Key Terms
Shoot system
Stems, leaves, flowers, fruits. Everything above ground (mostly).
Root system
Anchors the plant; absorbs water and minerals from soil. Mostly underground.
Meristematic tissue
Actively dividing cells. Undifferentiated or incompletely differentiated.
Permanent tissue
Cells that have stopped dividing. Differentiated.
Apical meristems
Tips of stems and roots. Drive length increase (primary growth).
Lateral meristems
Drive thickness increase (secondary growth). Include vascular cambium and cork cambium.
Intercalary meristems
ONLY in monocots. Found at nodes and leaf bases.
Dermal tissue
Outer covering. Protection and gas exchange.
Vascular tissue
Xylem and phloem. Complex tissue (multiple cell types).
Ground tissue
Photosynthesis, storage, and structural support for vascular tissue. Between dermal and vascular layers.
Xylem
Water and minerals, roots to leaves. Three cell types: tracheids, vessel elements, xylem parenchyma.
Phloem
Sugars and organic compounds from photosynthesis to the rest of the plant. Four cell types: sieve-tube cells, companion
Vascular bundles in stems
Xylem and phloem always adjacent.
Parenchyma
Most common plant cell. Photosynthesis, starch storage, wound repair.
Collenchyma
Elongated, unevenly thickened walls. Alive at maturity.