Xylem tissue

Xylem has the dual function of supporting the plant and transporting
water and dissolved mineral salts from the roots to the stems and
leaves. It is made up of vessels, tracheids, fibres and parenchyma cells.
The vessels and tracheids are non-living at maturity and are hollow to allow
the transport of water. Both vessels and tracheids have lignin in their
secondary walls, which provides additional strength and support.

Phloem tissue

Phloem tissue is the living tissue responsible for transporting organic

nutrients produced during photosynthesis (mainly as the
carbohydrate sucrose) to all parts of the plant where these are required.
The phloem tissue is made up of the following major types of cells:

Interesting Fact:

Do you remember that sucrose is made up of glucose and fructose

monosaccharides? Plants transport sucrose rather than glucose because it
is less reactive and has less of an effect on the water potential.

o sieve elements: these are conducting cells which transport sucrose.

o parenchyma cells: which store food for transport in phloem.
o companion cells: are associated with parenchyma cells and control the
activities of sieve tube elements, since the latter have no nuclei.
Companion cells are responsible for providing energy to the sieve
elements to allow for the transport of sucrose. Companion cells play an
important role in loading sieve tubes with sucrose produced during
photosynthesis. Companion cells and sieve tube elements are connected
via connecting strands of cytoplasm called plasmodesmata.
o fibres: unspecialised cells and supportive cells.
 UPWARD MOVEMENT OF WATER WITHIN THE PLANT
There are 2 processes that enable the water to move up a plant. They
are root pressure and transpiration.
1.         Root Pressure:           Water moves into the roots. As new water
moves into the roots it causes the water to move up the plant. Root
pressure is capable, under ideal atmospheric conditions, of pushing water
one or two feet above the ground.Since root pressure is not strong enough
to move water up very high another process is needed to enable the water
to continue up the plant. This is transpiration.
2.         Transpiration- Transpiration is the loss of water through the leaves
and other parts of the plant. Most transpiration occurs through openings,
called stomata, on the underside of the leaves. Water moves, because
ofroot pressure, up into the stem. Because water is being lost out of the
stomata of the leaves the water in the stems is being pulled up. Why is
this? Because water molecule cling to each other by cohesion. As water
molecules cling to each other as they move up the stem and into the leaves
they pull the molecules up as they tranpire out of the stomata. This is
called The Cohesion-Tension Model of water transport in xylem. As water
molecules are stuck together by cohesion the entire column of water in the
xylem adheres to the sides of the xylem. It is said that the water in under
tension as the column moves up the xylem. At the same time, the xylem
tube narrows because of the tension.
Definition of Cohesion in Water

Cohesion in water has to do with properties of water molecules that make

them 'stick' together. To better understand water cohesion, we need to
zoom in on a teaspoon full of water. In this teaspoon, there are more than a
hundred of drops of water. And in each individual drop, we can find millions
of water molecules. But what, exactly, makes up a water molecule?
A molecule of water is made up of one atom of oxygen and two atoms of
hydrogen. As you may already know, its molecular formula is H2O. The
oxygen and hydrogen atoms are held tightly together by bonds. But once
again, to fully understand water cohesion, we must zoom in even further on
a water molecule to examine its smallest components, the atoms.

Adhesion

Definition
noun
(physics, chemistry) The force of attraction between unlike molecules,
or the attraction between the surfaces of contacting bodies.
(cell biology) The binding of a cell to another cell, or a cell to
a surface, via specific cell adhesion molecules.
(anatomy, pathology) A fibrous band of scar tissue that binds together
normally separate bodily structures.

Supplement
Adhesion may refer to the joining of two different substances due to
attractive forces that hold them. For instance, cohesion causes water
to form drops and adhesionkeeps the water drops on the surfaces of
leaves and flowers in place.
 TRANSPIRATION
Transpiration
Transpiration is the process of water evaporating from a plant. This loss
of water effectively draws water, nutrients and oxygen from the growing
medium and distributes them throughout the plant. These ingredients are
essential for photosynthesis and respiration.
Transpiration mostly occurs through the leaves. As the leaf warms during
the day, water is converted into vapour which then diffuses into the
atmosphere via the leaf’s stomata.