Arrange the botanical items in a biologically meaningful growth/production sequence. Items: (a) Tree (b) Seed (c) Flower (d) Fruit (e) Plant Choose the order that starts from the earliest propagule and ends with the product of reproduction.

Introduction / Context:
Here you must order biological terms in a way that matches a common plant life-cycle and reproduction path. While “plant” and “tree” can both describe mature forms, reasoning tests typically treat “plant” as a general vegetative stage and “tree” as the fully established woody stage before flowering and fruiting.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• (b) Seed is the earliest propagule.
• (e) Plant is a grown vegetative stage after germination.
• (a) Tree represents a fully established woody plant stage.
• (c) Flower precedes fruit; it is the reproductive organ that enables fruit set.
• (d) Fruit forms after successful pollination/fertilization and contains seeds.

Concept / Approach:
Move from earliest form to reproductive output, ensuring each step is a prerequisite for the next. A seed germinates into a plant; that plant may establish as a tree; trees produce flowers; flowers turn into fruits.

Step-by-Step Solution:

Verification / Alternative check:
Check that each stage logically depends on the prior one. Fruit cannot precede flower; tree status cannot precede plant growth; seed necessarily begins the cycle.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• d, b, c, e, a: Puts fruit before flower/seed, reversing causality.
• a, d, b, c, e: Begins with a mature tree and then jumps backwards to seed.
• b, a, c, d, e: Ends with plant after fruit, breaking the cycle output logic.

Common Pitfalls:
Treating “plant” and “tree” as interchangeable; in these questions “tree” is a later, more developed state prior to flowering/fruiting.

Final Answer:
b, e, a, c, d