What came first: the plant or the seed? In this case, there is no doubt

The question of the chicken and egg gives a lot to talk about, but as far as plants, science is consensual. The difference in ages is great: 150 million years, and the mother was born after her daughter.

The oldest fossils of complex terrestrial plants date from about 470 million years ago, says a. But it was not the leafy plants we are used to today. They were another kind of moss, similar to liver (a division of brophyte plants that includes over 9000 species).

Therefore, they had no seeds: they proliferated from the liberation of sporesunicellular organisms – unlike the seed, which contains a multicellular and fertilized embryo that is protected from drying by a resistant coating.

According to, scientists believe that an extinct fetus, called Elksinia polymorphait was the first plant to use seeds. This plant had resembling a cup, called “Summits”, that protected the developing seed. These domes grew along the branches of the plant.

Currently, seed plants have a slightly different behavior. There are two main types: the anngiospermals and the gymnospermals.

Angiospermic are plants with flower-their seeds develop inside fruits, such as apples, tomatoes or even angry roseira or water berries.

Gymnosperms, like the pine trees, develop their seeds within a hard cone.

But, according to SF, these “additional characteristics” (seeds) took another 150 million years to evolve.

Therefore, the answer is simple: The plant was born – considerably – earlier. He was already tens of millions of years when his own mother was born: the seed.