ShmoopTube

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[Dino and Coop singing]

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Plants seem pretty simple, right? [Plant blowing in the wind]

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After all, they just kinda shoot out of the ground and sit around all day. [Plant appears]

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Sounds like the easiest life ever.

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Sign us up.

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Oh, but before we sign up, maybe we should dig a little deeper into the secret life of [Plant is dug up]

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plants…

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As it turns out there's a lot going on that we can't see.

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If we take a look under the hood there are all sorts of intricate structures that keep

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plants growing and living.

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Let's start at the bottom with the roots.

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One of their main jobs is to pull water and minerals from the ground, then deliver it [Water and minerals travel up the roots]

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to the stems and leaves of the plant.

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They also give support to the plant by anchoring it to the ground, meaning it won't just fall [Anchor appears]

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over or blow away due to the slightest breeze. [Plant leans over in the wind]

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Which is both good for the plant, and good for anyone who would rather not be hit in

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the face by hundreds of plants on a windy day. [Man is hit by plants and falls over]

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Next comes the stem.

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It keeps the plant upright once it shoots above ground...

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…and it's also in charge of transporting water, minerals, and sugar through the plant,

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like a miniature highway system. [Water, minerals and sugar travelling through the plant]

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And luckily, the commute from the roots to the leaves is pretty short, so there's never [Traffic jam on the highway]

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any fear of getting stuck in a huge traffic jam!

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The stem itself is made up of two internal structures that move all the water, minerals,

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and sugar around…they go by xylem and phloem. [Arrows point to the different transportation systems]

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The xylem moves the water and minerals up from the roots all the way up to the leaves…

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…while the phloem moves sugars downward.

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And you might be wondering: where did those sugars come from?

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Well, as cute as it would be, there isn't some kindly old granny that hands out sugar [Woman dropping sugar cubes into a plant]

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cubes to plants.

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The plants actually make the sugars all by themselves, with their leaves.

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How?

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Through photosynthesis, a process that also helps the plant to get rid of oxygen and take [The sun appears]

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in carbon dioxide.

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…Hm.

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We're not sure we want to be a plant anymore…we kinda like oxygen… [Womans head on a plant can't breathe]

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Another important part of plants is the flower.

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Its function is to attract pollinators, which are important in plant reproduction. [Bee lands on a sunflower]

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Unfortunately, flowers do also on occasion attract shear-wielding gardeners. [Man appears with shears]

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It's not quite a perfect system.

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And last but not least, plants also rely on fruits and seeds. [An apple tree]

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The seed itself produces offspring…

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…while the fruit protects the seeds. [Apple holding a sword]

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So next time your parents go to the grocery store, be sure to ask them to pick up some

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fresh "Plant Offspring Protectors."

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Mmm…sounds delicious. [Parents look confused]

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