Plant structure and diversity

Learning outcomes:

• Describe features that make plants useful to us

• Describe the main features of the plant life cycle, especially reproductive aspects

• Identify parts of the plant and modifications of stems and roots

• Distinguish different fruit types.

Plant defence mechanisms: Chemical/Physical: Plants cannot move so it these features are important in protecting themselves.

• Toxins that are produced that prevent insects from eating insect parts

• Dense hairs

• Trichomes are hairs, theres glandular stores oils and non glandular trichomes

• Physical can be spikes in a cactus, that can form spines to prevent water loss

• Reproduction, stuck in the ground. They can use pollen from flowers to spread gene and seeds that are apart of the fruits.

Indeterminate growth and determinate growth: Plants are indeterminate while humans for example are determinate.

Meristems: Plants have modular growth so they can grow from different regions of actively dividing cells known as meristems: Apical growth upwards. Lateral growth sideways.

 Easily manipulated

• Tissue grafting

• Plant transformations- vegetative bits and genomes

• Wilting plant that gets water, if it has not reached it cwp it can grow back well.