he object in Figure 35.1 is not the creation of a computer genius with a flair
for the artistic. It is a head of romanesco, an edible relative of broccoli. Romanescos mesmerizing beauty is attributable to the fact that each of its smaller buds
resembles in miniature the entire vegetable (shown below). (Mathematicians refer
to such repetitive patterns as fractals.) If romanesco looks as if it were generated
by a computer, its because its growth pattern follows a repetitive sequence of
instructions. As in most plants, the growing shoot tips lay down a pattern of stem
. . . leaf . . . bud, over and over again. These repetitive developmental patterns are
genetically determined and subject to natural selection. For example, a mutation
that shortens the stem segments between leaves will generate a bushier plant. If
this altered architecture enhances the plants ability to access resources such as
light and, by doing so, to produce more offspring, then this trait will occur more
frequently in later generationsthe population will have evolved.
Romanesco is unusual in adhering so rigidly to its basic body organization. Most
plants show much greater diversity in their individual forms because the growth
of most plants, much more than in animals, is affected by local environmental
conditions. All adult lions, for example, have four legs and are of roughly the same
size, but oak trees vary in the number and arrangement of their branches. This is
hotosynthetic plants carry out the most remarkable biochemistry of any terrestrial organisms.
Using the energy in sunlight and the simplest of starting materialscarbon dioxide, water,
and ions containing nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and other key atomsplants synthesize thousands of different carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids. They use these compounds to build bodies that may live for thousands of years.
This feat is even more impressive when you consider that the simple starting materials that plants
need to grow are tiny and diffusecarbon dioxide molecules, water molecules, nitrate ions, and
other resources are usually found at low concentrations over a large area. To gather the raw materials required for their sophisticated biosynthetic machinery, a plants roots and shoots grow outward,
extending the individual into the soil and atmosphere.
In essence, a plants body harvests diffuse resources and concentrates them in cells and tissues. The structure of its body is dynamic, because most plants exhibit indeterminate growth; that is,
they grow throughout their lives. A 4750-year-old bristlecone pine
has roots and shoots that are still growing. In response to favorable
conditions, a plant sends shoots and roots in the most promising
directions, seeking light and the simple compounds it requires.
The contrast between the plant and animal way of life is striking. Most animals move around, eat concentrated sources of
food, and avoid stressful conditions. But plants stay in one place,
extend their roots and shoots to harvest diffuse resources, make
their own food, and cope with stress where they stand.
34_LIFE10E.indd 709
of which forms in the angle (axil) where a leaf meets the stem.
A bud is an undeveloped shoot that can develop further to produce another leaf, a phytomer, a flower, or a flowering stem.
The axillary buds (also called lateral buds) are distinguished
from the bud at the end of a stem or branch, which is called a
terminal bud. If it becomes active, an axillary bud can develop
into a new branch, or an extension of the shoot system. The arrangement of leaves along the stem (called the phyllotaxy) is
characteristic of the plant species.
Plant roots also have a modular construction. In the roots,
each phytomer consists of a root segment between two
branches.
Eudicots usually have taproot systems; monocots have fibrous root systems.
Monocot pollen grains each have one furrow or pore; eudicot pollen grains have three.
11/5/12 9:34 AM
Shoot apex
Flower
Stipule
Tendril
Axillary bud
Shoot
Vein
Leaflet Leaf
Internode
Blade
Petiole
Node
Vascular system
Primary root
Lateral root
Root
Root apex
Eudicot
Terminal bud
Axillary bud
Phytomer
Node
The shoot system
consists of stems
and leaves, in
which photosynthesis
takes place.
Internode
Node
Internode
Petiole
Branch
Leaf
Blade
Stem
Roots
key point
The tissue systems are continuous throughout the plant. For example, the vascular tissue system in a leaf is continuous
with the vascular tissue system in the stem to which it is attached.
(a) Leaf
Dermal tissue system
Vascular tissue system
Ground tissue system
(b) Stem
Dermal tissue system
Vascular tissue system
Ground tissue system
(c) Root
Figure 33-2 Animation The three tissue systems in the plant body
This figure shows the distribution of the ground tissue system, vascular tissue system, and dermal tissue
system in a herbaceous eudicot such as Arabidopsis.
Cengage Learning
Overview of meristems
Meristems are clumps of small cells with dense cytoplasm and
proportionately large nuclei that act as stem cells do in animals. That is, one cell divides to give rise to two cells, of which
one remains meristematic, while the other undergoes differentiation and contributes to the plant body (figure 36.3). In this
way, the population of meristem cells is continually renewed.
Molecular genetic evidence supports the hypothesis that animal stem cells and plant meristem cells may also share some
common pathways of gene expression. Extension of both root
and shoot takes place as a result of repeated cell divisions and
subsequent elongation of the cells produced by the apical
meristems. In some vascular plants, including shrubs and
most trees, lateral meristems produce an increase in root and
shoot diameter.
Meristem cell
Cell division
Many herbaceous plants (that is, plants with fleshy, not woody
stems) exhibit only primary growth, but others also exhibit
secondary growth, which may result in a substantial increase
of diameter. Secondary growth is accomplished by the lateral
meristemsperipheral cylinders of meristematic tissue within
the stems and roots that increase the girth (diameter) of gymnosperms and most angiosperms. Lateral meristems form from
ground tissue that is derived from apical meristems. Monocots
are the major exception (figure 36.5).
Although secondary growth increases girth in many
nonwoody plants, its effects are most dramatic in woody
Meristem cell
Differentiated cell
Cell division
Meristem cell
Differentiated cell
Cell division
Differentiated cell
Apical meristems
Apical meristems are located at the tips of stems and roots
(figure 36.4). During periods of growth, the cells of apical meristems divide and continually add more cells at the tips. Tissues
derived from apical meristems are called primary tissues, and
the extension of the root and stem forms what is known as the
primary plant body. The primary plant body comprises the
young, soft shoots and roots of a tree or shrub, or the entire
plant body in some plants.
rav32223_ch36_729-752.indd 731
Lateral meristems
Meristem cell
11/16/09 11:40:41 AM
Young leaf
primordium
Shoot apical
meristem
Older leaf
primordium
Lateral bud
primordium
100 m
dermal tissue
ground tissue
vascular tissue
rav32223_ch36_729-752.indd 732
11/16/09 11:40:44 AM
Tubelike structure
(64 cells)
Flattened structure
(64 cells)
Volume = 8,000,000 m3
(64 cells x 125,000 m3/cell)
Volume = 8,000,000 m3
(64 cells x 125,000 m3/cell)
Volume = 8,000,000 m3
(64 cells x 125,000 m3/cell)
FIGURE 37.2 The Morphology of Roots and Leaves Gives Them a High Surface-Area-to-Volume Ratio. In
this example, the thick structure represents a tree trunk or potato-like storage organ; the tubelike structure
represents a root; the flattened structure represents a leaf. Note that each schematic structure has the same
number of cells and the same total volumebut a very different surface area.