Plants
We all know that plants are essential to life on earth. The benefits of plants to human life and the general ecology of the planet is difficult to summarize. However, in our class we are focusing on the main characteristics of plants. There are several structural similarities present among plants. Roots, stems, and leaves are commonly to virtually all plants. There are two types of plants. There are angiosperms which are flowering plants and gymnosperms which are non-flowering plants. In angiosperms there are two types of flowering plants called monocotyledons and dicotyledons. Monocots have
parallel veins on their leaves and dicots have branching veins on their leaves. You can also identify a monocot versus a dicot by the number of leaves they have.
According to Reece et. al. (2011), the four types of plant tissue are:
1. Dermal Tissue - this consists of the epidermis and the periderm
2. Ground Tissue - includes cells specialized for functions such as storage, photosynthesis and support
3. Vascular Tissue - xylem and phloem
4. Merismatic Tissue - serve as the starting point for the development of plant tissue (stem cells)
(p. 742)
parallel veins on their leaves and dicots have branching veins on their leaves. You can also identify a monocot versus a dicot by the number of leaves they have.
According to Reece et. al. (2011), the four types of plant tissue are:
1. Dermal Tissue - this consists of the epidermis and the periderm
2. Ground Tissue - includes cells specialized for functions such as storage, photosynthesis and support
3. Vascular Tissue - xylem and phloem
4. Merismatic Tissue - serve as the starting point for the development of plant tissue (stem cells)
(p. 742)
-> Growth
There are two kinds of plant growth: primary and secondary. Primary growth results in an addition to either the roots or overall height of the plant. Apical meristems serve as the sites for primary growth and results in additional vascular tissue, epidermis, and ground tissue. This tissue is typically found scattered in a monocot dissection, and bundled together in dicots.
However, a plant gains width only through secondary growth. Vascular cadmium serves as the starting point for the development of woody plant growth. During the first year of plant growth, the girth of the plant begins to develop as xylem and phloem - the two primary kinds of vascular tissue. Xylem transports primarily water and minerals from the roots, while phloem provides the plant with sugars and other nutrients. Both are present in vascular plants. Subsequent years of plant life result in a continuous addition to the girth of the plant as it gradually grows taller (et. al. p. 746).
On the next page, we will discuss a lab experiment we conducted to explore the necessity of specific plant nutrients in hydroponics.
References
Reece, J.B., Urry L.A., Cain, M.L., Wasserman, S.A., Minorksy, P.V., & Jackson, R. B. (2011) Campbell Biology. Boston: Benjamin Cummings.
Richardson, Eden. "Poinciana Leaf." 2009. JPG file.
However, a plant gains width only through secondary growth. Vascular cadmium serves as the starting point for the development of woody plant growth. During the first year of plant growth, the girth of the plant begins to develop as xylem and phloem - the two primary kinds of vascular tissue. Xylem transports primarily water and minerals from the roots, while phloem provides the plant with sugars and other nutrients. Both are present in vascular plants. Subsequent years of plant life result in a continuous addition to the girth of the plant as it gradually grows taller (et. al. p. 746).
On the next page, we will discuss a lab experiment we conducted to explore the necessity of specific plant nutrients in hydroponics.
References
Reece, J.B., Urry L.A., Cain, M.L., Wasserman, S.A., Minorksy, P.V., & Jackson, R. B. (2011) Campbell Biology. Boston: Benjamin Cummings.
Richardson, Eden. "Poinciana Leaf." 2009. JPG file.