Introduction to Plants

Mrs. M. Rightler

Earliest Plants
Algae Phytoplankton Lived

in the sea

Problems with life on land

Problem Drying Out Making Food Reproduction Solution Waxy cuticle, stomata Formed leaves Develops spores & seeds Gravity & Support Bark (cork) & vessels Roots & vessels Getting water & nutrients

Types of Plants
Avascular
Bryophytes nonseed vessels

plants

Tracheophytes

for transport and

support

Mosses & Liverworts: The Bryophytes

First

land plants AVASCULAR = very small 500 m.y.a. Must grow in moist environments Used for fuel (peat)

Reproduction in Bryophytes
Mosses

have a protonema (liverworts do not) Sexual reproduction

Antheridium makes sperm Archaegonium makes eggs

Asexual

reproduction

Fragmentation Formation of gemmae

Tracheophytes
Vessels

XYLEM = transports water & dissolved minerals from roots to leaves PHLOEM = transports sugars from leaves to rest of plant

Spores

or seeds for reproduction

Club Mosses (Lycophyta)

Leaves

produce spores

Strobilus = spore-bearing leaves Prothallus = produces antheridia & archaegonia

Horsetails (Sphenophyta)
Jointed

stems Reproduction similar to club moss

Ferns (Pterophyta)
400

m.y.a. Dominant form = sporophyte Structure

Rhizome = underground stem Fronds = leaves Sori = store spores on underside of fronds

Gymnosperms
Gymno

= naked Sperm = seed First plants to produce seeds

No flowers No fruit

Why Make Seeds?

Has

own food supply Protective coat against harsh conditions Some are designed for travel to new areas

Sporophytes produce:
MICROSPORE

Produce male gametophyte Produce pollen

MEGASPORE

Produce female gametophyte Produce ovule (makes archaegonia with egg cells)

Gymnosperm Reproduction
Pollen grains carried by wind Land on ovule, develop pollen tube Sperm move through tube to fertilize egg

Fertilized egg = ZYGOTE EMBRYO = young, diploid sporophyte plant COTYLEDONS = food storage for embryo, become first leaves

Why Pollen Instead of Spores?

Plant

can live in very dry areas Fertilization does not require water Pollen has protective coat and food supply for sperm

Why Ovules Instead of Archaegonia?

Protective

tissues prevent drying out Ovule holds archaegonia and protects eggs from elements

Minor Gymnosperm Groups

Cycadophyta (1st in Triassic Era) Ginkgophyta

Only one species today Ginkgo biloba Most lived 200 m.y.a.
Gnetum house plants Ephedra weight loss, allergies & asthma Welwitschia

Gnetophyta only three genera

Coniferophyta (largest group)

Needle or scale-like leaves Bear seeds in woody cones Can live in very cold climates Most are evergreens Have wood

Made of thick-walled vessels (TRACHEIDS) Tracheids are xylem

Angiosperms
flower Sperm seed Extremely diverse All have seeds enclosed in fruit
Angio

Cambium
Any

growth tissue in plants Types of cambium

Vascular = produces xylem & phloem Cork = produces cork (bark)

Overall Structures
Roots Stems Leaves Flowers

[121]

Roots [124]
Absorb

water & nutrients Hold plant in place Root types:

Fibrous Tap Prop Aerial

Stems
Support

[123]

leaves & flowers Sometimes photosynthesis Transport (contain xylem & phloem) Types
herbaceous green & flexible Woody stiff, have cork layer, usually brown

Leaves

[119]

Cuticle = protection Stomata = gas exchange, water loss (transpiration) Epidermis = protection, color Mesophyll

Palisade = most PHOTOSYNTHESIS Spongy = Vascular bundles run through it

Flowers

[131]

Pistils = female reproductive structures Stamens = male reproductive structures Complete flowers

Have petals & sepals Have male and female parts

Incomplete flowers = missing one or more parts

Types of Angiosperms

[115]

Monocots Dicots mono = one di = two cot = seed leaf cot = seed leaf Approx. 60,000 Approx. 170,000 species species Flowers = multiples Flowers = multiples of 3 of 4 or 5 Leaf veins parallel Leaf veins branching

Plant Tropisms

Tropism = plant response to external stimulus

Positive: plant moves toward stimulus Negative: plant moves away from stimulus Phototropism = light Gravitropism = gravity Thigmotropism = touch
(nastic movement direction does not matter)

Types:

Plant Hormones
Hormone chemical produced in one part of an organism that has an effect on a different part of the organism Types

Auxins regulate growth Gibberellins speeds growth, germination Abscisic acid dormancy, close stomata, stress Ethylene ripens fruit