Professional Documents
Culture Documents
By,
DIVYAMOL.P.K
Reg No: 351123
Department Of Botany,
Sacred Heart College,
Thevara,
Kochi-682013.
2006-2009
CONTENTS
4. Summary
5. Plates
6. References
CERTIFICATE
I am grateful & deeply indebted to Dr. M.S. Francis Department of Botany, S.H.
College, Thevara, for his sustained guidance and encouragement throughout the course of
my project work & for providing all the necessary facilities for this work.
I extant my grateful to Dr. V.J. Dominic, Head of the Department of Botany, S.H.
College, Thevara, for providing all the facilities necessary for this work. I wish to
acknowledge the authorities of Library of college facilities and timely help.
I also sincerely thank all the teaching staff and non touching staff of the
Department of Botany who helped me during different stages of this work. My sincere
thanks to all my friends, who have helped me in this attempt in one way to other.
Mangrove plants and the mangrove ecosystem or the mangal in totality are
most important in the perspectives of its economic potentialities, as mangroves
provide ideal habitats for economic species of fish, shrimps, prawns, crabs and
good number of threatened, rare and endemic but most important species of
aquatic and terrestrial fauna. All these coastal or estuarine vegetation along with
its dense growth and wide spreading habitat. Play physical support and protective
role in these fragile coastal estuarine zones in the tropical and subtropical
countries in the globe; in general and in the Indian mangals in particular Bio-mass
from the mangrove plants continuously supply nutrients to coastal, estuarine and
offshore aquatic environment resulted healthy environment and also raised or
maintained productivity of the important water phases. Besides these mangrove
timber and mangrove wood have immense value in carpentry work and as fuel
wood to the rural people of Sundarbans (Naskar, 2002).
Mangrove forests grow near the estuaries or the deltas of rivers, swampy
margins of Islands and along sea coasts. The soil is formed of silt, silt–loam or silt–
clay and sand. The plants are typical halophytes which are characterized by
presence of prop roots with well developed lines for support and
pneumatophores and viviparous germination of seeds. Mangrove forests one
distinguished into the following four types with over tapping constituent species
(Shukla and Chandel, 1972)
I. Tree mangrove forest:- These forests occur on both east and west sea
coasts of India. The best development occurs in Sundarbans. The forest floor
is flooded with salt water daily. Plants may attain a height 10-15 m. and form
an almost closed evergreen forests. The common trees of these forests are
Rhizophora mucronata, Rhizophora conjugata, Avicennia alba, Brugaiera
conjugata, Brugaiera parviflora etc.
II. Low mangrove forests: - These forests grow on salt tidal mud near
estuaries, which is flooded by salt water. Forest is dense but the trees with
leathery leaves attain maximum height of 3-6m. The vegetation consists of a
few species which show gregarious growth habit. Important tree species are
Ceriops decandra, Avicennia alba, Aegialitis rotandifolia etc.
III. Salt water mangrove forest:- These forests occur beyond tree mangrove
forest in big river deltas where the ground is flooded with tidal water. Silt
deposition and salt content in soil are low. Tree height is up to 2m but girth is
not large. Forests are dense. Pneumatophores are common. The common
plants are Heriticera minor, Excoecaria agallocha, Ceriops decanura etc.
IV. Brakish water mangrove forest:- They grow near the river deltas where
forest floor is flooded with water at least for sometimes daily. Water is
brakish but during rains it is nearly fresh, tree height may reach around 30m.
Forest is dense common species of the forest are Heriteria minor,
Xylocarpus molluccensis, Avicennia officinalis, Sonneratia caseolaris ,
Sonneratia acida etc.
Habit: -
A great majority of halophytes in the tropical and subtropical regions are shrubs,
but a few of them are herbaceous, for example, Acanthus ilicifolius. In temperate
zones, halophytic vegetation is purely herbaceous. The shrubs are generally dom
shaped in appearance because of their Cymose branching.
EXTERNAL MORPHOLOGY
Stem: -
Leaves: - The leaves in most of the halophytes are thick, entire, succulent,
generally small – sized, and are often glassy in appearance. Some species are
aphyllous. Stems and leaves of coastal aero halophytes show additional mode of
adaptation to their habitats. Their surfaces are densely covered with trichomes.
Leaves of submerged marine halophytes are thin and have very poorly
developed vascular system and frequently green epidermis. They are adapted to
absorb water and nutrients from the medium directly.
The fruits and seeds are generally light in weight. Fruit walls have a
number of air chambers and the fruits, seeds and seedlings, which can float on
the water surface for pretty long time, are dispersed to distant places by water
current. Mangrove vegetations of tropical seashores from Australia to East Africa
include approximately the same species of plants. Similarly, the mangrove of
West Asia show considerable resemblances with those of East Asia and East
Africa. It is due in part, to the fact that medium and temperature remain uniform
throughout and partially due to the efficient means of dispersal or migration of
plants.
Halophytes or mangrove plants growing in the tidal marshes are met with the
phenomenon of vivipary. Which is defined as the germination of seeds while the
fruits are still attached to mother plants.
Anatomical Features
I. Presence of thick cuticle on the aerial parts of the plant body. The epidermis
of xerosucculents and coastal halophytes is characterized by a cover of waxy
layers in addition to thick cuticle.
II. Leaves may be dorsiventral or Isobilateral. They develop protected stomata
which are not deeply sunken. Epidermal cells are thin walled. The palisade
consists of several layers of narrow cells with intercalated tannin and oil cells.
III. Stems in the succulent plants posses thin – walled water storing parenchyma
cells in them. Mucilage cells may be found in abundance. Epidermal cells of
various mangrove species contain large quantities of tannins and oil droplets.
Cortex is fleshy, several cells thick and old stems it may become lacunar.
Salinity causes extensive lignifications of stele.
IV. The leaves and stems of coastal halophytes are abundantly covered with
various types of simple and branched trichomes giving the plants a grayish
appearance. The trichomes may play a positive role.
a. Reducing water economy.
b. Reducing the temperature of their leaves and
c. Preventing seawater droplets from reaching the live tissue of leaves.
V. Leaves of many species of mangrove are dotted with local cork formation
‘cork warts’ salt secreting glands and aqueous tissue may be found in some
halophytes (Shukla & Chandel, 1978).
Chapter: 2
Immediately after collection, the plant materials were put in a plastic bag.
The specimens were cut into pieces of convenient size & preserved in F.A.A. the
date and time of collection, Name of the plant family, plant size, flower character,
ecological conditions, Morphological characters & Anatomical characters were
noted.
The sections taken from the plant were washed well. The sections were
stained in aqueous safranin and mounted in glycerin. The preparations were
observed under the compound microscope.
From a proper section of a plant all the peculiarities were noticed. Along
with place, date, binomial of concerned plant, Family, growth & Anatomical
features were recorded. A comparison was made between the two species
regarding the histology of the primary and secondary anatomical structures. Then
the similarities and contrast between the two plants were noted.
Chapter: 3
Avicenna Officinalis L.
1. Avicennia officinalis L.
2. Avicennia alba Blume.
3. Avicennia marina Var.
Habit: - Evergreen, Medium to tall tree attain the height between 15m – 20 m.
[Plate 1; Fig: 2]
External Morphology
Roots: -
Leaves: -
[Plate 2; Fig 2]
Inflorescence:-
Cyme compound spikes, peduncle unto 25cm long [Plate 1; Fig: 3]
Fruit: - Capsule fleshy, ovoid, opaque, green, densely hairy 3cm long & 2.8 cm
broad, flattened with a short apical beak. [Plate 1; Fig:4]
Seed Germination: - Seeds of the Avicennia sp. germinate soon after their fruits
fall from the mother plant. In this case, their fruits mature in the mother plant
itself and develop the seeds to their optimum condition for effective germination.
This phenomenon is known as pseudoviviparous or incipient viviparous seed
germination. (Naskar, 2002).
Anatomical Features
Leaves: -
Leaves may be dorsiventral. Thin walled epidermal cells are present in the upper
epidermis, and it is covered by cuticle. They develop protected stomata, which are
not deeply sunken. Epidermal cell contain oil drops and Tannin cells. Palisade
tissue is present it contain mucilage cells. Below the palisade tissue spongy tissue
is present. Lower epidermis is single layered and it is covered by cuticle. The
leaves covered with various types of simple and branched trichomes. It gives the
grayish appearance and it has protective function. Salt secreting glands are also
present in the leaves. The glands have one or two basal collecting cells. One or two
stalk cells and a number of radially arranged secretary cells, which are covered
with a thin cuticle layer. [Plate 2; Fig: 2]
Stem:-
Single layer of epidermis and it is covered by thick cuticle. Below the epidermis
one or two layers for Hypodermis is present. The outer cortexes contain tannin
cells. Cortex contain thick walled cells. Inner cortex contain sclerids endodermis is
single layered. Pericycle is multilayered. Below the pericycle, vascular bundles are
present. Xylem conjoint and collateral. Vascular bundle with endarch xylem.
Tannin cells and oil drops are also present in the inner pith. Trichomes are
present. The branched trichomes giving the plants a greyish appearance. The
trichomes may exert, affecting water economy, affecting the temperature of their
leaves and preventing sea water droplets from reaching the live tissue of leaves.
[Plate 2; Fig: 4, 5, 6]
Petiole:-
The epidermis of the petiole resembles that of the corresponding surface of the
lamina except that there are no glands or stomata on the underside. The
parenchymatous ground tissue contains scattered mechanical cells bearing a
lignified thickening, which is reticulately pitted, the pits being sometimes so large
that the thickening is reduced to a network of narrow strands. Well-developed
lacuna occurs at the sides of the petiole. The vascular system is traced from the
stem. At the node the bundles lying adjacent to the base of the petiole passon
masse into the petiole. A small group of bundles is derived from further round the
stem on either side. The intervening vascular tissue forms the axillary bud traces.
A relatively large bundle group is derived from still further round the stem on
either side. The vascular tissue, with the exception of a small part of each of the
larger subsidiary groups assembles about the central ground tissue of the petiole.
The central ground tissue of the petiole includes numerous small bundles of
phloem, the larger of which have a small quantity of xylem associated with them.
These are embedded in rows shortly elongated parenchyma. Phloem consists of
numerous small sieve tubes and companion cells. Cambium is fascicular only. The
depression at the base of the petiole is fringed with simple filamentous hairs
composed of three or four cells lined with shorter hairs of the same type
intermingled with glandular hairs much larger than those in the lamina. The stalk
and foot of each gland is unicellular. [Plate 2; Fig 7,8]
The glandular hairs have one or basal collecting cells. One or two stalk cells
and a number of radially arranged secretory cell, which are covered with a thin
cuticle layer. Non-glandular hairs have a multicellular sclerotic body. Which
distally produce a shield, like expanse of thin walled cells or branched star-like
cells in Heritiera or unbanched filamentous body in Avicennia (Vasishta, 1978).
Guard cell has cuticular beak like outgrowth (ledges) on either the outer
side of both outer and inner side of the stomatal pore in Acanthus and
Rhizophora. Stomata are usually restricted to the abaxial surface of dorsiventral
leaves and are scattered throughout the lamina. The hypodermis is composed of
one or more layers of colourless cells below the adaxial epidermis. These
colourless cells often function as water storage tissue. Two types of hypodermis
have been distinguished based upon the number of hypodermal layers.
1. Hypodermis is one layered, below the adaxial epidermis cells are polygonal,
cubical or narrow and sometime extensively vertically elongated in Acanthus.
Naskar.K (2002) Manual of Indian mangroves, Daya publishing House, New Delhi.
Pandey B.P (1981) A Text book of botany Angiosperms, S.chand & company Ltd,
New Delhi.
Shukla R.S and Chandel P.S (1972) Plant ecology, S.chand & company Ltd, New
Delhi.
Vasishta P.C (1978) A text book of plant anatomy, Messrs Pradeep publication.
PLATE 1