Where Have All The Flowers Gone Quiz

Answer: It speeds the reblooming of the flower

Deadheading is a term for removing the browned remains of a flower that has bloomed allowing the plant to grow another bloom. When the plant's flower has fully bloomed and released all its pollen, the flower will wither. Deadheading is more than just the removal of the old bloom, but strengthens the overall health of the plant. Deadheading is an important task to keep the garden healthy and attractive throughout the growing season. When a flower sheds its petals, it forms a seed head. The plant focuses its energy on the seeds. Deadheading refocuses the plant's energy on producing more flowers, the flowers resulting in more frequent and longer lasting blooms.

You would think that naming a bright multi-colored flower after the "Grateful Dead" would be natural, but so far no one has created a cultivar dedicated to the psychedelic rock band. There is however a lovely yellow rose named for "Queen" front man Freddie Mercury and a striking pink tea rose named for "The Beatles" and "Wings" legend Sir Paul McCartney.

Answer: Lack of Stimulating Conversation

We will leave for aside the continuing question of whether talking to a plant helps the plant thrive. Horticulturists and gardening experts agree that the amount of water, sunlight and nutrient content of the soil are essential elements in a plants success. Almost all plants will suffer from a lack of moisture, but like animals, plants can be killed (in effect drowned) by having too much water. Equally important to the life of most plants is the protection against animal predation. Anyone who has ever tried to grow a vegetable garden will know the damage herbaceous animals can do to plants.

Answer: photosynthesis

Plant chemistry is a favorite topic for schoolchildren. Photosynthesis is the process by which plants take in sunlight and use the solar energy to convert carbon dioxide and water to carbohydrates for use as food. Oxygen is released as a byproduct of the chemical reaction. For most plants, the cellular biology of a photosynthetic reaction takes place in the presence of the chemical chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs mostly non-green light colors. A plant undergoing active photosynthesis using its chlorophyll will thus have a green color.

During the autumn, many plants curtail their photosynthesis and stop producing chlorophyll. Plants with a high concentration of plant chemicals called carotenoids will produce a yellow to orange leaf color; while plants that produce a high concentration of anthocyanins will have a red to purple color. Thus, a carrot being orange in color is high in the carotenoid beta-carotene, while the purple eggplant and red raspberry are rich in anthocyanins. Both carotenoids and anthocyanins are valuable antioxidants that benefit animal and human health.

Answer: Nothing - petunias are annual plants

Perhaps nothing in the gardening universe is both more basic and confusing as the difference between perennial and annual plants. In short a perennial plant will grow, bloom, wither and die back in one season only to start all over the next year. These plants are highly favored in gardens because they do not need to be replaced on a yearly basis and are thus economical and consistent. The perennial survives because the root system does not completely die over the winter and thus can recharge and grow again in the next season. The common perennial plants such as daffodils and tulips store energy in a bulb at the base of their root system that allows them to survive over the winter.

Annuals, such as our friend the petunia, are plants that grow from a seed, flower, reproduce and produce new seeds, then wither and die all in one season. Most grains, corn, peas, zinnias and pansies are annual plants. There are species of annuals that bloom in the colder months, but the majority of annuals flower during the warmer summer months. As a reluctant "gardening assistant" (i.e. spouse) who is frequently dragooned into service, there seems to be a never-ending cycle of buying, planting removing and replacing annuals throughout the year.

Answer: Yes

The vast majority of plants flower in the summer months. However, chemically, the reason is not temperature related but sunlight related. Photosynthesis, the process by which plants convert light to energy is not dependent on heat so much as on the amount of light.

Some plants grow perfectly fine in the lesser and more limited light of the winter months. The oft-maligned pansy is an example of a bright colored annual plant that survives into the late fall and winter. Another favorite winter flowering plant is the cyclamen.

This plant produces flowers in shades of white, pink, rose, and red atop green leaves.

Answer: Cross-Pollination

Most plants practice a form of sexual reproduction. Located in the plant's flower are the "male" stamen and the "female" pistil. The pistil consists of the ovary and ovule. Each ovule contains an egg cell. The stamen has a filament and an anther where pollen is produced. Pollination occurs when pollen grains are carried from the stamen to the pistil. A new seed results from the pollen cell joining with an egg in the pistil.

Plants that transfer pollen from their stamen to fertilize their own pistil (eggs) are known as self-fertilizers. By definition, a self-fertilizer is replicating its own DNA in the off-spring plant and is a form of asexual reproduction. Cross-fertilization occurs when the pollen from one plant is transferred to a different plant for fertilization. The variation in DNA in the offspring produces a more diverse and healthy plant. Bees collect pollen from one plant and deposit the pollen unwittingly in other plants when they gather inside the flower to obtain their food source, the carbohydrate-rich nectar.

Answer: Corpse Flower

Believe it or not, many plants produce smell that mimics rotting animal flesh so as to draw carrion eating insects and animals to the plant to assist in the plant's propagation. Plants that seek to draw beetles and flies to transport their pollen are most likely to emit a carrion or corpse smell.

The world's largest flowering plant called the titan arums grows in tropical regions such as on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The giant flower will heat up and disperse its rotting flesh scent to draw the dung flies titan arums uses as its pollinators. Needless to say, few of the flowers that use this method of pollination are popular in human gardens.

Answer: Evil Intent

Weed is a non-biological term used to describe any plant that is unwanted in a garden or lawn. Plants considered weeds in one garden may be prized as exotic "wild" flowers in another garden. Plants that are generally considered weeds include aggressive reproducers that crowd out more attractive and thus preferred plants. Plants such as poison ivy and thistles have either barbs or chemical secretions that serve as defenses to protect the plant form animal predation or easy removal. Other common weeds like the dandelion are prolific pollinators that spread a large number of seeds, making them hard to control and eliminate.

Now a word about hostas. Weeds may be unsightly and crowd out more favored plants in your garden, but they do so without any consciousness. Hostas I am not so sure about. Please hear me out before dismiss me as a "hosta hater". The hosta or plantain lily is a popular genus of perennial plants that thrive in shady or partially sunny areas. The hosta grows in clumps of plants that spread out and replicate over time, often at an alarmingly fast pace. These seemingly innocent plants may not be weeds, but having seen many versions of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" they bear too much of a relationship to the sentient evil plants of lore. Don't say I didn't warn you when the hostas make their move and take over the world.

Answer: Plants set away from the main garden for animals to eat

There are a number of ways to curb animal predation in a garden. You can incorporate barriers of some kind to keep the animals out. Gates, fences, and raised beds are examples of simple barriers. Many gardeners, however, find fences and walls to be unsightly, inhibiting their enjoyment of their flowers or shrubs. Animal repellants are also a popular method to ward off animals. Repellents can be made from chemicals or use sound to deter the animal pests. Using plants such as garlic, onion, marigolds, chives, and lavender can also be a natural deterrent to rabbits, deer, and other animals. Trapping or killing animals is, unfortunately, also an oft-used solution to animal encroachment.

Decoy gardens are an example of a noninvasive, natural method to distract animals away from your garden. The decoy garden is an area where plants are grown specifically for the purpose of attracting animals. For example, rabbits and squirrels love clover, goldenrod, alfalfa and even dandelions. By planting these plants close to the tree line or in the garden's outer perimeter, animals gravitate to the added shelter of that area and (at least theoretically) leave your garden alone.

Answer: Xeriscape

Xeri is Greek for dry. Xeriscaping refers to creating a garden design that has been specifically tailored to withstand drought conditions. While xeriscaping can take many forms, the most common application is to reduce or remove the water-hogging lawn grass preferred by many European and Americas landscapes. Experts estimate that as much as 80% of U.S. household water usage is consumed with outdoor plants of which lawn grass is the thirstiest culprit. A switch away from grass to a more water resistant garden would save each user thousands of gallons of water and globally millions of gallons per year.

Xeriscaping attempts to create gardens that use less grasses and water-demanding flowers without sacrificing beauty and color. Greater use of ground covering and low moisture flower plants (including the aforementioned hostas which are highly drought resistant despite my distrust of their motives) can replace grass. Bright colors in a xeriscape can come from bulbous plants like daylilies, tulip and daffodils as well as hydrangeas, azaleas and other rhododendrons all of which require reduced amounts of water to grow.