Back to topics

Why don't seeds saved from hybrid crops grow identical offspring?

Save seeds from a hybrid tomato and the next generation may surprise you. Inherited combinations can separate and recombine, producing more varied offspring. Explore why repeating the original cross differs from planting its descendants, and how a grower could separate genetic variation from growing conditions.

8–10 min

Questions you could explore

  • How is the next generation different from repeating the original cross?
  • How could a grower distinguish inherited variation from differences in growing conditions?

Start reading

Ready to try your ideas aloud?

Your topic carries over. Record up to 2½ minutes, depending on your plan.

Food

Why bread dough rises

The holes in a slice of bread are a record of what happened inside the dough. In ordinary yeast-raised wheat bread, making gas is only part of the story: the dough also has to hold it.

3–5 min
Food

How does milk become yogurt?

Yogurt begins with milk, but its tang and texture develop as starter bacteria change the mixture. Their use of milk sugar and the resulting acidity connect the microbial activity with what ends up on the spoon.

3–5 min
Food

Keeping oil and water together in mayonnaise

Pour oil and water into a jar, shake them hard, and they will quickly separate back into two layers. Yet mayonnaise stays a thick, stable sauce because vigorous whisking breaks the oil into microscopic droplets, while emulsifiers in the egg yolk coat those droplets and stop them from recombining.

3–5 min
Why don't seeds saved from hybrid crops grow identical offspring? | Speech Topic | speaking.app