Parts of Plants
The main parts of any plant--the roots, stem, leaves, fruit and flowers--can be further broken down into distinct components. Each part has evolved and modified to serve a vital function. Many plants have developed specialized adaptations to suit the plants' particular needs. Does this Spark an idea?
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Roots
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The root transfers nutrients up into the plant and anchors the plant in place. Aerial roots grow out from the stem above soil level and cling to supports. The rhizome, an underground fleshy stem found for example in ginger and iris, sends out roots and shoots.
Stems
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Stems store and carry nutrients throughout the plant. They also hold the plant fairly rigid and upright. The stolon is a stem that propagates new roots at its tip. Instead of a stem, a cactus has an areole, which are the raised areas on which flowers or bristles grow.
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Leaves
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The leaf gathers sunlight and convert the light into food. Veins or ribs carry nutrients. Leaves vary in shape from broad and flat to thin spikes. The glochids, modified leaves, form bristles on a cactus.
Fruits
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The fruit acts as the ovary of the plant. The seeds within cannot germinate until the fruit either rots or is eaten by an animal and the seeds then scattered. The fruit surrounding the seeds is composed of three parts, together called the pericarp. The exocarp, the tough outer protective coat, more commonly is known as the peel, or skin. The mesocarp is the soft, edible, often fragrant fleshy part of the fruit. The endocarp is the hard covering protecting the seed, sometimes known as the stone.
Flowers
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The flower, usually conspicuous, attract birds and insets that will cross pollinate.
The anther produces pollen. It sits on the stamen in the middle of the flower. This sticks out far enough so pollen will rub off on the feeding insect. The stigma, the female part of the flower, receives the pollen.
Another name for flower petals are the corolla. A modification of the corolla is the spadix, which resembles a spike covered with small flowers. This is surrounded by the spathe, a specialized leaf resembling a hood. An example would be the peace lily.
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