Vascular Bundles
A vascular bundle mainly consists of the xylem and the phloem. Vascular bundles are continuous tube-like strands that connect the vascular tissue in the roots to the vascular tissue in the leaves. In the root the vascular tissue forms a central cylinder or core. This cylinder branches out in the stem to form several separate vascular bundles. In dicots the vascular bundles form in a discontinuous ring. In monocots the vascular bundles are scattered throughout the stem in no order or pattern.
Xylem
Xylem tissue forms when certain plant cells thicken which provides structural support for the plant. The xylem is specialized tissue in vascular bundles that carries water and other minerals through the plant. The structure of the xylem starts with living cells that grow end-to-end in the immature stem. The living contents die at maturity and non-living cell walls stay in their place and continue to pass fluids through the trechieds and vessel elements.
Transportation in the xylem:
Water is absorbed at the roots by root hairs and epidermal cells by osmosis. In the stem water and minerals move through the xylem by diffusion into other tissues of the plant. In the leaf the xylem branches many times and forms veins which are visible.
Transportation in the xylem:
Water is absorbed at the roots by root hairs and epidermal cells by osmosis. In the stem water and minerals move through the xylem by diffusion into other tissues of the plant. In the leaf the xylem branches many times and forms veins which are visible.
Phloem
The phloem transports organic materials such as nutrients, hormones and other dissolved food through the plant. The walls of the phloem are porous which allows exchange of minerals with neighbor cells. The phloem is made up of living cells that contain cytoplasm. The phloem also consists of sieve tubes, sieve plates and sieve elements. The phloem also has companion cells beside it to direct the movement of liquids.
Transportation in the phloem:
The phloem must be living in order for any transportation to occur. Material in the phloem can be move in both directions at the same time. The phloem is capable of transporting large amounts of material quite rapidly; however speed of transportation may vary depending on the material and the weather conditions. There is still a debate of how transportation occurs in the phloem.
Glucose is produced by photosynthesis which is then converted into starch to be stored in the tiny grains of the chloroplast. Starch grains are stored in the cortex cells of the roots. Starch is insoluble in water and therefore has to be broken down into sucrose that can be dissolved in water and transported through the plant.
Translocation in the phloem:
Translocation means transportation of food from one region in a plant part to another.
How translocation occurs:
1) Sugary tree sap rises in the spring when there are no leaves which means there will be no transpiration (transpiration-tension therefore not responsible for movement in the phloem).
2) Phloem moves food from regions of low concentration to regions of high concentration (not movement through diffusion because diffusion is high to low concentrated regions).
3) The phloem is made of living cells which use oxygen while they are moving food.
It is therefore concluded that translocation is an active process. The living cells of the phloem provide energy for translocation through their own cellular respiration.
Transportation in the phloem:
The phloem must be living in order for any transportation to occur. Material in the phloem can be move in both directions at the same time. The phloem is capable of transporting large amounts of material quite rapidly; however speed of transportation may vary depending on the material and the weather conditions. There is still a debate of how transportation occurs in the phloem.
Glucose is produced by photosynthesis which is then converted into starch to be stored in the tiny grains of the chloroplast. Starch grains are stored in the cortex cells of the roots. Starch is insoluble in water and therefore has to be broken down into sucrose that can be dissolved in water and transported through the plant.
Translocation in the phloem:
Translocation means transportation of food from one region in a plant part to another.
How translocation occurs:
1) Sugary tree sap rises in the spring when there are no leaves which means there will be no transpiration (transpiration-tension therefore not responsible for movement in the phloem).
2) Phloem moves food from regions of low concentration to regions of high concentration (not movement through diffusion because diffusion is high to low concentrated regions).
3) The phloem is made of living cells which use oxygen while they are moving food.
It is therefore concluded that translocation is an active process. The living cells of the phloem provide energy for translocation through their own cellular respiration.
Liquid in Xylem
If you analyzed the liquid found in the xylem, the most abundant component that would be found would be water. The xylem is a specialized tissue for carrying water, the xylem is used to transport water through the plant and therefore would be the largest component found.
Damage to the Xylem or Phloem
If the whole xylem or phloem was damaged to the point of not being able to carry materials through it then the plant would die. If the xylem or phloem could not carry their materials throughout the plant then no parts of the plant would be able to receive all of the mandatory substances it needs for survival. If a smaller part of the xylem or phloem was damaged such as where the vascular bundle branches off into a leaf then it would only be one leaf that cannot give and take nutrients so only that leaf would die.
Retrieval of Tree Sap
The rate of which maple sap can be retrieved will increase at night. This is because plants avoid opening their pores during the day because transpiration occurs more rapidly when the sun is out. If plants open their pores during the day they are more likely to get dehydrated because their fluids evaporate quicker. Therefore the phloem can transport sap at night with less transpiration which allows the plants to open their pores and not get dehydrated.
Metal Plate Inserted in a Tree
A metal plate interrupted the flow of materials in a tree. The results were that the sugar concentration was higher above the plate and the concentration of water was higher below the plate. These results make sense because water is absorbed in the roots of a plant and if the plate is blocking the xylem from transporting the water up towards the leases then the water has no where else to go but to stay at the bottom of the plant. Same goes for the phloem. Sugar such as sucrose is created in the leaves then transported down throughout the plant but these sugars cannot get past the metal plate and stay at the top of the plant. The materials are unable to move from where they are produced or absorbed with alters the concentrations within the plant.
Tree Syrup
Maple syrup mainly consists of sucrose and water. To see if you could make syrup with other tree saps you would have to know if the tree produces sucrose (which it probably does) and find a way to secrete the sucrose from the tree. Even if the sucrose is able to be secreted it might not be naturally flavored like maple sap.
The Leaf
The primary role of a leaf is to convert the sun's energy into food for the plant through photosynthesis. Leaves contribute oxygen and food to the biosphere and provides shade and camouflage for organisms. Fallen leaves provide habitat and food for decomposers. The layers of the leaf are the epidermis, stoma, spongy layer, vascular tissue and palisade cells
Leaf: Epidermis
The epidermis of the leaf protects the interior tissues. Cell margins of the epidermis fit tightly against neighbor cells. The epidermis, if remained unbroken, also repels invaders such as fungi and bacteria. The epidermis is not completely waterproof, the water proof function on the leaf is performed by the cuticle. The cuticle is a waxy, non-living layer that covers the body of the leaf. The cuticle blocks the passage of gasses; however the cuticle and most of the epidermal cells are transparent which allows light to penetrate through to the leaf's interior.
Leaf: Stoma
A stoma is a pore-like opening in the plants epidermis. Stomata are especially numerous on the underside of the leaf. The function of the stomata is to permit gas exchange between the leaf interior and the external environment. Stomata are boarded by two guard cells which regulate the rate of gas exchange by controlling the size of the stoma. Guard cells have thickened inner walls. Each cell is girdled by several non-stretchy microscopic rings. In order to open the stoma water flows into the guard cells from surrounding cells which causes an increase in water pressure which pushes on the cell membranes. The microscopic rings prevent cells from increasing in diameter so they expand in length instead. The built up water pressure causes the cells to curve outward which causes the space between the guard cells to increase. For the stoma to close the water flows out of the guard cells which results in a decreased water pressure when allows the cells to go back to normal length and lose the bulging curve.
Leaf: Spongy Layer
Every cell inside the leaf is full of water. Cells release water molecules all of the time. These water vapor molecules move into the spaces between the spongy cells. The water molecules in spongy spaces between cells escape as water vapor through the stomata. This process is called transpiration.
Leaf: Vascular Tissue
The veins in the leaf are vascular tissue made of xylem and phloem which are long, thin strands. These veins conduct water and dissolved minerals in and out of the leaf. Once the leaf produces food by photosynthesis and dissolved carbohydrates must exit leaf so food can be delivered to non-photosynthesizing parts of the plant.
The veins perform three fluid conducting functions:
1) Conduct water into leaf.
2) Conduct dissolved minerals into leaf.
3) Conduct dissolved carbohydrates (nutrients) out of the leaf.
The veins perform three fluid conducting functions:
1) Conduct water into leaf.
2) Conduct dissolved minerals into leaf.
3) Conduct dissolved carbohydrates (nutrients) out of the leaf.
Leaf: Palisade Cells
This is the principal light-conducting layer of a dicot leaf that is composed of tall, thin cells than stand upright. Only small parts of the palisade surface area is exposed to the incoming light. The bottom end of the palisade cells are exposed to gasses in the spongy layer. The result of this formation is that plenty of energy and raw materials are available to each cell. The arrangement maximizes light collection to make photosynthesis efficient.