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Structure - Shoots
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Where does most of the elongation of the stems occur?
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internodes
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What do you expect to find at a node?
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- leaves
- axillary buds
- sometimes roots or stipules
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What is the origin of the pattern of leaf arrangement on a stem?
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the way that primodia are developed on the apex (phyllotaxy)
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How does the pattern of cell division in the tunica relate to the structure of the tissue to which it mainly contributes?
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Division at right angles to surface (periclinal) lead to spreading sheat of cells (epidermis).
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What kinds of primordia develop from the shoot apex?
leaf and bud
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Can you distinguish a zone of cell division and a zone of elongation in the shoot apex?
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no
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What is an intercalary meristem?
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Intercalary meristems continue stem elongation after other parts have matured. It would be at the base of a stem or leaf, allowing new tissue to be added from below.
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What separates the pith and cortex in a dicot stem?
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a ring of vascular tissues
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How would you distinguish a dicot with discrete bundles from a monocot?
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In dicots the bundles are in a ring.
In monocots the bundles are scattered.
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What are 'open' and 'closed' vascular bundles?
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Open vascular bundles have cambium and the possibility of further xylem and phloem.
There is no cambium in closed vascular bundles.
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How does a pith parenchyma cell get its oxygen?
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through intercellular spaces which lead out to stomata
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What happens to the vascular tissue near a node?
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strands pass out to leaf and bud, leaving "gaps" in the stem
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What is interfascicular cambium?
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a line of meristematic cells joining vascular bundles.
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The primary meristems of the plant are:
- the tunica and corpus
- root apical meristem and shoot apical meristem
- protoderm, procambium, and ground meristem
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- These are regions of the shoot apical meristem; the primary meristems are those responsible for growth of primary tissues of the plant and are a little way back from the apex of root and shoot.
- The primary meristems are those responsible for growth of primary tissues of the plant and are a little way back from the apex of root and shoot.
- Yes the protoderm gives rise to the epidermis of root and shoot, the procambium to the xylem and phloem in root and shoot; the ground meristem produces the cortex in root and shoot and the pith in the shoot.
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In dicot stems the vascular bundles tend to have:
- xylem on the outside
- phloem on the outside
- no meristematic cells
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- Wood is derived from the xylem and forms in the middle of the stem.
- Phloem is usually towards the outside of the stem (and consequently on the lower side of the veins in leaves).
- Dicot vascular bundles contain cambium.
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Monocot vascular bundles are called "closed" because they:
- are enclosed by a ring of fibers
- have no cambium
- are blocked at the ends
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- This may be true but is not the reason for the term "closed".
- An "open" bundle is one that has cambium and the potential for future growth. Monocots lack this feature and so are termed "closed".
- No, vascular bundles in monocots are not blocked at the ends.
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A vertically compressed underground stem storage structure is a:
- corm
- rhizome
- stolon
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- Corms are often confused with bulbs but even when they are covered with scale leaves they turn out to be mostly stem. Examples are Cyclamen and Gladiolus.
- A rhizome is a horizontal underground stem that is enlarged for food storage.
- A stolon is a horizontal stem growing along the ground and rooting at the nodes to produce new plants.
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Fusiform initials give rise to:
- lenticels
- ray parenchyma
- vessel and sieve elements
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- Fusiform initials are part of the vascular cambium; lenticels are a derivative of the cork cambium.
- As you might expect, ray initials give rise to ray parenchyma.
- Fusiform initials are elongated and it makes sense that they should give rise to vessel and sieve elements
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A major difference between dicots and conifers is that conifers lack:
- vessel elements
- cork cambium
- sieve elements
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- Yes, conifer xylem contains tracheids, but no vessels.
- Conifers have bark, just like dicot trees and it is formed by a cork cambium
- Sieve elements are an indispensable feature of vascular plants in general; how could conifers live without them?
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