I promised you some answers to last week’s quiz, and they’re at the bottom of the page. First, however, here are some pictures to remind you that Saturday is Valentine’s Day.
It Takes Two
Tag: xylem
Phloem is for “Phood”
Last week’s post about xylem explained how it carries water from the roots to the rest of a plant. But there’s another transportation problem that plants have to solve. As you know, plants make food (sugars) through photosynthesis. (See my previous posts on photosynthesis.) This food factory requires both chlorophyll and sunlight, and can only take place in the green parts of a plant. Usually this means the leaves, although cacti and other xeric species (such as this Palo Verde, above right) often have chlorophyll in their stems.
Botany for Gardeners: Phloem & Xylem
Today’s (and next week’s) botany lessons are brought to you by “xylem” and “phloem.” You may remember these terms from a biology class, but I bet you haven’t used them lately. It’s time you did. You’ll be a better gardener as a result. Besides, I used to teach biology, and once a teacher, always a teacher. There will even be a quiz at the end.
Like all forms of life, plants have to solve a very important problem: how do you move nutrients and water from one part of your body to another? Animals (at least the more complicated ones) have a circulatory system, but what do plants do?
