GROWING A FLOWER FROM THE AGE OF WOOLLY MAMMOTHS.

GROWING A FLOWER FROM THE AGE OF WOOLLY MAMMOTHS. This article reports on the success of researchers in growing a plant from a fruit that was over 32,000 years old. Fruit tissue was placed in a test tube of nutrients. Some tissue grew roots, which were transplanted to pots with soil, where they grew flowers and seeds. The article has a photo of a delicate plant with small white flowers. The fruit tissue was found in a fossilized burrow used by ancient squirrels. The tissue was preserved by the Siberian permafrost. The article points out that permafrost covers about 20% of the earth’s surface, so it may be possible to retrieve more ancient plants. Apparently woolly mammoths and saber-tooth tigers were around when this species was active.