Corncockle seed. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of a seed from a corncockle flower (Agrostemma githago). A seed contains an embryo (a fertilised ovule from which a new plant can grow), and a supply of food. The food is used either while the embryo grows within the developing seed, or during germination. Seed shapes and surface textures vary widely, affecting how they are dispersed from their parent plant. Seed dispersal methods include being carried by the wind, or water or on animal coats, or being eaten and deposited in animal droppings. Corncockles are pink flowers native to European cornfields. Magnification: x580 when printed 10 centimetres wide.