What's Inside a Plant?
Overview:
In this activity you will view images of the inside of real plants and label their different structures. This will help familiarize you with the different parts of a plant and their internal structures.
Assignment:
In this assignment you will review information about plants and the functions of their various parts. As you review, there are diagrams below which display the different plant parts. Each part has a corresponding number for you to write down and label using the BLUE BOLDED words that you find throughout the review. Then you will answer some discussion questions.
Plant Part Review:
Plants are made of many different parts. There are two main types of plants, angiosperms and gymnosperms. This assignment will focus on angiosperms. Angiosperms are separated based on how many seed leaves, or cotyledons, they have, and are broken up into two major groups, the monocots and dicots. Each type has differences between their arrangements of vascular bundles, roots, stems, leaves, and flowers.
Vascular bundles are transportation tubes that run throughout each part of the plant. They are made of xylem and phloem. Xylem is a type of vascular bundle that transports nutrients such as water and minerals. Xylem only transport nutrients upward from the roots and throughout a plant. Phloem is a type of vascular bundle that transports sugars. Phloem transport sugars in any direction throughout a plant.
The stem, roots, and leaves are made of three types of tissues: dermal, ground, and vascular, and each type of tissue serves a different purpose.
Roots are the part of a plant that is underground. Roots hold the plant down in the ground and absorb nutrients from the soil such as water and dissolved minerals. Dermal tissue and root hairs surround the roots and absorb nutrients and help with gas exchange. Ground tissue at the center of the roots, called the cortex, stores the products of photosynthesis.
Stems are the part of a plant that hold the different vascular tissues. They provide structure for a plant to grow vertically and support its branches and leaves. Stems can also photosynthesize by capturing sunlight in the chlorophyll of the chloroplasts in plant cells. The dermal tissue of stems forms a cuticle that surrounds the stem with a thick, waxy coat to prevent water loss. The stem also has a simple epidermis that sloughs off as the plant grows. Ground tissue can be found surrounding each vascular bundle as well as the pith in the center of the stem. The vascular tissue in stems forms the vascular bundles found sporadically placed throughout the stem.
Leaves are the part of a plant responsible for most of the sunlight capture and photosynthesis. Their purpose is to capture energy from sunlight with chlorophyll that is in the chloroplasts of the cells. Dermal tissue makes up the cuticle and epidermis of the leaf and these have small openings called stomata for gas exchange. The ground tissue in leaves makes up the mesophyll where sunlight is absorbed. The veins of the leaf are made of vascular tissue that distribute the products of photosynthesis throughout a plant.
Flowers are the part of a plant that contain its reproductive organs. They also house the seeds. Pollinators are attracted to the colorful petals of the flowers and help distribute pollen grains to other flowers. The female reproductive organ is the pistil. The pistil is made of stigma that catch pollen, the style that carries pollen to the seed, and the ovary and ovules that hold the seeds. The male reproductive organ is the stamen. The stamen contains the anther which holds sacs of pollen and is supported by the filament.
Below are the diagrams of each plant part to label with the blue bolded words that are found in the review above.
Leaf:
These images below are of a leaf. The image on the left is a microscopic image of a leaf, and the image on the right is a close-up image of a leaf with parallel veins.
Flower:
The image on the left is a microscopic image of a flower petal. The image on the right displays the reproductive organs of a flower. Below these is the diagram of a flower with a number for each part you will label.
Discussion Questions:
1. Where are seeds kept until they are fertilized?
2. What is the male reproductive cell that fertilizes seeds?
3. What is the purpose of vascular bundles?
4. What is the purpose of the stem?
5. What is the primary purpose of a leaf?
6. What part of a leaf allows for gas exchange?
7. What is a function of the roots?
8. What extends from the roots to give it more surface area to absorb water?
Submission:
You will submit a list of the numbered parts for both the diagram of a leaf and a flower as well as responses to the discussion questions.
Grading Rubric
