11 Flower Facts For Kids: Types, Parts And Life Cycle

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The curious minds of children are naturally drawn to bright and beautiful things of nature, like flowers. Teaching flowers for kids can be an exciting and colorful activity due to their pretty pink, ruby red, breezy violet, and sunny yellow colors. These beautiful colors, pleasant fragrances, and interesting shapes can brighten up the dullest of spaces and cheer up many minds. We have created content to assist you in teaching flowers to children. We have also included many interesting facts that would pique their interest, satiate the curious minds, and bring out the nature lover in them.

Types Of Flowers

Flowers are categorized into two major types, namelyperfect flowersandimperfect flowers(1)(2)(3).

Perfect flowers:Comprising both the male and the female parts, namely thestamensand pistils, perfect flowers canreproduceon their own.These flowers do not depend on outside sources to carry the pollen from a male flower to a female flower. Some examples of perfect flowers include roses, lilies, and dandelions.

Imperfect flowers:These are flowers that contain either the male or the female parts. Those comprising only the female parts are called pistillate flowers, and the ones with only male parts are calledstaminates. They are incapable of reproducing on their own and depend on outside sources forpollination. A few examples of imperfect flowers are melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, holly, and begonia.

Parts Of A Flower

Although flowers look simple at first sight, they have a rather complex structure if you study them closely. Several special parts with specific functions make up theircompletestructure. Some of these parts help the plantreproduce, and others produce sweet nectar toattract insectsand bees.

The different parts of a flower can be categorized under vegetative parts and reproductive parts(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10).

Vegetative parts of a flower

These are the parts that offer support to the flower.

• Sepals:These are the small, leaf-shaped, and green-colored structures found at the base of the flower.They protect the flower in the bud stage and offer support to the petals when they bloom.

• Petals:The biggest and most prominent part of a flower, petals render each flower its distinctcolorand form. They help attract bees, butterflies, birds, and insects and also protect the delicate reproductive parts of the flower.

• Pedicel:The pedicel is the stem or stalk of a flower. It provides support to the flower and carries its weight.

• Receptacle:It refers to the part of the stalk where the other parts of the flower are attached.

Reproductive parts of a flower

Thereproductiveparts of a plant contain the female and the male parts.

• Female parts

Pistil:It is the femalereproductivepart of a flower and is located at the center. It consists of the stigma, style, and ovary.

Ovary:It is located at the base of the flower and carries seeds, which turn into fruit.

Stigma:Sticky in nature, it is located in the center of a flower. Its stickiness helps to hold thepollen grainswhen they land on it duringpollination. It is here that thefertilizationprocess begins.

Style:This tube-like structure connects the ovary to thestigma.

• Male parts

Stamen:Thestamenis the male reproductive part of a flower. It is here that the pollen grains are produced and made available to be carried away bypollinatorssuch as bees,birds, and insects.The stamen is made up of the anthers and the filaments.

Anthers:These store pollen grains. They are mostlyyellow.

Filaments:You cannot miss them when you watch a flower closely. They appear as stems and hold the anther at the tip.

Life-Cycle Of A Flowering Plant

It is fascinating that these beautiful creations can sustain themselves and survive despite all odds.Flowers have the ability to create seeds, which when dispersed, grow into new plants. Let’s learn more about the life-cycle of flowering plants(11).

• Pollination

The foremost stage of plant reproduction is pollination.Pollination occurs when the pollen produced by the anther reaches the stigma of the flower.Perfect flowers canself-pollinateⁱXA pollination method involving the transfer of pollen grains from one flower's anther to the stigma of the same flower., whereas imperfect flowers undergocross-pollinationⁱXA pollination method involving pollen transfer from one flower's anther to another flower's stigma..

Pollinationis facilitated by insects/animalsor by thewind.

Insect-pollinated flowers:Bright in color, such flowers release a pleasant fragrance and also produce nectar to lure insects and bees. These insects and bees then transfer the pollen从花药stigmas.

Wind-pollinated flowers:These flowers usually have a dull appearance, and they do not give out any fragrance. These flowers produce excessive amounts ofpollenin theantherslocated outside the flowers. The wind carries the pollen to theirstigmas.

• Fertilization

Upon reaching thestigma, a pollen tube grows from the grain and travels to the ovary. The male cells from the pollen reach the female cells in the ovules, fertilizing the plant. Theovulethen changes into a seed.

• Seed dispersal

Since plants cannot move from one place to another, they depend on “taxis” to transport theirseedsto other places. The seeds get dispersed from theparent plantthrough bats, birds, bees, the wind, and water. In some plants, the seeds burst open with force when they ripen and launch seeds in the air.

• Germination

The seeds settle down in their new spot, and with the proper moisture, light, and nutrients from the soil, it breaks open. The roots grow deeper into the soil, and the shoots grow upwards and form the stem.

• Growth and flowering

The stem eventually grows taller and supports the leaves to make food for the plantthrough photosynthesis.

As the plant grows, it matures and produces buds, which emerge into flowers, and the plant cycle repeats.

Flower Facts For Kids

Here are some exciting facts about flowers that you could introduce to your little ones.

1. There are an estimated 352,282 unique floweringplant namesin the world(12).

2. Rafflesia, found inthe forestsof Malaysia and Indonesia, produces the largest flower in the world. Each fleshy flower smells of rotting flesh and can reach up to one meter in diameter(13).

3. Duckweeds are the smallest flowering plants. Their flowers are so tiny that they are rarely seen(14).

4. Montsechia vidaliifound in Spain is known to be the oldest flower in the world. Its fossils have been dated to 130-125 million years ago(15).

5. Tulips were worth more than gold in 17^thcentury Holland(16).

6. Most orchids do not need soil to grow. They absorb water from the air(17).

7. 含羞草,也称为别碰我和耻辱plant has soft green leaves that fold and droop at night or when touched and cooled(18).

8. The bird-of-paradise has colorful flowers that look like the head of a bird. It is the official flower of Los Angeles, California(19).

9. Matilija Poppies, also called fried-eggplant, have flowers that look like a sunny-side-up(20).

10. The monkey-face orchid is an endangered species whose flowers look like the face of a monkey(21).

11. Gerbera daisies are famous for producing high levels of oxygen at night while removing harmful chemicals. It is beneficial for people withsleep apneaⁱXA sleep-related disorder in which a person repeatedly pauses breathing during sleep, resulting in poor sleep quality and fatigue.and breathing disorders(22).

Flowers are a great decorative item and have been a gifting option for almost all occasions. As a result, the demand for fresh, colorful flowers has been growing. The graph below shows that US flower imports have been on an upward trend since 2002. From 2017 to 2019, the demand increased until it recorded a drop in 2020 owing to the pandemic. Post-pandemic, the demand for flowers surged to a record $1.75 billion, up 39% from the previous year.

US yearly cut flower imports (2002-2021)

Source:U.S. Flower Imports in Five Charts; Agricultural Economic Insights/U.S. Census Bureau

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