Which statement is true about annuals?

Which statement is true about annuals?

• A. They complete their life cycle in one year
• B. They overwinter as seedlings
• C. They require two years to complete life cycle
• D. They grow only as perennials

Answer: (A)

Annuals complete their life cycle in one growing season. From germination to flowering, seed production, and death all occur within a single year. Because of this, in temperate climates you usually treat them as plants that must be replanted each year, with new individuals coming from seeds rather than a single plant persisting year after year. The other statements don’t fit this pattern. Overwintering as seedlings isn’t typical for true annuals, since many die when cold weather arrives and only their seeds persist. Requiring two years to complete their life cycle describes biennials, not annuals. And growing only as perennials contradicts the basic idea of an annual life cycle, which is defined by lasting only one year.

Annuals complete their life cycle in one growing season. From germination to flowering, seed production, and death all occur within a single year. Because of this, in temperate climates you usually treat them as plants that must be replanted each year, with new individuals coming from seeds rather than a single plant persisting year after year.

The other statements don’t fit this pattern. Overwintering as seedlings isn’t typical for true annuals, since many die when cold weather arrives and only their seeds persist. Requiring two years to complete their life cycle describes biennials, not annuals. And growing only as perennials contradicts the basic idea of an annual life cycle, which is defined by lasting only one year.