50 years ago, a 550-year-old seed sprouted
Since then, much older seeds have proved resilient
OLD GROWTH Fruit frozen for more than 30,000 years in a squirrel burrow in Siberia yielded this healthy, flowering plant in 2012.
S. Yashina et al/PNAS 2012
550-year-old seed sprouts —
A seed of the South America herb achira (Canna sp.),