Problem 1
What is a sieve-tube element? a. the sugar-conducting cell found in phloem b. the widened, perforation-containing, water-conducting cell found only in angiosperms c. the nutrient- and water-absorbing cell found in root hairs d. the nucleated and organelle-rich support cell found in phloem
Problem 2
Evaluate the following statements regarding tracheids and vessel elements. Select True or False for each statement. T/F Both tracheids and vessel elements are specialized for water conduction. T/F Both tracheids and vessel elements have pits. T/F Vessel elements have perforation plates but tracheids do not. T/F Tracheids and vessel elements have to be alive in order to transport water.
Problem 3
Which statement best characterizes primary growth? a. It does not occur in roots, only in shoots. b. It leads to the development of cork tissue. c. It produces the dermal, ground, and vascular tissues. d. It produces rings of xylem, phloem, and cork tissue.
Problem 3
What is the role of companion cells in the movement of sugars through plants? a. They are the sites of sugar production by photosynthesis. d. They are the sites where starch is converted to sucrose. c. They secrete sucrose, which draws sugars through phloem under negative pressure. d. They accumulate sucrose, which is then transferred to adjacent sieve-tube elements.
Problem 4
Which statement best characterizes secondary growth? a. It results from cell divisions in the vascular and cork cambia. b. It increases the length of the plant stem. c. It results from divisions in the apical meristem cells. d. It often produces phloem cells to the inside and xylem cells to the outside of the vascular cambium.
Problem 5
Describe the general function of the shoot and the general function of the root system. Which tissues are continuous throughout these two systems? Suggest a hypothesis to explain why the shoot and root systems of different species are so variable in size and shape.
Problem 7
What does the cuticle do? What do stomata do? Predict how the thickness of the cuticle and the number of stomata differ in plants from wet habitats versus dry habitats.
Problem 8
You attached a birdfeeder to a tree 5 years ago at a position 6 feet above the ground. The tree has grown since at a rate of 1 foot per year. What is the current height of the birdfeeder?
Problem 9
Identify the structure you are consuming when you eat each of the following: asparagus, Brussels sprouts, celery, spinach, carrot, potato.
Problem 10
Trees can be killed by girdling—the removal of bark and vascular cambium in a ring all the way around the tree. Explain why.
Problem 11
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Develop a hypothesis on the likely effects of acid rain on primary growth in trees. Based on your hypothesis, make some predictions about the impact of acid rain on the height of tree trunks.
Problem 12
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Researchers tested the effects of acid rain (pH 2.0) on seedlings of two different species, camphor tree (Cinnamomum camphora) and chinaberry tree (Melia azederach), using distilled water as a control. Results of the experiments are shown here. Note that acid rain caused a significant reduction of growth in chinaberry trees (*** means P < 0.001), but not in camphor trees. What was the approximate percentage of growth reduction observed in the chinaberry trees treated with acid rain?
Problem 13
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Which meristem was likely affected in the chinaberry tree?
Problem 14
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Give a plausible explanation for the differential effect of acid rain on height in camphor and chinaberry trees (i.e., what structural features might offer more protection from acid rain in one species versus another?).
Problem 15
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Based on the results presented here, predict the impact of acid rain on the vascular cambium in the two species. How would that effect be apparent in the amount of wood produced in the tree trunks?
Problem 16
Plants experience a vast array of conditions that can alter their growth and development, including temperature and availability of water, nutrients, and light. They are also exposed to pollutants such as acid rain formed largely as a result of burning fossil fuels and volcanic eruptions. Acid rain can strip minerals and nutrients from the soil, and eat away the outer waxy layer of tissue that protects a plant. Acid rain is still a major environmental problem in certain regions. How does acid rain affect plant growth? Beyond primary and secondary growth, what other aspects of plant growth might be negatively affected when plants are exposed to environmental stress?
Ch. 34 - Plant Form and Function
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