasp species that lives inside the fig — each fig species has its own unique partner wasp.
Aspirin was originally derived from salicylic acid found in willow bark; the ancient Egyptians used willow leaves to treat pain over 3,500 years ago.
Some seeds, like burdock burrs, have tiny hooks that cling to animal fur and human clothing to hitch rides to new locations — this inspired the invention of Velcro.
Wisteria vines can live for over 100 years, and the oldest known wisteria in Japan is estimated to be more than 1,200 years old.
Carnivorous plants like sundews and pitcher plants evolved to catch insects because they live in boggy soils that are very low in nutrients, especially nitrogen.
Botanically speaking, bananas are berries while strawberries are not — a true botanical berry develops from a single flower with one ovary.
Flowering plants are a relatively recent invention — plants existed for over 300 million years before flowers evolved, starting with mosses and ferns.