Protolepidodendrales

o The protolepidodendrales are a group of mostly small plants that had an

apparently world-wide distribution during the lower Devonian and lower
Carboniferous periods.
o They were homosporous plants which were herbaceous and had dichotomous axis.
The roots of these plants have not been described.
o The sporophytic plant body was mostly of small size. Protolepidodendron
attained a height of about 20-30 cm while Drepanophycus reached as high as 45
cm.
o The sporophyte consisted of a branched prostrate rhizome like portion having
an erect well-branched system.
o The oldest fossils belong to Protolepidodendrales can be assigned with
certainity are:- Baragwanathia longifolia from Silurian of Australia occurring
along with Yarravia.
o The plant body resembles the present day Lycopodium but exceeded them in
size.
o Stem of the plant was covered with leaves which were eligulate, vascularised and
arranged in spirals or pseudowhorls. The stem had a protostele( seems to be
actinostelic with annular tracheides) with lobed xylem.
o Reniform sporangia (about 2mm in diameter) are present in certain areas of the
stem in axillary position of leaves intermixed with vegetative leaves.

Protolepidodendron:-
o The type genus of this order had dichotomously branched prostrate axis
from which arose aerial branches upto 30 cm high and less than 1 cm in
diameter.
o All parts of the plant covered with leaves having cushion-like bases and
bifurcated apices.
o These leaves had a single vascular strand and some of them bore oval,
radially elongated sporangia on their adaxial surfaces and were called
sporophylls.
o On the forked sporophylls were seen short-stalked sporangia. This forms
new genus i.e. Estinophyton.
o The stem from which the leaves had fallen showed a characteristic
pattern of leaf bases arranged in a spiral manner.
o The stem had a triangular protostele which is not typically Lycopodiaceae
type.
Drepanophycus (extinct terrestrial vascular plant):-

o It was a Lycopodium like plant having prostrate and erect axis.

o It attained a height of upto 45 cm.
o The aerial axis were clothed with stout, spine like outgrowths (up to 2 cm
long) similar to Psilophyton that had vascular strand. The aerial axis was
forked occasionally in dichotomous manner.
o These spiny outgrowths had a vascular strand could be designated as
leaves.
o Some of the leaves on their upper surface wore single sporangia.
o These sporangia were borne in the middle of leaves, but specimens
collected from Wales occasionally show sporangia on or near the tip.
o These sporophylls were not aggregated but scattered at random over the
axis instead of being gathered together into fertile zone.
o Stem is dichotomised and vascular bundles are actinostelic, tracheids are
of primitive annular or spiral type.