1. Unit: The Plant Kingdom
Biology
Unit: The Plant Kingdom

2. How are plants different?
Classified into Kingdom Plantae
Characteristics common to ALL plants:
Multicellular
Eukaryotic
Autotrophic (producers by the process of photosynthesis)
Cells have a cell wall made of cellulose

3. The Two Main Groups of Kingdom Plantae
Vascular Plants called tracheophytes
Plants that HAVE vascular tissues
Nonvascular Plants called bryophytes
Plants that do NOT have vascular tissues
Example: Mosses
***Vascular Tissue – specialized tissue that forms tube-like structures in a plant for the purpose of moving water and nutrients***

4. Vascular Plants
Divided into two groups based on the way they reproduce:
Seedless plants (Example: Ferns)
Seed plants
Divided into:
Gymnosperms (Example: Pine Tree)
Angiosperms
Monocots (Examples: Grasses)
Dicots (Example: Fruit Tree)

5. Non- Vascular Plants or Bryophytes
Belong to three different divisions:
Bryophyta (The Mosses)
Hepatophyta (The Liverwarts)
Antheocerophyta (The Hornworts)
Do not have vascular tissue
Do not have TRUE leaves, but instead have tissues that are only a few cells thick
Do not have roots…instead, they have rhizoids (used to anchor them in place)
Water and dissolved nutrients must move through the non-vascular plant by diffusion and osmosis
This process is a very slow way to move water and nutrients, so they cannot grow to be more than a few centimeters thick.

6. Non-Vascular Plants Cont…
Need moisture to reproduce…they can live on land but must live in a place where there is moisture.
During reproduction…they undergo alternation of generations
First stage is the gametophyte stage (the cells in this phase are haploid (n)
Second stage is the sporophyte stage (diploid cells (2n) undergo to meiosis in order to produce haploid (n) spores
These spores then germinate and undergo the gametophyte stage again.

7. Mosses The most well known non-vascular plant
Can live where there is very little soil
Many mosses can tolerate low temperatures
Resistant to most diseases and pollutants
Considered a ‘pest’ by some people.
Mosses also have a “stem-like” structure

9. Vascular Plants Called a tracheophyte
Has vascular tissues that transport water and nutrients throughout the body
Two types of vascular tissue:
Xylem – carries water and minerals from the roots of the plant up through to the rest of the plant
Phloem – carries the food molecules from the leaves (where the food is made during photosynthesis) to wherever food is needed in the plant.
If something harms the vascular tissue of a plant it can die from lack of water and nutrients

10. Seedless Vascular Plants
Have vascular tissue for transport
Do not produce flowers
Do not produce seeds for reproduction…instead the reproduce by using spores.
Most seedless vascular plants are found in warm moist regions of the world

11. 4 Divisions of Seedless Vascular Plants
Division Psilotophyta (includes Whisk ferns – very simple plants with no roots or true leaves)
Division Lycophyta (includes club mosses…look similar to bryophyte mosses but have true roots, leaves, and stems)
The spores from club mosses was used to make the flash for photograghers before electronic flashes were invented)
Division Sphenophyta (includes a group of plants called horsetails which used to be used to scrub pots and pans because they had a lot of silica in their stems)
Only one genus of Sphenophyta is not extinct today: genus Equisetum…for this reason, they are considered “living fossils”
Division Pterophyta (the ferns)
This is the 2nd largest division in the Plant Kingdom…and probably the most familiar

12. Characteristics and Structure of a Fern
Have true roots and leaves
Very thick underground stems called rhizomes.
The leaves are called fronds
Produce thousands of spores each year.
The spores are stored in brownish colored spore cases called sporangia…the sporangia are found on the underside of the of a frond
The roots and the fronds grow from nodes on the rhizomes
Need moisture for reproduction
The young leaves (called “fiddleheads”) are a delicacy for many animals

14. Fern Reproduction Do not produce flowers or seeds
Use of spores and need of water for reproduction is similar to mosses
Like all other plants, undergo alternation of generation…have a life cycle similar to that of a moss, but in ferns, the sporophyte is the dominant phase
(Nonvascular plants are the only ones that have a dominant gametophyte phase)
Steps of reproduction:
Diploid (2N) sporophyte produces haploid (n) spores by meiosis
The spores grow into the gametophyte (n)
The gametophyte produces gametes (sprem and egg cells) through the process of meiosis
When there is water present…a sperm cell can fertilize an egg cell
The fertilized cell then grows into another sporophyte and the cycle begins again.

15. Vascular Seed- producing Plants
Seeds are produced instead of spores…the use of seeds for reproduction eliminates the need for water because pollen that contains a sperm cell can travel by water, wind, or other means in order to fertilize an egg cell
Vascular Seed Plants are divided into
Gymnosperms
Angiosperms

16. Gymnosperms Produce seeds but do NOT produce flowers
“Gymnosperm” literally means “naked seed”…the gymnosperms get this name because they do not enclose the seed in fruit.
Some produce seeds in cones (but not all)

17. The 4 Divisions of the Vascular Seed Plants
Division Cyadophyta – The Cycads
Division Ginkophyta – only one species in this division can be found living today (Ginko biloba)
Division Gnetophyta – can be woody vines, small shrubs, or even turnip-like plants
Division Coniferophyta – The conifers…plants that produce seeds in cones. This division also includes the tallest trees: the Redwoods

18. Division Coniferophyta
Over 500 known species.
Includes pine trees, cedars, redwoods, spruces, and firs.
Have either scale-like or needle-like leaves, and many species are considered “evergreen” since they remain green all year.

19. Reproduction and Life Cycle of Conifers
Reproduce by producing seeds in cones
Alternation of generation with the dominate phase being the sporophyte phase.
The gametophyte of a conifer is VERY small and is actually contained in the sporophyte tissues.
Conifers such as pine trees produce two types of cones.
One smaller pollen cone that produces pollen grains that contain the male gametes or sperm cells
The larger cones contain the female gametes, or egg cells
In the spring, the pollen cones release huge amounts of pollen…some of which gets caught on the sticky material found inside the seed cone
The scales of the seed cone help to protect the seed,

21. Angiosperms
Often called “The Flowering Plants” because all angiosperms have reproductive structures called flowers.
Flowers serve a number of functions:
Attract insects that will help pollinate the plant
Contain a part called an ovary which develops into a fruit that protects the seed.
Pollination processes in angiosperms is much more efficient than in gymnosperms.
The term ‘angiosperm’ literally means “closed seed”.
The fruit of angiosperms serves as a food source for many organisms.
Divided into two major categories:
Monocots
Dicots

22. Seed Structure and Function
Each seed from an angiosperm has three main parts:
The seed coat
The embryo (or immature plant)
The stored food
The leaf part of the seed embryo is called a cotyledon (or seed leaf)…and often becomes the first leaf of the new plant once it sprouts
Monocots have one cotyledon
Dicots have two cotyledons

26. Other Differences in Monocots and Dicots
Monocots have parallel leaf veination
Dicots have branched veination in their leaves
Monocots have fibrous roots
Dicots have a main tap root

27. The following diagrams and pictures should summarize almost all of the differences between monocots and dicots

30. Reproduction in Angiosperms
The pistil is the female part of a flower and consists of the stigma, style, ovary, and ovule
Stigma – part of the female reproductive structure; has a sticky substance that helps the pollen grain to adhere.
Style – tube that connects the stigma with the ovary
Ovary – contains and protects the female gamete; becomes the fruit once fertilization has occurred.
Ovule – contains the female gamete or egg; becomes the seed once it has been fertilized.
The stamen is the male part of a flower and contains the anther and the filament
Anther – male reproductive structure of a flower that produces the pollen.
Filament – part of the male reproductive structure in a flower; “the stalk” that supports the anther.

31. Flower Structure Continued
Sepals – the green parts that cover the bud of the flower before it blooms…NOT directly involved in reproduction.
Petals – meant to attract insects and other animals that can help to pollinate the flower
***Flowers with both male and female reproductive structures are called Perfect Flowers. Flowers that only contain one reproductive structure (either male or female) are called Imperfect Flowers.
***If a flower has all four main parts (pistil, stamen, petals, and sepal) it is said to be a complete flower. If it does not have all four of these parts, it is an incomplete flower

36. Pollination and Fertilization
Pollination is the transfer of pollen to the female part of the flower.
Methods of pollination include:
Wind
Insects and other animals
Water

37. Pollination and Fertilization
The anther splits open to expose mature pollen grains.
The pollen is picked up by one of the pollinating agents.
While the pollen has been maturing, the egg cells have also been maturing in preparation for pollination and fertilization.
The stigma at the top of the pistil becomes “receptive”…so pollen can stick to it.
When the correct type of pollen sticks to the stigma, the pollen will form a pollen tube which travels down to the ovary from the pistil.
The pollen releases two sperm cells near the mature egg cell
Fertilization occurs when one of these pollen cells joins with the egg cell.
Once fertilization has occurred, the result is the formation of a zygote
The zygote develops into the embryo found in the seed.