Parts of a Plant

Remember the old joke that had to do with which came first the chicken or the egg routine.

Well here we go again with which came first the seed or the plant which must produce flowers and then seed. We don’t have an answer for this at least based on science.

We promised on our home page to keep all information on our site in everyday terms and that is what you will find as follows:

There are two types of seeds monocotyledon (the seed contains only one cotyledon) and dicotyledon (these seeds have two cotyledons).

A good example of a monocot is a corn seed while a bean seed is described as a dicot. The cotyledon along with the endosperm supplies food for the young plant and forms the first leaf or leaves of the new plant.

During germination the first part of the plant to emerge from the seed is the main root. Then the top shoot begins to develop and grows upward through the soil.

The cotyledon(s) surround and along with the endosperm supply nutrients to the embryo.

As the shoot breaks the surface it straightens and in the case of a dicot the cotyledons unfold and form a set of immature leaves. As the new plant proceeds upward the main root has already developed to the point of forming lateral roots.

During all that is going on with the tiny plant it is at this time the first set of true leaves are formed.

Let’s fast forward to a more mature plant and keeping to the basics the various parts of a plant are:

• Starting from under the soil and working our way upward there is the primary root with the lateral roots branching off from it.
  
  

• Then we come to the crown or, loosely put, where the root system joins the stem.

• Proceeding up the stem we find the cotyledon(s) or immature first set of leaves.
  
  

• Next in line would be the leaf node(s), then the axillary bud makes its appearance. The space on the stem which is in between two nodes is referred to as the internode. Nodes and internodes continue to repeat over and over until the terminal bud is reached.

The leaf of a plant is called a blade. The tiny lines within the leaf are veins which connect to the petiole or stem. The point where the blade or leaf stem makes contact with the main stem is the axil.

Leaf blades develop either as a simple or compound leaves. The greater the number of compound leaves the more feathery the appearance of the leaf.

Other features of leaves such as overall shape, vein patterns, and leaf margins are noted by Botanists for taxonomic classification purposes. Generally, each family within the plant kingdom shares common characteristics.

Once the family has been identified, then further subdivision to the genus and specie can be accomplished by using a plant key.

Now let’s discuss the basic anatomy and function of the flower. The flower of a plant consists of many parts.

The primary function of flowers is for plant reproduction. Secondary functions include providing a food source for animals such hummingbirds and butterflies.

However, all plants flower for only one reason which is to reproduce the species.

Flowers contain the reproductive parts which can be clever lures, in other words they make their presence known. Brightly colored petals in stark contrast to the leaves help attract insects and other small animals. Floral scents and landing areas attract insects for pollination.

The male reproductive organ is called the stamen which bears anthers that contain pollen.

The female reproductive organ is called the pistil, which contains an ovary, style, and stigma.

When a plant has matured to the point of flowering and when the stigma is pollinated, the seed(s) begin to form.

Please bear in mind this is a gross simplification of the reproductive parts and strategies for flowering plants.

This serves only as a brief explanation so as to introduce the basics of the flowering plant reproduction process.