1. BY: D. GAGON S. NGUYEN H. HAYASHI
NONVASCULAR PLANTS
BY:
D. GAGON
S. NGUYEN
H. HAYASHI

2. Physiological Characteristics
Non vascular plants do not have a vascular system
These plants do not have the xylem and phleom
Xylem: conducts water and dissolves nutrients
Phleom: conducts sugar and other metabolic products
Produces energy through photosynthesis (occurs at the top off the plant)

3. Physiological Characteristics
Do not have real leaves. stems, roots
Obtain water by living in moist places
Distribute water through capillary actions, diffusion, cytoplasmic streaming

4. Morphological Characteristics
Morphological characteristics of non-vascular plants include protonema, gametophores, rhizoids, archegonia, antheridium, and three parts to the sporophyte which include the foot, seta, and sporangium.
Protonema: branched, one-cell filaments that sprout from germinating moss spores. Each one will sprout one "bud" which will form into a gametophore.
Protonema plus one or more gametophores equals a gametophyte
Gametophore: gamete-producing structure
Rhizoids: the "root" system of a gametophyte that only serves as an anchor and is not used in water or mineral obtaining processes
Archegonia: eggs are produced here and wait for sperm
Antheridium: sperm producing structure (on gametophore)

5. Morphological Characteristics
Sporophyte
Foot: absorbs water and nutrients from the gametophyte.
Seta: the stalk which transports materials to sporangium
Sporangium(capsule): produces spores through meiosis which are released
Peristome: upper part of capsule that open under dry conditions and closes when wet
Hornwort and Moss sporophytes both have stomata

6. THE LIFE CYCLE OF NONVASCULAR PLANTS
Alteration of generations
Pt I: Gametophyte
Male plant makes sperm in the antheridium through mitosis
Female plant makes eggs in the archegonium through mitosis
Water brings sperm to the egg where they fuse to create a dipliod zygote which grows into a sporophyte
Pt II: Sporophyte
Sporophyte grows on the mother until it cracks and a stem grows out with a calyptra cap on top
The capsule under the calyptra releases the spores (asexual)

7. THE LIFE CYCLE OF NONVASCULAR PLANTS
Special case of Liverworts
Can produce asexually through…
Fragmentation: the breaking off of a fragment of the plant which lands to become a separate, independent plant
Gemmae cups: gemmae is tissue which grows in the cup and when overflowed with water, cells land and form new liverwort plants
The gametophyte stage is dominant
The sporophytes grow from and are dependent on gametophytes for the water and nutrients to perform photosynthesis in the top of the plants

8. Life Cycle

9. EVOLUTIONARY TRENDS
Green algae (protist): the most recent ancestor to nonvascular plants and vascular plants
Vascular plants branched off when sporophyte evolved to become dominant in the life cycle
Speciation occurs between plants with the development of seeds, seed within fruit, flowers, and leaf modification
Overtime, development of root-shoot-leaf axis and vascular system (xylem and phloem)

10. EVOLUTIONARY TRENDS
Nonvascular plants are oldest plant at 475 million years old
Oldest of the bryophyta (moss, liverwort, hornwort) plants is believed to be the liverwort
Molecular, physiological, and genetic data describes nonvascular plants as oldest
Limited to environments high in moisture/water, have spores not seeds
The necessity of water shows they derived from an underwater environment such as the green algae (common ancestor)

13. Ecological Significance
Some fish and other species eat these non-vascular plants
It provides insects with habitats
It can live on trees and if it gets extra water it can give that to the tree

14. Ecological Significance
Many Bryophyte species regulate various gases and minerals both in soil and in the atmosphere
Peat moss (moss genus Sphagnum) is a prime example of an atmospheric gases regulator
Due to phenolic compounds (similar to alcohol) peat moss does not readily decay after death and it has large empty cells that trap large amounts of CO2
Estimated at 400 billion tons of organic carbon is stored in peat
Overharvesting can contribute to global warming
Also due to the fact that peat moss does not decompose readily, it provides a unique wetland environment that is home to many types of bacteria that only grow in peatlands.

15. Economical Significance
Peat Moss has been a readily used fuel source in much of Europe, Asia, Ireland, and Canada.
90% of the world's peat moss comes from areas in and around Canada which contributes to their economy
It is also commercially used as a soil conditioner.
Peat moss has recently started to be used in horticulture as a soil conditioner which can lower the Ph of the soil to allow for better growth of plants that require a lower Ph.