TRANSPORT IN PLANTS

IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPORT IN PLANTS

Movement of substances required for photosynthesis e.g. CO2 and O2 from the
atmosphere to the leaf, light rays from the sun to the leaf, water from the soil to the leaf.
Movement of waste products of photosynthesis e.g. food products away from the leaf,
O2 away from the leaf.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PLANT AND ANIMAL TRANSPORT SYSTEMS
Plants have no pump (e.g. heart)
Plants have no specialized transport system (e.g. blood)
TRANSPORT SYSTEMS IN PLANTS
Plants have two types of transport vessels:
(a) Xylem vessels which carry water and minerals
(b) Phloem vessels which carry food material
XYLEM VESSELS
Structure

Long narrow tubes

Hollow tubes which are formed from elongated cells joined end to end
Tubes are open since end walls have disintegrated
Cells are dead, contain no cytoplasm and nuclei.
Cell walls thickened with lignin

Uses
Support since lignin is strong and helps keep the plant upright
Transport of material

PHLOEM VESSELS
Structure

Cells are joined end to end

Walls have perforated holes called sieve tubes
Cells are called sieve elements
Cells contain cytoplasm
Cells contain no nucleus
Each sieve element has a companion cell next to it which has a nucleus, this probably
controls both cells.

VASCULAR BUNDLES
Made up of xylem and phloem tubes close together, these arrangements can be found in roots
and shoots.
MOVEMENT OF WATER THROUGH PLANTS
This can be broken down into 5 stages:
1. Absorption of water by root hair cells
Water continuously moves into the root cell by osmosis since concentration of dissolved
substances in the leaf is higher than in water in the soil.
2. Movement of water across root cortex to the xylem via osmosis
This occurs since as water enters the xylem the neighbouring cell have a lower
concentration of water so water would move into them, the cells next to these will then
have a lower concentration so water will move into them and the process continues like
this.
3. Movement of water up the xylem via osmosis
Water moves up the xylem vessels because of three things: capillarity, root pressure and
transpiration. Capillarity occurs as a result of an attraction between the water molecules
and materials close to them this is called adhesion. Water molecules are also attracted to
each other this is cohesion. Both these occurrences together cause water molecules to
move up narrow tubes, this is called capillarity. The narrower the tube the higher the
water movement. Water is constantly absorbed in the root xylem which creates a high
pressure, water is constantly lost from the leaf xylem due to transpiration therefore the
pressure is lower than in the root xylem, so water moves from a region of high pressure to

a region of low pressure, this phenomenon is known as root pressure. Water is constantly
lost due to transpiration, this creates a continuous pull known as transpiration pull.
4. Movement of water across leaf cells
As water evaporates from the leaf concentration in those cells become lower, the adjacent
cells will then be higher in concentration than those cells, so water moves from the
adjacent cells into the other cells by osmosis.
5. Evaporation of water from leaves.
Water concentration in leaf cells is higher than in the air spaces around them, so water
evaporates from the cell to the airspace down a concentration gradient, this is known as
transpiration. It creates a pull of water through the plant.

TRANSPIRATION
The evaporation of water from a plant.
Importance:

Pulls water for photosynthesis

Movement of water transports dissolved mineral salts to the leaves
Evaporation helps in cooling the plant

The rate at which water is lost from the plant via evaporation is called transpiration rate.
Factors affecting transpiration rate:

Temperature: as temperature increases evaporation rate increases, since molecules have

more energy to become gaseous in nature.

Humidity: as humidity increases transpiration rate decreases, since the air would have a
greater water concentration so the concentration gradient would be less between the

plant and the air so less evaporation will occur.

Air movement: as air movement increases transpiration rate increases since vapour is

carried faster in the air.

Light intensity: as light intensity increases transpiration rate increases, since the
brighter the light the more the stomata are fully opened, so more water can escape.

Plants can be categorized according to the water availability in areas where they are able to live,
they include:
Xerophytes, these live in areas where water is scarce. e.g. cacti
Mesophytes, these live in areas where water is readily available.
Hydrophytes, these live in very wet fresh water environments. E.g. water lillies
Halophytes, these live in water with a high concentration of salt. E.g.mangrove
ADAPTATIONS OF PLANTS FOR WATER CONSERVATION

Reduce transpiration rate

Maximize water uptake
Spike like leaves to reduce transpiration
Thickened stems
Leaves capable of storing water
Extensive root systems
Thick epidermis covered with waxy cuticles
Ability to trap CO2 at night so stomata can be closed at daytime
Sunken stomata
Rolled leaves
Interlocking hairs
Photosynthetic stems

UPTAKE AND MOVEMENT OF MINERALS

Minerals are dissolved on the water which is taken up by the roots and then carried
throughout the plant in the xylem.
TRANSPORT OF MANUFACTURED FOOD
Food products and amino acids (a-a) are transported from the leaves via the phloem to
wherever they are needed.
NOTE: see text on page 122 for evidence of movement of food in phloem.
FOOD STORAGE

Food may be stored temporarily as starch in the leaf or longer in other parts of the plant.
Food may be stored for several reasons, these include:
Save energy by overcoming the need for food to be continuously made.
Food reserves during periods of scarcity
Food reserves for special functions e.g.
(1) Fruits, they are used to attract insects for seed dispersal
(2) Seeds, cotyledons or endosperms store starch protein and lipids which his
used up during germination since the seed is unable to photosynthesize.
(3) Storage stems
(4) Storage in vegetative organs, such as stems, roots or leaves these are food
reserves which allow plants to survive during times of scarcity.
Underground stems include: rhizomes, stem tubers, corms
Roots include: root tubers and tap roots
Underground leaves include bulbs