11/2/2023

Plant Structure, Growth,

and Development
22

22

Plant Organs
The plant body is composed of three organs:
LEAF, STEM and ROOTS
Shoot system
•Leaves
• Photosynthesizers
• Reproductive structures
• Stem
• Supports and places leaves
• Transports H2O and nutrients
Root system
• Anchors plant
• Absorbs water and minerals
• Storage (CHO) & synthesis of
some hormones
Organ- composed of several tissues with distinct structures and
functions
System - composed of interacting organs that coordinate as a
functional complex in the life of the organ
CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

23

1
 11/2/2023

A tissue is a group of cells that forms a structural and

functional unit.
- It is simple if it contains one cell type
- It is complex if is made up of several types of cells.

The plant
body consists
of cells and
tissues

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

24

Plant Major Tissue Systems

1. Dermal – outermost layer
provides a covering for the plant body
2. Vascular – conducting tissue, transport;
strengthening and supporting the plant
• Xylem – carries water and minerals –
made of tracheids and vessel elements
• Phloem – carries sugar – made of sieve
tubes and companion cells
3. Ground – bulk of inner layers
photosynthesis, storage, and support
• cortex, mesophyll, pith

The tissue systems of different plant organs form an interconnected network throughout the plant. For example, the
vascular tissue system of a leaf is continuous with the vascular tissue system of the stem to which it is attached, and
the vascular tissue system of the stem is continuous withCROP
theSCIENCE
vascular tissue system of the root.
CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

25

2
 11/2/2023

The ground tissue system is composed of three simple tissues

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

26

Parenchyma tissue
• Parenchyma tissue is a mass of parenchyma
cells
• most common type of cell and tissue,
constituting all soft parts of a plant
• soft leaves, petals, fruits, and seeds are composed
almost completely of parenchyma
• Parenchyma cells are active metabolically
and usually remain alive after they mature
• Chlorenchyma cells are parenchyma cells
involved in photosynthesis
• Materials stored in parenchyma cells include
starch grains, oil droplets, water, and salts
Parenchyma cells of geranium. Their walls
(blue green) are thin, and their vacuoles are
• Resins, tannins, hormones, enzymes, and
large and full of watery contents that did not sugary nectar are examples of substances
that may be secreted by parenchyma cells.
stain. Nuclei were present in all cells, but
because these cells were so large and the
section (slice) was cut so thin, most nuclei
were cut away during the preparation of this
slide. One nucleus is still present (3160).
CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES 27

27

3
 11/2/2023

Collenchyma tissue
• extremely flexible structural tissue, primary wall
that remains thin in some areas but becomes
thickened most often in the corners
• usually elongated, are alive at maturity
• usually produced only in shoot tips and young
petioles, where the need for extra strength
justifies the metabolic cost
• usually produced only in shoot tips and young Collenchyma cells in longitudinal section
petioles (left) and cross section (right). Note the
elongated cells, evident in longitudinal
section, and the unevenly thickened
primary cell walls, evident in cross section.

Masses of collenchyma cells often occur in the outer parts of stems and leaf
stalks. This is part of a Peperomia stem. Collenchyma forms a band about 8
to 12 cells thick. The inner part of the stem is mostly parenchyma (350). (B) In
collenchyma cells, the primary wall is thicker at the corners so the protoplast
becomes rounded. No intercellular spaces are present

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

28

Sclerenchyma
• have both primary walls and
thick secondary walls that is
almost always lignified
• Two types of sclerenchyma
cells are sclereids and
fibers.
• Sclereids are cells of variable
shape common in the shells
of nuts and in the stones of
fruits such as cherries and
peaches.
• Fibers, which are long,
tapered cells that often occur
in patches or clumps, are Sclerenchyma cells (fibers) in longitudinal section (left)
particularly abundant in the and cross section (right). Mature fibers have thick
wood, inner bark, and leaf ribs secondary cell walls, are often dead at functional
(veins) of flowering plants maturity, and therefore lack nuclei and cytoplasm; the
lumen is the space formerly occupied by the living cell.
CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

29

4
 11/2/2023

The vascular tissue system consists of two complex

tissues
• Xylem conducts water and dissolved minerals from the roots to the
stems and leaves and provides structural support.
• In flowering plants, xylem is a complex tissue composed of four cell types:
tracheids, vessel elements, parenchyma cells, and fibers

• Phloem conducts food materials—that is, carbohydrates formed in

photosynthesis—throughout the plant and provides structural support.
• In flowering plants, phloem is a complex tissue composed of four different cell
types: sieve-tube elements, companion cells, phloem fibers, and phloem
parenchyma cells

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

30

XYLEM PHLOEM
It is consist of tracheids, vessels, Phloem tissue comprised of sieve
xylem parenchyma and xylem tubes,, companion cells, phloem
fibres parenchyma and phloem fibres

Mainly made up of dead cells Mainly made up of living cells

It conducts water and dissolved It translocate foods from the

minerals from the roots to the leaves to the storage organs of
aerial parts in an upward the plant
direction

Xylem and phloem form the vascular bundles

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES 31

31

5
 11/2/2023

Selected Cell Types in the Vascular Tissue System

Tracheid Sieve tube element
Description: Dead at maturity; Description: Living but lacks
lacks secondary wall at pits nucleus and other organelles at
Functions: Conduction of water maturity; end walls are sieve plates
and nutrient minerals; support Function: Conduction of sugar in
Location: Occurs in clumps in solution
xylem throughout plant body; Location: Phloem throughout plant
shown is an LM of a longitudinal body; shown is an LM of a
section of tracheids from white longitudinal section through a
pine (Pinus strobus) wood clump of sieve tube elements in a
squash (Cucurbita) petiole (leaf
stalk)

Vessel element Companion cell

Description: Dead at maturity; end Description: Living; has
walls have perforations; lacks
cytoplasmic connections with
secondary wall at pits
Functions: Conduction of water and sieve tube element
nutrient minerals; support Function: Assists in moving sugars
Location: Xylem throughout plant body; into and out of sieve tube
vessel elements are more efficient than element
tracheids in conduction; shown is an Location: Phloem throughout
LM of a longitudinal section of two
plant body; shown is an LM of
vessel elements from an unidentified
woody eudicot phloem from a squash (Cucurbita)
stem in cross section

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

32

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

33

6
 11/2/2023

The dermal tissue system consists of two complex

tissues
• Epidermis
• is the outermost layer of a herbaceous plant
• a complex tissue composed primarily of relatively unspecialized living cells
• Epidermal cells
• generally contain no chloroplasts and are therefore transparent
• aerial parts secrete a waxy cuticle over the surface of their exterior walls
• Guard cells of stomata
• Trichomes
• Root hairs are simple, unbranched trichomes that increase the surface area of the root epidermis
• Periderm
• replaces epidermis in woody plants
• complex tissue composed mainly of cork cells and cork parenchyma cells
• Cork cells are dead at maturity, their walls are heavily coated with suberin, which helps
reduce water loss
• Cork parenchyma cells function primarily in storage

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

34

Selected Cell Types in the Dermal Tissue System

Epidermal cell Trichome
Description: Relatively Description: Hair or other
unspecialized cell with thin epidermal outgrowth; may
primary wall; outer wall be unicellular or
often thicker and covered multicellular; occurs in
by a non-cellular waxy variety of sizes and shapes
layer (cuticle) Functions: Varied;
Functions: Protective absorption; secretion;
covering over surface of excretion; protection;
plant body; helps reduce reduction of water loss
water loss Location: Epidermis

Guard cell Cork cell

Description: Chloroplast- Description: Dead at maturity;
containing cell that occurs cell walls impregnated with
in pairs; pair changes waterproof material (suberin)
shape to open and close Functions: Reduces water loss
stomatal pore and prevents disease-causing
Function: Opens and closes organisms from penetrating
stomatal pore Location: Produced in large
Location: Epidermis of numbers; cork often forms just
stems and leaves; under the epidermis; replaces
epidermis in older stems and
roots;

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

35

7
 11/2/2023

Meristematic cells
• Plant growth involves three different processes:
• cell division - essential part of growth that results in
an increase in the number of cells
• cell elongation (the lengthening of a cell)
• cell differentiation - important aspect of growth
because it is essential for tissue formation

• When plants grow, their cells divide only in

specific areas, called meristems, which are
composed of cells whose primary function is to
form new cells by mitotic division.
• Meristematic cells, also known as stem cells, do
not differentiate

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

36

Two kinds of meristematic growth may occur in

plants.

• Primary growth is an increase in the length of a plant, which occurs

at the tips of stems and roots due to the activity of apical meristems.

• Secondary growth is an increase in the girth of a plant, due to the

activity of lateral meristems (the vascular cambium and cork
cambium).
• only gymnosperms and woody eudicots have extensive secondary growth
• tissues produced by secondary growth compose the wood and bark

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

37

8
 11/2/2023

Meristematic Tissue
• made up of immature, small and similar cells, which are constantly
dividing
• may be rounded, oval or polygonal; always living and thin walled
• each cell has abundant cytoplasm and prominent nuclei in it
• vacuoles may be small or absent

• Depending on the location, Meristematic tissue can be grouped into

three types:
• apical meristem
• lateral meristem
• intercalary meristem

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

38

Primary growth takes place

at apical meristems
Apical meristems are
located at the tips of stems
and roots
- responsible for the
increase in the length of
roots and stems
-Give rise to primary
tissues which are -Three primary meristems
-Protoderm → Epidermis
collectively called the -Procambium → 1o vascular tissue
primary plant body -Ground meristem → gives rise to 1o ground tissue

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

39

9
 11/2/2023

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

40

Secondary growth takes place at lateral

meristems
Lateral meristems are found
in plants that exhibit
secondary growth
-Give rise to secondary
tissues which are
collectively called the
secondary plant body

-Woody plants have two types

-Cork cambium or phellogen → Outer bark or periderm
-Vascular cambium → 2o vascular tissue

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES 41

41

10
 11/2/2023

Intercalary Meristems (found in the nodes of

grasses)

• Intercalary meristems-they are located at the

base of the nodes or internodes in leaves
e.g., stem of grasses & other monocots.
• It produces an increase of length of organ.

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

42

Permanent tissues
• Permanent tissues are those in which growth has stopped either
completely or for the time being.
• Cells of these tissues may be living or dead; and thin walled or thick
walled.
• Thin walled permanent tissues are generally living whereas the thick
walled tissues may be living or dead.
• Types of permanent tissues
(i) Simple tissues : Simple tissue is made up of only one type of cells.
Common simple tissues are parenchyma, collenchyma and sclerenchyma
(ii) Complex tissues : Complex tissue is made up of more than one type of
cells working together as a unit. Common examples are xylem and phloem

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

43

11
 11/2/2023

Thought Questions

• Grasses have special meristems at the bases of the leaves. Relate

this information to what you know about mowing the lawn.

• A couple carved a heart with their initials in a tree trunk, 4 feet above
ground level; the tree was 25 feet tall at the time. Twenty years later,
the tree was 50 feet tall. How far above the ground were the initials?
Explain your answer.

CROP SCIENCE CROP SCIENCE 1: AJMMACERES and MMMACERES

44

12