Metabolic Processes in Plants

•PLANTS- are producers because they can make their own food through photosynthesis.
Consumers, particularly people and animals, depends on plants for food, oxygen, and energy.
Plants are structurally built and have Evolved in such a way that they can effectively compete for light, water, minerals and carbon
dioxide the basic requirements for plant life.
•PHOTOSYNTHESIS - the process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon
dioxide and water.

PLANT STRUCTURE
flowering plants have two organ systems: The root system and the shoot system

• Root system - penetrates the soil from which he roots perform three main functions:
1. They hold the plant to the ground and keep it from toppling over.
2. They absorb water and other nutrients crucial to the plant's growth and development
3. They serve as storehouse for reserve food for plants.
- the root system also includes the parts of the plant that grows underground, such as bulbs, rhizomes and tubers
As soon as a seed in the ground begins to grow, it puts out its first root to draw water and nutrients from the soil. The developing root
is called the radicle.

Parts of The Roots

Roots perform their main functions through their specialized parts: roots caps, root hairs, Primary root, and secondary roots.
•Root caps - are groups of cells at the tip of the root that protect it while forcing its way through soil.
•Root hairs - are hairlike growths on the root. They do most of the work involved in securing and absorbing nutrients and water from
the soil.

The 2 biggest part of the root:

•Primary root - grows downward from the radicle and serves as the major pathway for the transport of nutrients from the smaller roots
to the stem.
•Secondary roots develop from the primary root and usually grow sideward or downward.

ROOTS AND ACTIVE TRANSPORT OF MINERALS

Minerals are inorganic substances found in rocks and soil, and are important for plant growth.
A plant grows poorly if it has insufficient supply of one or more minerals. However, the roots of plants can draw only minerals that
dissolve in water. The Cell Membrane of root hairs contains active carrier proteins that pump mineral ions from the soil into the plant
through a process called active transport.

SHOOT SYSTEM
- consists of all the plant parts that grow above the ground, Particularly the stem and leaves. In Flowering plants, it may include the
buds, flowers, fruits, and seeds

THE STEM
 Is the part of the plant that supports the leaves and flowers. It also serves as the main pathway for the transport of water and nutrients
to other plant parts.
The plant body through small pipelike parts: xylem and phloem

2 types of meristem
Apical meristem is located at the tip of main stem and is the site of new growth for the plant it produces the terminal bud.
Lateral meristem surrounds the stem and is responsible for the stem’s secondary growth or growth in width and thickness. From it
develops the lateral bud, which grows on the sides of the stem.

The Leaves
Leaves – are vital to plant life because they turn sunlight into stored energy in sugars through photosynthesis, the process by which
plants make their food. From this process leaves also make the oxygen that people and animals need.
The broadest part of a leaf is called blade, this is attached to the plant’s stem by the leaf’s slender stalk called petiole. Running through
the center of the blade is the midrib the structure that serves as the leaf’s backbone.
The arrangement of the veins in a leaf’s called leaf venation.
Leaf venation can be parallel or netted. Plants such as corn, onion and common grass have parallel venation.
Plants like: Gumamela, Santol and rose have net venation.

Different layers of the leaf

1. Upper epidermis – the upper layer of surface cells
2. Mesophyll - the middle layer of cells.
3. Lower epidermis – the lower part of surface cells

 The upper epidermis is covered with waxy Cuticle that serves as protective covering for the leaf and helps the plant to
prevent or minimize water loss.
 Mesophyll consist mainly of cells equipped with chloroplasts, the plant cells where photosynthesis takes place.
 Stomata - Natural openings in leaves and herbaceous stems that allow for gas exchange (water vapor, carbon dioxide and
oxygen).
The Mesophyll is made up of two Sections:
Palisade
Spongy
Palisade layer has cells with numerous chloroplasts
Spongy layer contains loosely arranged cells with many air spaces between them, making it the chief site of gas exchange
among the different parts of leaf.

 Air enters through the stomata that are found in the spongy layer and circulated freely in the spaces among the cells.
 The mesophyll also contains leaf veins called Xylem and phloem.
 Xylem moves the water and nutrients from the roots to the leaf.
 Phloem helps to move the food produced in the leaf to different plant parts.
Written
Report
By:
Jamie Lyn D. Coria
Heart Felices