Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
A leaf (pl.: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, [1] usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis.Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", [2] [3] while the leaves, stem, flower, and fruit collectively form the shoot system. [4]
Most plants have an epidermis that is a single cell layer thick. Some plants like Ficus elastica and Peperomia, which have a periclinal cellular division within the protoderm of the leaves, have an epidermis with multiple cell layers. Epidermal cells are tightly linked to each other and provide mechanical strength and protection to the plant.
Cotyledon from a Judas-tree (Cercis siliquastrum, a dicot) seedling Comparison of a monocot and dicot sprouting. The visible part of the monocot plant (left) is actually the first true leaf produced from the meristem; the cotyledon itself remains within the seed Schematic of epigeal vs hypogeal germination Peanut seeds split in half, showing the embryos with cotyledons and primordial root Two ...
Plants have two major organs systems. Vascular plants have two distinct organ systems: a shoot system, and a root system. The shoot system consists stems, leaves, and the reproductive parts of the plant (flowers and fruits). The shoot system generally grows above ground, where it absorbs the light needed for photosynthesis. The root system ...
The primary function of the translucent windows is to increase the absorption of radiant energy, and thereby the rate of photosynthesis. [5] Epidermal windows are commonly situated at the apex of leaves, allowing light to be captured and utilized even when the plant is almost entirely below the soil surface, [6] minimizing exposure of leaf surface area to desiccation by intense heat.
Palisade cells contain a high concentration of chloroplasts, particularly in the upper portion of the cell, making them the primary site of photosynthesis in the leaves of plants that contain them. Their vacuole also aids in this function: it is large and central, pushing the chloroplasts to the edge of the cell, maximising the absorption of ...
Leaf expansion is a process by which plants make efficient use of the space around them by causing their leaves to enlarge, or wither. This process enables a plant to maximize its own biomass, whether it be due to increased surface area; which enables more sunlight to be absorbed by chloroplasts, driving the rate of photosynthesis upward, or it enables more stomata to be created on the leaf ...
In plant morphology, a cataphyll (sometimes also called a cataphyllum [1] or cataphyll leaf [2]) is a reduced, small leaf. [3] Many plants have both "true leaves" (euphylls), which perform most of the photosynthesis, and cataphylls, which are modified to perform other functions. [4]