Photosynthesis

The student will:

Learn what photosynthesis is and
how it helps plants.
Learn what a plant needs for
photosynthesis.
What is photosynthesis?
Plants make their own food. This
process is called photosynthesis.
Where does photosynthesis occur?
Photosynthesis occurs in the
leaves of a plant.
What is needed for
photosynthesis to occur?

Light is needed for photosynthesis to
occur. The plants leaves use the light
to make a sugar called glucose.
Carbon dioxide enters the leaf
through holes called stomata

Why do plants need glucose?

Glucose is the food for the plant. It
gives the plant energy to grow.
How much glucose does a plant
make?
Plants make enough glucose to be used
during the night and on cloudy days when
they dont get sunlight. The extra glucose is
stored in the plants leaves and other parts.
How does photosynthesis help
us?

During the process of photosynthesis,
oxygen is produced. We use this
oxygen to breathe.
Why is photosynthesis important to
us?
We cannot make our own food (glucose,
energy), we must get our food from plants.
Plants are the first step in the food chain.
Animals get the energy stored in plants when
they eat them.
Respiration
When plants use the glucose and oxygen
made during photosynthesis to make energy,
carbon dioxide, and water for the plant, it is
called respiration.
Photosynthesis stores the energy and
respiration releases that energy to leaves
through xylem tissue.
What is the chemical equation for
cellular respiration?
Transpiration
Transpiration occurs when water is
evaporated from the leaves through the
stomata.
Xylem draws more water up through the roots
to replace the evaporated water
And the cycle
continues
Plants give off water from their surfaces
in a process called transpiration. This
water leaves through stomata, which are
tiny openings on the surface of a plant
and are especially abundant on the
undersides of leaves. Stomata open and
close to let gases in and out. Water vapor
is one of the released gases.
Transpiration

Some leaves have more than a million
stomata. In forests, trees need a large
amount of water because about 98
percent of the water they take in is lost
through the stomata.
The leaves of tropical and temperate plants
have stomata that are open longer periods
of time and have larger openings than those
of desert plants. In the desert, plants can
survive with less water because the stomata
of the plants do not open as wide and
remain closed most of the time. The time
stomata remain open as well as the size of
their openings are largely controlled by the
availability of water and of sunlight.

As the water evaporates from leaves
during transpiration, more water is pulled
into the plant at the roots. The water
moves from the roots to the leaves
through tubelike structures called xylem
tubes. The water carries nutrients through
plants.

What do you think would happen if we put a
plastic bag over a leaf on a tree and left it
over night?