Mochi IsleWhich part of a plant are we eating?
In short: Our fruit and vegetables come from different plant parts: carrots are roots, lettuce and spinach are leaves, potatoes are underground stems, broccoli is flower buds, apples and strawberries are fruit, and peas are seeds.
How it works
A flowering plant usually has six parts: roots, stem, leaves, flowers, fruit and seeds. Each part has its own job.
Roots take up water and nutrients, and some swell up to store food, like carrots and sweet potatoes. A potato grows underground but is actually a stem; look at its eyes, where new shoots can sprout.
After a flower blooms it can form a fruit with seeds inside. That is why, in science, tomatoes and cucumbers count as fruit: they hold the seeds.
Where to see it in New Zealand
Kūmara, a kind of sweet potato, was brought to New Zealand long ago by the ancestors of Māori, and the part we eat is the root. New Zealand also grows lots of kiwifruit; we eat the fruit, and the tiny black dots inside are its seeds.
Try it together
Gather some fruit and vegetables from the kitchen and sort them with an adult: which are roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruit or seeds?
Kids also ask
Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?
In science, a tomato is a fruit because it grows from the flower and holds the seeds. In the kitchen, people often cook it as a vegetable. The two answers just use different ways of sorting.
Is a peanut a fruit that grows underground?
Yes. After the flower fades, a stalk called a peg pushes the base of the flower into the soil, where it grows into the pod. That is why peanuts have to be dug up.
In the game, “Plant parts we eat” is a nature card from the Living things set, and it can turn up on any island.
Your child finds this card by reaching the right place or meeting the right weather on the island, and lights it up by answering the question on the back. Tap the button below and the game shows your child which island it is on and how to find it. Mochi Isle is a browser learning game for ages 5 to 18; the main island and the daily lesson are free.
Find “Plant parts we eat” on the island ↗ All cards in the Living things set