How do Seeds Germinate

Among the seed bearing plants, the flowering plants are far more successful and numerous than others.  Virtually all species of plant cultivated are flowering plants.
The seed of this group consists of an embryo with its associated storage materials. Growth of the seed begins with early division of the zygote within the tissues of the parent plant.  There is hardly any specialization of cells at this point.  But a pair of embryonic organs, the root and the shoot become evident.  The root exhibits a positive response to gravity and the shoot which is the forerunner of the stem and leaves, are phototropic.

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The seeds of many plants are obliged to undergo a period of dormancy.  There are some species whose seeds remain dormant only until proper conditions of moisture, temperature and oxygen supply are such, as to initiate embryonic growth.
After the root and shoot have grown for a short time, some of their cells differentiate to form the tissues characteristic of the mature plant.  New growth occurs at the tip.  As a consequence of gradual differentiation, certain tissues come to characterise the mature plant.