How does a huge tree come out of a tiny seed?

If you open a seed, you will see a tiny baby plant inside. This baby's root, stem and leaves are all ready, tucked away in tiny form. The seed also keeps enough food stored for the baby plant's first days, like a little packed lunch.

When the seed falls onto the soil, it drinks water, warms up and wakes up. First it grows a root down into the soil, and the root starts soaking up water and food. Then a thin shoot pushes up above the soil and grows toward the sun.

When the shoot opens its leaves, it learns to make its own food from sunlight. This is called photosynthesis. The plant uses sunlight, water and carbon dioxide from the air to make sugar for itself, and it grows using this sugar.

As the years go by, the trunk gets thicker, more branches grow, and the roots go deeper. Slowly but steadily, the tiny seed keeps growing until at last it becomes a huge, strong tree.