Kingdom Plantae Pima Medical Institute Veterinary Technician Program VTT 200-General Sciences-Biology

Kingdom Plantae Basic Characteristics All Plants Share these Traits: Eukaryotic Multicellular Autotrophic Photosynthesizers Cell wall made of cellulose Reproduce sexually and asexually

History of Kingdom Plantae Modern plants are decendents of algae As plants began to grow on land, they developed stalks and roots to help with the transition Algae is considered a member of Kingdom Protista, but are similar to plants in that they perform photosynthesis and have chloroplasts Algae provide many benefits to humans: -Produce huge amounts of oxygen -Help break down rocks and gravel to make soil -Used in many foods: ice cream, toothpaste, etc.

History of Kingdom Plantae First land plants were the transition organisms from protista to plantae: the nonvascular plants Lack vascular tissue to move water and nutrients They still rely heavily on moisture in the environment The mosses and liverworts reproduce asexually, there is no seed in these plants They are plants because they have chloroplasts and do photosynthesis and are not required to be under water like algae

Two Divisions of Plants Vascular Have tubes for movement of water and nutrients EX: Ferns (seedless) Gymnosperms (w/ cones, no fruit) Angiosperms (no cones, w/ fruit) NonVascular Do not have tubes for water and nutrient movement EX: Mosses & Liverworts

Vascular Plants Important evolutionary jump from non-vascular plants like mosses to plants with vessels These plants could live on more dry lands because they could hold water and nutrients within their vessels

Vascular Plants Vessels are: Xylem: conducts water UP through the plant Phloem: moves food and nutrients up and down throughout the plant Roots: Conduct water from under the ground and help anchor the plant

Vascular Plants Divided into two main groups: Vascular plants without seeds EX: Only the Ferns Vascular plants w/ seeds EX: All other vascular plants with seeds Shrubs, Trees, Flowers, etc.

Seedless Vascular Plants FERNS Still must have high levels of moisture Have true roots, stems, leaves (fronds) Contain xylem and phloem vessels Do not have seeds, but reproduce both asexually and sexually via spores called Alternation of Generation

Vascular Plants with Seeds As the environment became drier, plants needed a reproductive structure to enclose the developing egg and keep it moist and provide access to nutrients Seeds developed to house the fertilized egg, surrounded by nutrients This seed can be in many forms: typical fruit seed, pine cone, acorn, etc.

Seeds Reproductive structures that include a developing plant and a food reserve enclosed in a protective outer covering which are resistant to drying Contain enormous amount of high energy food (very fatty, that is why birds cannot survive on all seed diet—will become obese) Some come as cones (pines and evergreens) In this case: pines have female pine cones and male filament type extensions from their branches Most pines and evergreens can self-pollinate, the pollen is blown into the cone where it fertilizes the egg; the cone falls off and becomes the seed housing

Flowers Female Parts: Pistil: contains all female reproductive structures: Stigma: tip which is sticky to attract pollen Style: Stalklike structure enclosing the pollen tubule Ovary: entire base of pistil enclosing the ovule (will develop into fruit) Ovule: houses the egg (will develop into seed) Male Parts: Stamen: houses all male structures Anther: tip of filament containing the pollen granules Filament: stalklike protrusion to hold anther out for pollination

Flowers Non Sexual Parts: Petals: Flowers which attract pollinators Sepal: envelopes flower before it opens and helps keep it supported after opening Perfect plants have both male and female parts and can self-pollinate Imperfect plants have only one gender of reproductive parts and must cross-pollinate

Plant Sexual Fertilization (AKA Pollination) Ovules in female cones or pistil contain the egg cell Pollen in male cone parts or stamen are tiny granules of sperm covered with a tougher (than animal sperm) cell wall FYI: this is what gives you hay fever Pollination is when egg is fertilized with sperm by several methods of transfer: Insect, wind, animal, water,

Plant Sexual Fertilization (AKA Pollination) Self-pollination: Plant has both male and female parts and can pollinate itself Cross-pollination: Plant needs carrier of pollen from one plant with male part to another plant with female part Pollen must move down style or into cone and push through outer covering of ovule to reach egg Fertilization is the union of gametes (as in animal reproduction) NOTE: Self-pollinating plants still reproduce sexually, the plant simply contains both the male and female parts

Seed Vascular Plants Most of the plants on earth Do not need standing water in which to grow like mosses and ferns Seed can grow underground with some moisture applied to ground Divided into two major groups: Gymnosperms: cones, but no fruit Angiosperms: no cones, but with fruit

Gymnosperms and Angiosperms Do not have ovary or fruit protecting the seed— Mmost likely a cone— Examples Cycads: tropical plants like palm trees w/ cone in middle Conifers: largest group of gymnosperms—all make cones and most are evergreens—needles are leaves on these trees Angiosperms: Largest group of plants in world AKA-flowering plants Flowers contain reproductive parts and can be imperfect or perfect Ovary may develop into fleshy covering over seeds known as a fruit (following pollination) Many phyla and classes