Bean Seed Anatomy in 3D: Seed to Sprout, Pods and Root Nodules

Inside every bean seed is a tiny baby plant and a store of food to get it started. In the 3D Plant Anatomy simulator you can follow a bean from seed to sprout, zoom into each part, slice it open and watch water flow through it in X-ray.

Open the bean seed in 3D All 10 plants

Bean Seed parts up close in the VisionVix 3D Plant Anatomy simulator — The bean seed in the Parts up close view, with each part in its own ring. Click the picture to open it live.

Four ways to see the bean seed

Whole plant

Parts up close

Cross-section

X-ray water flow

Bean Seed quick facts

Plant group	Flowering plant, legume family
Seed parts	Seed coat, two seed leaves and a baby plant
Needs to sprout	Water, warmth and air
Fruit	A pod
Roots	Nodules full of helpful bacteria

Inside the bean seed

Open a bean seed and you find a tough seed coat, two fat seed leaves full of stored food and a tiny baby plant between them. When it takes in water, the first root pushes out, then the shoot climbs towards the light.

Parts of the bean seed

In the Parts up close view you can tap each of these parts to zoom in:

Flowers: Bean flowers are pollinated, then each one can grow into a pod full of seeds.
Seed to sprout: Given water, the root pushes out first, then the shoot climbs towards the light.
Seeds: Inside every bean is a tiny baby plant and its packed lunch of stored food.
Pods: The pod is the fruit of the bean plant, with the seeds lined up inside.
Stem: The stem carries water up and sugar down through bundles of tubes.
Inside a leaf: Under the leaf skin, packed green cells make food, and veins carry water in.
Root nodules: Little bumps on the roots hold helpful bacteria that turn air into food for the plant.

Interesting facts about the bean seed

Every bean seed holds a tiny baby plant and its own packed lunch.
When it sprouts, the root grows out first, then the shoot.
The two fat halves of a bean are its first leaves, called seed leaves.
Bumps on bean roots, called nodules, hold bacteria that make natural fertiliser from the air.
Beans grow in pods, which are the fruit of the plant.

Compare: Monocot vs Dicot: Seeds, Leaves, Roots and Flowers in 3D · Fruit vs Vegetable: What Is the Real Difference? · Bulb vs Seed: Two Ways to Start a Plant, in 3D

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Bean Seed anatomy questions

What is inside a bean seed?

A seed coat, two seed leaves packed with food and a tiny baby plant with a root and a shoot.

What does a bean seed need to sprout?

Water, warmth and air. It does not need light until the shoot is above the soil.

What are root nodules?

Small bumps on the roots of beans that hold bacteria. The bacteria turn nitrogen from the air into food the plant can use.

Is a bean pod a fruit?

Yes. To a botanist, a pod is the fruit of the bean plant and the beans are its seeds.

The 3D Plant Anatomy simulator is made by Julian Neagu, a solo founder in London, as part of VisionVix Simulators. It is free to use in the browser on desktop and phone, with no sign-up.