germinate
(verb)
to sprout or produce buds
Examples of germinate in the following topics:
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Development of the Seed
- This tissue becomes the food the young plant will consume until the roots have developed after germination.
- Upon germination, enzymes are secreted by the aleurone, a single layer of cells just inside the seed coat that surrounds the endosperm and embryo.
- Upon germination in dicot seeds, the epicotyl is shaped like a hook with the plumule pointing downwards; this plumule hook persists as long as germination proceeds in the dark.
- As the seed germinates, the primary root emerges, protected by the root-tip covering: the coleorhiza.
- Upon a return to optimal conditions, seed germination takes place.
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Fruit and Seed Dispersal
- Seeds contained within fruits need to be dispersed far from the mother plant so that they may find favorable and less-competitive conditions in which to germinate and grow.
- Coconuts are well known for their ability to float on water to reach land where they can germinate.
- Some animals, such as squirrels, bury seed-containing fruits for later use; if the squirrel does not find its stash of fruit, and if conditions are favorable, the seeds germinate.
- Dormant seeds can wait months, years, or even decades for the proper conditions for germination and propagation of the species.
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Abscisic Acid, Ethylene, and Nontraditional Hormones
- ABA induces dormancy in seeds by blocking germination and promoting the synthesis of storage proteins.
- Plants adapted to temperate climates require a long period of cold temperature before seeds germinate.
- As the hormone gradually breaks down over winter, the seed is released from dormancy and germinates when conditions are favorable in spring.
- Strigolactones promote seed germination in some species and inhibit lateral apical development in the absence of auxins.
- Apical dominance, seed germination, gravitropism, and resistance to freezing are all positively influenced by hormones.
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Mosses
- The most familiar structure is the haploid gametophyte, which germinates from a haploid spore and forms first a protonema: usually, a tangle of single-celled filaments that hug the ground.
- The alternation of generations cycle begins when the gametophyte germinates from a haploid spore and forms a protonema.
- Spores released from the sporophyte germinate and produce gametophytes; the process begins again.
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Double Fertilization in Plants
- After pollen is deposited on the stigma, it must germinate and grow through the style to reach the ovule.
- The germination of the pollen tube requires water, oxygen, and certain chemical signals.
- Embryonic development is suspended after some time; growth resumes only when the seed germinates.
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Zygomycota: The Conjugated Fungi
- When spores land on a suitable substrate, they germinate and produce a new mycelium.
- When the zygospore germinates, it undergoes meiosis and produces haploid spores, which will, in turn, grow into a new organism.
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Plant Nutrition
- First, seeds must germinate under the right conditions in the soil; therefore, temperature, moisture, and soil quality are important factors that play a role in germination and seedling development.
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Protist Life Cycles and Habitats
- If this occurs, the spores germinate to form amoeboid or flagellate haploid cells that can combine with each other and produce a diploid zygotic slime mold to complete the life cycle.
- As with plasmodial slime molds, the spores are disseminated and can germinate if they land in a moist environment.
- The sporangium forms haploid spores through meiosis, after which the spores disseminate, germinate, and begin the life cycle anew.
- In aggregate form, some individuals contribute to the formation of a stalk, on top of which sits a fruiting body full of spores that disseminate and germinate in the proper moist environment.
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The Phytochrome System and Red Light Response
- For example, if lettuce seedlings germinated a centimeter under the soil surface, the seedling would exhaust its food resources and die before reaching the surface.
- A seed will only germinate if exposed to light at the surface of the soil, causing Pr to be converted to Pfr, signaling the start of germination.
- In the dark, phytochrome is in the inactive Pr form so the seed will not germinate.
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Inorganic Nutrients and Other Factors
- A fire will probably kill most vegetation, so a seedling that germinates after a fire is more likely to receive ample sunlight than one that germinates under normal conditions.