What is hydrochory?
The dispersal of seeds or fruits plants by means of water currents. Hydrochory is used primarily by several species of aquatic plants or plants that inhabit near bodies of water. However, there are species which also uses this method of transmission as a secondary means of dispersal.
The adaptations for plants that primary use this means of dispersion vary in different species, ranging from thick coats on fruits or seeds to large spaces of air for buoyancy.
Due to the long distances in which hydrochorous plants can disperse their seeds, it is relatively difficult to quantify the distances involved.
Examples of Hydrochory:
Swartzia polyphylla:
Swartzia polyphylla is a large canopy tree in the igapo of the Amazon basin, generally occurring on the higher terrain subject to flooding for periods of one to two months. Maturation of fruits occurs in May and June, immediately before the annual peak of flooding in late June or early July.
Fruits open on the tree to release one large, floating seed with an internal air pocket trapped between the cotyledons. The seeds, ...
Many variations and species of plants can be found all around the world and in different habitats. These variations and characteristics are due to their adaptations to the natural habitat surrounding them. In three of many climatic zones, the arid, tropical and temperate zone, plants that vary greatly from each other are found in these locations. In this experiment, we’ll be observing the connection between the adaptations of the plants to their environment at the Fullerton Arboretum. The arboretum is a space containing numerous plants from different environments. The plants are carefully looked after and organized into their specific habitat. Therefore, we’ll be able to take a look at the plants within multiple
able to build up in the air spaces of the leaf and form a layer around
Two members of the group were instructed to visit the laboratory each day of the experiment to water and measure the plants (Handout 1). The measurements that were preformed were to be precise and accurate by the group by organizing a standardized way to measure the plants. The plants were measured from the level of the soil, which was flat throughout all the cups, to the tip of the apical meristems. The leaves were not considered. The watering of the plants took place nearly everyday, except for the times the lab was closed. Respective of cup label, the appropriate drop of solution was added to the plant, at the very tip of the apical meristems.
moves along the cells of the root and up the xylem to the leaf. Water
Have you ever seen a plant leaning towards a window? Have you ever seen the roots of a plant sticking out of the bottom of a potted plant? By researching the properties of phototropism and gravitropism, and the interactions of the two tropisms, one will be able to learn about how they impact each other. Research will provide information on which of the two tropisms exhibits a more dominant effect on plants. Performing experiments are necessary for conclusions to be drawn.
The seed volume from average radius was found using the equation VOL = (4/3)*3.1416* ((L/2+W/2+D/2)/3)3. Surface area was calculated using an approximate formula, SA~ 4pi [(a^p b^p + a^p c^p + b^p c^p )/3]^{1\p}, where p=1.6075, and a, b, c are the three radii (a>=b>=c), made by Knud Thomsen. Hilium area was found by dividing the hilium width and the hilium height by two then multiplying by each other and 3.1416. By dividing the hilium width by the surface area, we found the hilium area to surface area ratio. Hilium width to seed width ration was calculated by dividing the hilium width by the seed width. Arm length was divided by hilium width to get the arm length to hilium width ratio, and finally stigma/style length to seed length ratio was calculated by dividing style length by seed length.
Most plants begin their lives as seeds. These seeds contain the embryos of a future plant and are the products of sexual reproduction in plants. Seeds also contain nutrients needed by the embryo emerge from the seed and begin forming a new plant. This process is known as germination. Germination is triggered when a seed is placed in conditions optimal for its developme...
own roots (not just the plant kind), this meant they needed a structure that was different than
The small, round fruit grows directly on the trunk and branches of the tree. As the fruit ripens, it changes from green to dark purple. It develops quickly, maturing twenty to twenty-five days after pollination [6]. Each one is approximately four centimetres in diameter and holds one to four large seeds [3]. The juicy, rosy-white, gelatinous flesh is surrounded by a thick, tough, dark purple skin. The tree itself can grow up to twenty-five feet tall, and has many long, thick, outward-reaching branches. The canopy is dense and rounded and can reach a spread
the cell make sure the water only flows up the plant, this is known as
propagules and in some sites over half the tree species have seeds dispersed by animals rather
The hydrosphere contains all the Earth’s water found in the atmosphere, oceans, lakes, streams, and groundwater. The Earth became cool enough for liquids to form early in the planet’s history. A lot of people make dams, reservoirs, and levees to try to hold, move water which pollutes and damages ecosystems and kills wildlife. Water is everywhere under the ground, but you can only use it if it is being contained in an aquifer. Surface water pollution is a major issue in the United States and elsewhere around the world.
O’Leary J. W. (1970). A Critical Evaluation of Tissue-Immersion Method for Measurement of Plant Water Potential. Ohio J. of Sci., 70(1), p 34-38. Available from: http://kb.osu.edu/dspace/handle/1811/5510 33 [Access date: April 12, 2014]
When examining categories of plants and their reproductive success, it is clear that one group is always more successful than any other group, and this group is angiosperms. Angiosperms are vascular plants that reproduce through a variety of mechanisms which have evolutionary significance. There are over 250,000 different species of angiosperms, making them one of the most diverse categories of plants. (Angiosperms 1) Their adaptability and reproductive methods, such as seeds and flowers, allow them to reproduce efficiently. In addition to their reproductive systems, their leaves and vascular system have also allowed for them to survive better than any other category of plants.
As plants evolved, moving from the sea to land, there were many adaptations that needed to occur to sustain the new mode of life. Adaptations addressed the major problems of how to prevent water loss, how to transport water, and how to reproduce in a newly dry environment (Lecture 4). Different organisms addressed these issues in a variety of ways, giving rise to anatomical differences in tissues and biochemical changes, which contributed to the rise in genetic variation of plant species.