Do You Know...Your Plants?

Do you know that a tree's roots go out the same distance as it's branches and vice versa?

Editor's note: You can tell how far the roots go by taking the longest branch of the tree and that is the longest the root underground will be.

Do you know that bamboo is the world's tallest grass, which sometimes grows to 40 metres or more?

Editor's note: Bamboo is also one of the fastest growing plants, thus making it an eco-friendly natural resources.

Do you know that bananas do not grow on trees? They grow out of a trunkless plant – an herb, to be exact.

Editor's note: The banana fruit comes out of the stem of the plant, appearing first as flowers. They grow in bunches on the plant and are picked when green so that they will be ripe by the time they reach your cereal bowl.

Do you know that oak trees do not produce acorns (simply put, seeds of the trees) until they are fifty years of age or older?

Editor's note: A full-grown oak tree expels 7,000 litres of water through its leaves in one day.

Do you know that rubber, derived from the gum of a tree, has existed since prehistoric times?

Editor's note: Fossils of rubber-producing plants found date back almost 3,000,000 years.

Do You Know...Your Animals?

Do you know that an adult lion's roar can be heard up to 5 miles away (slightly over 8 km) to warn off intruders or reunite scattered members of the pride? It can reach up to 114 decibels.

Editor's note: The decibel is a measure of how loud a sound is (via sound pressure). Compare this to the average human, whose loudest scream is only 80 decibels. Anything above 120 decibels is deafening to a human. The blue whale is the loudest animal, clocking in at 188 decibels. A jet engine comes in at 140 decibels.

Do you know that elephant tusks grow throughout its life and can weigh more than 200 pounds? Among Asian elephants, only the males have tusks. Both sexes of African elephants have tusks.

Editor's note: Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. Tusks are used by humans to produce ivory, which is used to make jewelleries and artefacts. The ivory trade has been severely restricted as most often, the animals are killed in order for the tusks to be extracted.

Do you know that mockingbirds can imitate any sound, from a squeaking door to a cat meowing?

Editor's note: The novel 'To Kill A Mockingbird' by Harper Lee has become one of the most analysed and dissected books of our time.

Do you know that there is no difference in quality, nutrients or flavour between brown and white eggs? The shell colours are determined by the breed of hen that lays those eggs.

Editor's note: Brown eggs come from hens with red feathers and red ear lobes, white eggs come from hens with white feathers and white ear lobes.

Do you know that dragonflies are one of the fastest insects, flying at 80 to 100 km/h? The fastest man currently is Usain Bolt of Jamaica, whose average speed is 37 km/h.

Editor's note: Another interesting fact is that most of the dragonfly's life is spent as a larva which may last as long as five years. The adult stage, where the dragonfly is actually a winged flying insect, lasts up to only four months.

Do you know that the blood of mammals is red, the blood of insects is yellow, and the blood of crustaceans and molluscs is blue?

Editor's note: Animals categorised as crustaceans includes crabs, lobsters and shrimps while molluscs includes snails, oysters, squids and octopus.