Many seeds need a dormancy period before germinating, and frequently a husk or germination-inhibiting coating (Tomatoes) surrounds the seed as a delay mechanism: the coating/husk has to rot before the seed gets contact with soil and water. For many it's way of ensuring that seeds don't germinate at the start of Winter. For others there's a (sometimes long!) maturation process that happens within the seed (Macadamias) before they're ready to sprout. Other times the husk is there to protect the seed while it goes through the gut of some animal (often birds) so that it gets transported well away from the parent plant.

Nature is pretty clever, imho.

Another example of a seed with long germination time is the coco de mer[1], coming in at 2 years. It also happens to be the largest seed of any plant.

[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lodoicea

On the other end of the spectrum there are many seeds with quick germination time but extremely long dormancy periods. Some of the biggest weeds in agriculture are plants whose seeds could last multiple decades in the soil until the right conditions show up

These plants usually evolve to serve a particular ecological niche. It's kinda like the soil's immune system. Exposing bare soil to direct sunlight is one of the most harmful things you can do to a soil ecosystem. So many plants evolved seeds that lay dormant until they're needed to come and protect the soil

Plants like dandelions are known as major weeds, but they only germinate in soils that are too compacted (e.g. a farmland with a history of plowing). These dandelions take over, decompact the soil, and then get "outcompeted" by other plants (usually perennials with longer lifespans).

I use scarequotes for competition because it's a good example of a natural system where "competition" is a lens of analyzing nature that could cause you to miss the bigger picture

Isn't there a movie about it, the incredible husk or something? Idk I'm not that into movies

I liked the part where the husk turn green.

And bigger… you could say it grows…

The incredible hulk?

Yes this is exactly it. Mangoes lost their megafaunal partners (giant sloths?) so they're evolutionary anachronisms

Relevant xkcd: https://xkcd.com/1259/

Giant sloths lived in South America, where they were the likely megafaunal partners of the avocado.

The megafaunal partner of the mango is probably the elephant, which is still extant in the native range of the mango.

https://blog.plover.com/bio/urushiol-2.html

Oh you're totally right. I forgot mangoes were from India. Thanks for the correction!