Organismal Biology Lab Manual

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EXERCISE 12 THE BASIC STRUCTURES OF SEED PLANTS

GOALS
The goals of this exercise are to:
Introduce the gymnosperms and angiosperm plant phyla
Provide to the student examples of the phyla
Compare two plant phyla evolutionarily
Familiarization the student with roots, stems and leaves of higher plants
STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this lab you should be able to:
Identify gymnosperms and the two different classes of angiosperm plants
Recognize and name the body structures of the different plant classes
Describe the evolutionary advances in the vegetative structures of each group over the previous ones studied
INTRODUCTION.
The seed plants are divided into two groups, the gymnosperms and the angiosperms. Among the gymnosperms are
coniferous trees such as pine and fir, which produce cones. The angiosperms are the flowering plants. In this
exercise, we will examine the advances of both groups as far as vegetative tissue is concerned. We study the
reproduction of both groups in a different laboratory exercise.
Roots
Roots usually grow underground. They function to anchor the plant and absorb water and minerals for the plant. The
problem of anchorage becomes great when the plant is large and the wind blows at high speeds. We see fallen trees
all the time during and after our Santa Ana winds. Water is actually absorbed from the soil by single-celled root hairs
that grow from the epidermis of the roots. The water absorbed through root hairs must replace all of the water that is
lost from leaves. The root cap protects the tip of the growing root as it pushes through the soil. There is a meristem
at the tip of the root. This is an area of cells that are undifferentiated. That means that these cells can form any other
kind of cells. Since roots have meristems at their tips, they have indeterminate growth (the growth of the root in length
never stops unless the meristem is damaged.) We will see that stems are also indeterminate, and thus plants can
continue to grow in length from their tips throughout their lives.
Root tips. Examine a slide of a young root tip (Allium). There are four regions that you should be able to discern - the
root cap, the region of cell division, the region of cell elongation and the region of absorption. The root cap is
the cluster of cells that is you guessed it at the tip of the root. These cells have no specific arrangement. The
region of cell division is the meristem. You should see many cells whose nuclei are in various stages of mitosis in this
area. Can you tell which stage of mitosis is which? The region of elongation has cells that are much longer than the
cells in the region of cell division. This is the area that actually pushes the root tip through the soil. As the cells get
longer, they push the cells below them, not above them the plant weighs too much). The area of absorption has
small root hairs growing out of the epidermis (skin) of the root. Make a drawing of the shape of the entire root tip.
Label the four regions mentioned above and add to the appropriate area a few representative cells of each type. Use
your atlas as a guide.
Stems
The stem of the plant holds up the leaves to the light. The stem also holds the flowers so they can be pollinated, and
fruit so it can be removed from the parent plant. Since the plant parts are away from any source of water and
minerals, it is also the function of the stem to carry water and minerals from the roots to other plant parts. Since the
leaves are the source of sugars, the stem must transport the sugar from the leaves to areas of the plant that require it.
Some stems are modified to store food, to trap air for underwater plants, help in the propagation of the plant or to
photosynthesize. First we will examine the angiosperms. These include the herbaceous stems without wood that
usually die each year, and the woody stems of trees. We will then study the woody stems of the gymnosperms.
Herbaceous stems cross-sections: Examine and draw a cross section of an herbaceous dicot stem and a monocot
stem. The outermost layer of cells is the epidermis. The innermost layer of cells is the cortex. In between the
epidermis and the cortex are the vascular bundles. In the dicot stem these bundles are in a ring around the cortex,
but in the monocot stem they are scattered throughout the stem. Note there are two layers to the vascular bundles.
The cells with the thickened walls are the xylem, or water carrying cells. The cells with the thinner walls in the bundle

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Organismal Biology Lab Manual

are the phloem that carries sugars. Draw a wedge-shaped area of the circular stem section. Draw several of each
type of cell and two vascular bundles. Label the cortex, xylem, phloem and epidermis using your atlas as a guide.
Herbaceous stem tip: Obtain and examine a longitudinal section of a stem tip (Coleus). The apical meristem should
be visible as an arched area in the very center at the top of the specimen. On either side of the meristem should be
two leaf primordia baby leaves. In the axils of some of the leaf primordia there should be axillary bud primordia
baby axillary buds. Smaller cells arranged in the center of the leaf primordia make an area that seems different from
the cells of the leaves. This is the provascular tissue baby veins. Draw the stem tip and label the structures
highlighted in bold above. Note that since these areas exist in the plant, it can continue to grow and develop.
Animals have determinate growth, which means that once they mature, they no longer have cells that will make new
body structures.
Dicot woody stems. (Note: most monocots are herbaceous.) Obtain a prepared slide of cross sections of a one, two
and three-year old Tilia (linden, basswood) stem. Compare the cross sections to the diagrams in your atlas. The
epidermis is the outer layer of cells. The phloem is made up of many layers of cells that form a wedge shape pointing
toward the epidermis. Why do the layers form this way? (Write the answer on your drawing page.) Between the
phloem and the epidermis is the cortex. The small layer of cells after the phloem is the vascular cambium. This is
a meristematic layer of cells that make a woody stem increase in girth (get fatter). The center of the stem is the pith.
The layers of cells between the pith and the cambium are all the xylem. Every year the cambium makes new xylem
on the inside (towards the pith) and new phloem on the outside (toward the cortex). This is what makes a woody
stem get fatter. Draw a wedge shaped section of the stem. Label the areas highlighted in bold above.
Leaves
The leaves are the parts of the plant that capture light energy and transform it into chemical energy. This chemical
energy is then stored in sugars. This makes the leaf a pretty important part of the plant.
Dicot angiosperm leaves. Note the types of angiosperm leaves in your atlas. Carefully observe the different types of
venation, margins and stem arrangements. Note also the names of the leaf parts (petiole, blade, veins). Obtain a
prepared slide of monocot and dicot leaf cross sections. On each slide there are four sections. Two of the sections
are monocot leaves and two are dicot leaves. Can you tell the difference? (Hint: there is a diagram of the dicot in
your atlas, so the other one must be the monocot!) Draw and label a dicot leaf. Avoid drawing the midrib section of
the leaf as it is not characteristic of the classes. Include the following: cuticle, upper and lower epidermis, palisade
mesophyll, spongy mesophyll, xylem and phloem of veins, chloroplast, the air spaces, stoma (plural
stomata), guard cells and cuticle.
Monocot angiosperm leaves. The monocot leaf is designed to conserve water and therefore has a more compact
interior than does the dicot. Large cells called bundle sheath cells surround the xylem and phloem of the veins.
These cells facilitate the transfer of materials to the veins. The cells that occupy the area between veins are the
mesophyll cells. There is no distinction between palisades and spongy mesophyll in the monocot leaf. Draw and
label the monocot leaf being sure to include the following: mesophyll, bundle sheath, phloem, xylem, air space,
stoma, guard cells, cuticle, upper epidermis, and lower epidermis. The large bullate cells help the leaf to fold
during dry periods, conserving water.
Gymnosperm needles. The specialized leaves of an evergreen tree, a conifer, are very similar, yet quite different
from the angiosperm leaves. The leaf is much narrower and therefore has very little tissue. There are only two veins
and they are located in the center of the leaf. There are many resin ducts in the edges of the leaf. Examine a
prepared slide of a pine leaf (Pinus). Draw a section of the leaf (the slide may have three cross sections, you should
draw only one) and label the epidermis, mesophyll, xylem and phloem of the veins, resin duct, stoma, and
guard cells.

Organismal Biology Lab Manual

Worksheet for Root Systems

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Worksheet for Stem Systems

Organismal Biology Lab Manual

Organismal Biology Lab Manual

Worksheet for Leaf Systems

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