first leaf from red beet root

Even though I knew a beet was quite red, I didn't expect the first leaf to also show red pigments.

The leaf seen here is the cotyledon of the beet.

Cotyledons generally contain food reserves from the seed and usually begin photosynthesis when the reserve runs out.

One interesting realization from seeing it up close was how moist the surface seemed as compared to most leaves. It interested me how the starting leaf seemed to show not only the pigment of the plant, but also seemed to openly show the water in the cells.