Lab Activity 5

PLANT MORPHOLOGY:
STEM

Paul Maverick Z. Quisao

BS Pharmacy 1
Learning Objective:
To identify the internal morphology of the stem.
Materials:
Compound microscope
Prepare slides of dicot stem
Prepare slides of monocot stem
Procedure:
Internal Morphology
1. Examine a prepared slide of a monocot and dicot stem under LPO
and HPO.
2. Draw and label the parts.
 ANSWER THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT/QUESTIONS:
1. What are the different parts of a stem and described its functions?

- A normal plant stem is made up of eight parts. 1) nodes, 2) internodes, 3) terminal

bud, 4) axillary bud, 5) petiole, 6) blade, and 7) axil.
- Nodes can hold multiple leaves and buds together. It also aids the plant in the
formation of buds, leaves, and branching twigs, as well as providing additional
structural support and the reproduction of new plant parts or even an entire plant.
- Internodes function similarly to blood vessels, transporting and distributing food,
water, and minerals from one node to the next. They also give the plant height; the
greater the inter-nodal gap, the higher the plant's height.
- Terminal bud is the principal growth point in the stem. Produces growth hormones
that prevent other buds in the stem from growing, allowing the plant to grow
vertically upwards.
- Axillary bud helps in the formation of the plant's lateral branches and leaves,
which are the vegetative portions of the plant. It also aids the development of
flowers, a plant's reproductive organ.
- Petiole connects the leaf to the stem, providing it with strength and support. Water
and minerals are transported from the stem to the leaf, while photosynthetic
products are transported from the leaf to the remainder of the plant.
- Blade, also known as the lamina, is the broad, flat portion of the leaf.
Photosynthesis takes place in the blade, which contains a large number of green
food-producing cells.
- Axil is the angle formed by the upper side of a leaf and the stem from which it
grows. Because buds develop in the axils of leaves in flowering plants, knowing the
position of the axil aids in locating the bud.

2. How do the stems of monocots and dicots differ anatomically?

Monocot stems have distributed vascular bundles over the stem, and the
vascular bundles are collateral and closed, which is the fundamental
difference between them and dicot stems. Dicot stems, on the other
hand, have vascular bundles organized in one or two rings and are
largely solid in structure.
3. What are the main regions of a young dicot stem?

In the zone of root hairs, a dicotyledonous root reveals a fundamental

structure. The zone above the root hairs is where secondary growth
occurs. A dicot root's internal organization is straightforward. Three
zones are visible in the transverse section. The epidermis, cortex, and
stele are the three layers of the skin.

4. What are the different structures of a monocot stem?

- Monocot Stem has Vascular Bundles that are found on the exterior
border. Vascular Bundles are found throughout the parenchymatous
ground Tissue. It has structures consisting of the Epidermis,
Hypodermis, Ground Tissue, and Vascular Bundles.
- Epidermis Is the Outermost layer of the monocot stem. Made up of
single layer and tightly packed parenchyma cells.
- Hypodermis is the layer below the epidermis.
- Ground Tissue - is made up of multiple layers of loosely organized
parenchyma cells that enclose large intercellular gaps.
- Vascular Bundles are numerous, thin, and tightly packed toward the
periphery.

5. Describe an old woody stem.

Woody stems are those that have wood as a structural tissue. Woody
stems add height and girth to plants throughout the growing season,
and they support many bigger plant species such as shrubs and trees.
Another unusual feature of woody dicots is that the number of yearly
rings can be used to determine the age of the plant. It develops an
annual ring every year in the winter when development slows.
6. Describe the initiation and activity of the cork cambium forming
the periderm.
The cork, cork cambium (also known as phellogen), and phelloderm
make up the periderm layer. Because the cork cambium is meristematic,
it produces new cells. The phelloderm is made up of new cells that grow
inwards, whereas the cork is made up of new cells that expand
outwards.

7. Describe the initiation of the vascular cambium and the formation

of secondary xylem and phloem in a stem.

The vascular cambium is responsible for producing woody tissue and

expanding the diameter of stems and roots. Cell division in the cambium
creates secondary xylem and phloem cells. The accumulation of
secondary phloem and xylem tissue increases the girth of the stem while
also forming wood and bark.

References:

https://www.sarthaks.com/925663/describe-the-primary-structure-of-t-s-
of-monocot-stem
https://www.ehow.com/list_7599893_examples-woody-stems.html
https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/cork-cambium
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-
sciences/vascular-
cambium#:~:text=The%20vascular%20cambium%20is%20responsible,an
d%20for%20forming%20woody%20tissue.&text=Cell%20division%20by%
20the%20cambium,and%20forms%20wood%20and%20bark.