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Explain the mystery of the flowering of ancient lotus.

Thousand-year-old lotus seeds produce incredible flowers.

Lotus seeds planted more than 1000 years ago have become fossils even if they have not rotted. How do they germinate and bloom? Millennium lotus seeds can blossom, which sounds like a myth in the Arabian Nights. It's unbelievable. But it's true!

Over the years, newspapers and periodicals in China have reported that ancient lotus seeds with vitality have been found in the peat soil layer east of Pulandian in Xinjin County near Lushun, Liaoning Province. Up to now, the hometown of this ancient lotus seed is called Lianpengpao.

As early as 1923, a Japanese scholar, Ichiro Oha, collected ancient lotus seeds from the local peat layer and germinated them during a geological survey in Pulandian, Xinjin County, Liaoning Province.

1953, someone gave five ancient lotus seeds dug from the peat of Lianhuapao Formation in Pulandian to Professor Ren Xu from the Paleobotany Research Office of Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. These five ancient lotus seeds were treated in the laboratory and then planted in flowerpots. Surprisingly, these five ancient lotus seeds all grew tender lotus leaves in a few days under wet soil and water conditions. Later, the five young lotus plants were moved from the flowerpot to the pond. After more than a month, they all bloomed, white, pink and purple, with petals similar to those of modern lotus flowers. In autumn, the petals wither and all bear lotus seeds.

1975, scientists from Dalian Natural Museum also collected ancient lotus seeds in peat soil near Dongpaozi Commune in Xinjin County. After that, it was cultivated by Dalian Botanical Garden, sown in early May, and actually blossomed in the middle and late August. The citizens rushed to watch, and it was a surprise that the ancient lotus was in full bloom. Dalian Natural History Museum also presented ancient lotus seeds to China Academy of Sciences and Kitakyushu Natural History Museum. After sowing and cultivating by these units, they can germinate, grow leaves, blossom and set seeds.

Until recently, there were reports that ancient lotus seeds were sown in Pulandian to produce lotus flowers. 1July 997 13 Yangcheng evening news reported in the fourth edition that lotus seeds planted with ancient lotus seeds from Pulandian in the Botanical Garden of Chinese Academy of Sciences at the foot of Xiangshan Mountain in Beijing began to bloom in late June 1997, and by the beginning of July, more than 100 had blossomed.

How old is the ancient lotus seed in Pulandian, Xinjin County, Liaoning Province? According to a paper published by American scientist Bailey in 195 1 4 on dating ancient plants and carbon-containing cultural relics in the world, it is mentioned that there is an ancient plant, namely the ancient lotus seed in Pulandian, China, whose age is about 104 1 year. In 1974, the Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences measured the pollen of ancient lotus with carbon 14, and the result was about10/4. The results are very similar.

The discovery of ancient underground lotus seeds in China is not limited to Pulandian, Xinjin County, Liaoning Province. At the beginning of this century, many ancient lotus seeds were also found in the peat layer more than 60 feet underground in Shuokou, Baiqueshan Forest in the north of Jinan City, Shandong Province. Ancient lotus seeds can blossom after planting, which was recorded in the Ming Dynasty. According to Notes on Traveling North in Ming Dynasty (Volume 55), there are stone lotus seeds in Ningjin County of Zhaozhou, which are all buried in the soil. I don't know my age. Residents who dig the earth often make a few squats, like stones, and the meat is not withered. They will be born when they are thrown into the water. "

Through in-depth research by Chinese scientists, the germination rate of ancient lotus seeds can reach more than 90%, and some are close to 100%.

At room temperature, the effective life of plant seeds is about two to three years. It is really a mystery why the ancient lotus seeds buried underground for thousands of years can survive, germinate and bloom after being treated and cultivated. Scientists say that the amazing vitality of lotus seeds is mainly due to its special structure. The outer layer of lotus seeds is particularly tough, and there is a solid and dense palisade tissue under the epidermal cells of the peel, and there are stomatal channels under the stomata, so the air can enter and exit freely when the fruit (lotus seeds) is immature; When the fruit is fully ripe, the pores shrink, air and water are blocked, and even microorganisms are not easy to enter, making the peel a "sealed warehouse". Plant physiologists believe that the seed loses its life because the protoplasm of the embryo in the seed has solidified. If the water content of seeds remains unchanged, the vitality of seeds can be prolonged. Another important environmental factor is temperature. The temperature in the soil below one meter from the ground is lower and more stable than that in the ground air, and these conditions are also conducive to the long-term preservation of seed vitality. The temperature in Pulandian area is low, the rainfall is low (humidity is low), and the peat layer is high in oxygen, so the local ancient lotus seeds can live for ten centuries, which can be explained.

Lotus seed germ is rich in oxidized ascorbic acid and glutathione, which also plays an important role in maintaining the vitality of lotus seeds. When lotus seeds germinate, the oxidized ascorbic acid contained in them is gradually transformed into reduced ascorbic acid (vitamin C), which promotes the germination of lotus seeds. Glutathione is a reducing agent which can convert oxidized ascorbic acid into reduced ascorbic acid.

It is produced under the conditions of oxygen-free, aseptic, low temperature and stable geological conditions. The chemical components in the seeds are stable and not destroyed, so they can germinate.

The following is a summary. See the website for details.

In addition, the information is easy to search, and the deeper reason is unknown, which may be because it is too professional.

Mystery of germination of ancient lotus in 4000 years

Ms. Shen is a botanist at UCLA. She cultivates all kinds of plants in her laboratory, but what she treasures most are two ancient lotus trees-both of which are about 500 years old.

"Ordinary flowers can only live for a few years." Ms. Shen said: "These two ancient lotus trees are very different. Their seeds have been baptized for hundreds of years and now they have sprouted and blossomed. "

Gulian, who has been sleeping for thousands of years, woke up.

A few years ago, Ms. Shen visited the China Institute of Botany in Beijing. When she returned to America, her colleague in Beijing gave her seven lotus seeds. "It is said that these seeds were excavated from lake sediments in the northeast. I know they are very old, but I don't know the exact number. " Ms. Shen said, "At that time, they didn't attract enough attention from me, but my lab colleague John? 6? 1 Sassen found their value. "

John? 6? 1 sassen used a carbon isotope tester to identify the age of ancient lotus seeds, and found that it was actually left over from 1200 years ago! What is even more surprising is that when Ms. Shen cut off the seed shell with a blade and soaked it in the culture solution, it didn't take long to germinate!

Unfortunately, these seeds have a short survival time after germination, but they have been listed as the oldest seeds that can germinate in the world.

Can the seeds of the Millennium germinate? ! This aroused Ms. Shen's great interest, and she decided to go back to China again to find these mysterious lives. At that time, Ms. Shen was already a well-known scholar in the field of international botany, and many scientists were willing to help her complete this research work.

The road to science is not smooth.

The second batch of ancient lotus seeds that Ms. Shen brought to the United States has 2 1 grain, all of which are 200-500 years old. During 1997, Ms. Shen studied lotus cultivation techniques in Germany. Through "minor surgery", the first seed germinated, but only survived for less than three months.

"In the next three years, I cultivated three other seeds at the California Institute of Botany, but they didn't bloom-obviously, I used the wrong method." Ms. Shen recalled the past and said: "These two seeds have blossomed, which seems to be very lucky. These are the two trees you see now, one is 408 years old and the other is 466 years old. "

Although the ancient lotus has blossomed, it is different from the modern lotus and cannot fully adapt to the modern environment. "I am doing my best to make them thrive."

According to Ms. Shen, there should be a special reason why lotus can live so long; If we can find the internal mechanism of lotus longevity, human beings will benefit a lot, such as solving the problem of grain storage, reducing the hungry people in the world and possibly prolonging human life.

The key question is: What is the secret of longevity of lotus? Ms. Shen said that it may be related to the radiation of the soil.

Gaiman? 6? 1 harbert is a chemist. He is a colleague of Ms. Shen. Harbert found that the soil around the seeds of ancient lotus gave off slight radiation. "Although the radiation intensity is very low, the effect after hundreds of years is still quite amazing." Ms. Shen explained, "This may be the reason why ancient lotus seeds can survive to this day."

It is reported that Ms. Shen still has 15 seeds left, which she intends to provide to other scientists so that the research project can be carried out on a global scale. "Lotus comes out of the mud and is not polluted, so it represents a special meaning in Buddhism." Ms. Shen said, "Now we should find out the secret of lotus's longevity and benefit all mankind."

How does the ancient lotus that has been sleeping underground for thousands of years bloom?

This is related to the structure of lotus seeds. The outer seed coat of lotus seeds is hard and dense, like a small "sealed bag". Sealing the seeds inside can prevent the infiltration of external moisture and air and prevent the loss of moisture and air inside the seeds, so the life activity of lotus seeds is extremely weak, which is equivalent to being in a dormant state. This is an important reason why ancient lotus seeds still have vitality.

In addition, it is also related to the burial environment of ancient lotus seeds. These ancient lotus seeds are buried in a peat layer about 30-60 cm deep, and the peat has good water absorption and moisture resistance; In addition, the peat layer is covered with thick soil, so the ancient lotus seeds are almost in a closed environment. In such an environment, ancient lotus seeds do not have the conditions to take root and sprout, so they can preserve their vitality.