Support in Plants

Aquatic plants
Submerged plants Floating plants

Terrestrial plants Herbaceous Plants Woody Plants

Aquatic Plants
Submerged Plants Floatin Plants

Terrestrial plants

Submerged Plant
Has very thin, narrow and flexible leaves
o Leaves provide little resistance to water flow

Has air sacs or air space between the leaves and stems
o Keep the plant afloat close to the surface to receive sunlight

The stems have no woody tissue

o Water buoyancy provides support already

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Floatin Plant
Has firm, broad leaves Has aerenchyma tissues in the stems and leaves
o Aerenchyma tissue are spongy tissue with large air spaces between the cells (intercellular air space) o Provide buoyancy

Does not need much strengthening tissue in the stems and leaves compared to terrestrial plants

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Terrestrial Plants

Herbaceous plants

Woody plants

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Herbaceous Plant
Support in herbaceous plants is provided by the turgidity of the parenchyma and collenchyma cells. The turgor pressure pushes the cell contents and plasma membrane against the cell walls.
o Creating support for the stems, roots and leaves

Thickening of the cell walls provide additional mechanical strength.

o Cellulose and pectin in the collenchyma cells

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Woody Plant
Support provided by the sclerenchyma and xylem Sclerenchyma tissues:
During development, xylem vessels and tracheids are thickened with lignin.
o Annular/ring-shaped vessels, spiral vessels, scalariform/ladder-like vessels and pitted vessels. o These vessels are known as primary xylem.

As the plant grows, it usually undergoes secondary growth, which results in the formation of secondary xylem called wood.
o Wood makes a plant stronger by providing mechanical support

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Special structural adaptations

Some tropical tress have buttress roots.
o These are roots that come out from the lower part of the trunk and grow into the ground, providing supports for trees

Creepers, vines and lianas (woody vines) use other trees for support
o Lianas have a variety of adaptations to attach themselves to their hosts such as twining stems and thorns

That is all from us.

Thank you.
Dash. Lee. AMN.