Vascular Seed Plants Pg 572

Mobile Reproduction Seeds Tough outer covering with a nutrient supply for embryo germination 2 main groups of seed-bearing vascular plants; Gymnosperms are characterized by naked seeds and no flowers. cones Angiosperms have flowers and seeds enclosed by a fruit.

Phylum Cycadophyta Cycads are gymnosperms of the phylum Cycadophyta. Although cycads flourished during the age of the dinosaurs, only about 100 species survive today.

Phylum Ginkgophyta Like cycads, ginkgoes flourished during the time of the dinosaurs. The only species existing today is Ginkgo biloba, which is native to China.

Phylum Coniferophyta The conifers include; pine, cedar, redwood, fir, spruce, juniper, cypress, and bald cypress trees. They are important sources of wood, paper, turpentine, ornamental plants, and Christmas trees.

Phylum Gnetophyta Gnetophytes, an odd group of cone-bearing gymnosperms, have vascular systems that more closely resemble those of angiosperms.

Phylum Anthophyta Anthophyta, the largest phylum of plants, includes over 240,000 species of flowering plants. Angiosperms, or the flowering plants, are seed plants characterized by the presence of a flower and fruit.

Evolution of Angiosperms Angiosperms have been successful for many reasons, including the production of fruit that protects seeds, quick germination, and an efficient vascular system.

Familiar Families of Angiosperms

Dicots are distinguished from monocots on the basis of several characteristics: cotyledon number, leaf venation, arrangement of stem vascular tissue, and number of flower parts.