Transport in plants

How do plants transport materials to where they are needed?

1 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

How are plants adapted for transport?
The structures of cells and tissue in different parts of the
plant are adapted to allow transportation of essential
materials.
Flowers allow the plant to reproduce

Leaves are entry and exit

points for the gases
needed by plants.
Stems connect the roots to
the leaves, flowers and fruits.
They contain cells specially
adapted for transportation of
water, minerals and sugars.
Roots absorb water and
minerals from the soil.
2 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
How are roots adapted to their function?
The roots of this hyacinth bulb are long
and thin. They have formed a fine
network, filling the available space.
Roots contain thousands of tiny
root hair cells, which project out
into the soil.
How do these features make roots
suitable for absorbing water and
minerals?
 high surface area to volume ratio
 maximum contact with the soil
 firm anchorage.

3 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

 Water uptake - Root Hair Cell

• Function: to absorb water and

minerals from the soil They have
an elongated shape for more
surface area which increases the
rate of absorption of water by
osmosis and ions by active
transport

4 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Pathway taken by water

5 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Pathway taken by water

• Water enters root hair cell from moist soil via osmosis because
water potential is higher in soil than in cytoplasm of the root hair
cell.
• Water passes through the cortex cells by osmosis but mostly
by “suction”.
• Water enters xylem (moves up the stem in the xylem due to
tension because of cohesion of water molecules to each other)
then leaves when it gets to mesophyll cells
• Water is constantly being taken from the top of the xylem
vessels, so that water flows up them: Transpiration Stream

6 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Pathway taken by water

7 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Which cells transport nutrients?
Plants contain two types of cell adapted for transportation.
Xylem cells transport water
and minerals up the stem from
the roots to the shoots and
leaves. This transport occurs
in one direction only.
Phloem cells transport sugars
produced in the leaves up
and down the stem to growing
and storage tissues.
The cells are arranged in plants as vascular bundles.
Both phloem and xylem form continuous systems
connecting roots, stems and leaves.
8 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
Xylem and Phloem

Remember that xylem is always on the

inside and phloem is always on the outside
9 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
Inside a plant stem

10 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

How is xylem adapted for transportation?
Water and minerals travel in
xylem vessels.
Xylem vessels have thick
cellulose cell walls,
strengthened by lignin. The
inside of the cell is hollow.
Xylem vessels are dead cells.
Xylem vessels transport
water and minerals from the
roots to the shoot and
leaves. This transport only
occurs in one direction.
The thick walls of xylem cells
also help support plants.
11 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
How is phloem adapted to transportation?

Phloem is made of columns of

living cells. They transport food,
in the form of sugars.
Sugars are carried from the
leaves to the growing and
storage parts of the plants.
This movement takes place in
both directions.
Phloem cells are also called
sieve tubes. Cells are joined by
small holes in the cell wall at the
end of each cell, forming a
continuous system. The end cell
walls are called sieve plates.
12 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
How do tall trees get enough water?
Redwoods are the tallest
species of tree in the world.
The tallest redwood ever
measured was 120 metres tall.
That is six times the height of
the Angel of the North!
How does a plant this size
get water from its roots to
the branches at the top?
The water will travel up the
stem, or trunk, of the tree.
What experiment could show
that water travels up stems?
13 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
Movement of water up a stem

14 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

What is transpiration?
Transpiration is the evaporation of water at surfaces of the
mesophyll cells followed by loss of water vapour from plant
leaves, through stomata.

Water always moves from an area of

high concentration to an area of low
concentration. This movement of water
is a type of diffusion called osmosis.
Air around the plant usually contains
less water than the cells of the plant,
so water evaporates into the air.
Wilting: occurs if water loss is greater than water uptake-
cells become flaccid, tissues become limp and the plant is
no longer supported
15 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
Transpiration

16 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Transpiration Stream

How is the plant adapted to do this?

• Root hair cells-huge surface area

• Xylem vessels- hollow, narrow

• Air spaces-large surface area of

wet cells which water can
evaporate, drawing more water
out of the xylem and speeding up
the flow of water up the plant

• Stomata-open, allows water

vapour to diffuse out. Reduces
water potential inside the leaf,
encouraging more water to
evaporate

17 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Is the rate of transpiration constant?
Transpiration is a bit like a straw, pulling water
up the plant. Sometimes the pulling force will
be stronger and the plant will lose more water.
The speed at which a plant loses water is
called the rate of transpiration. This varies
depending on the plant’s environment.
What environmental factors will
affect the rate of transpiration?
 humidity (amount of moisture in the air)
 light intensity
 temperature
 air movement (wind).
18 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
 Factors Affecting Rate of Transpiration

• Temperature: higher temperatures increase water

holding capacity of air and increases transpiration rate

• Humidity (moisture content of the air): low humidity

increases water potential gradient between leaf and
atmosphere increasing transpiration rate

• Light intensity: high light intensity causes stomata to

open (to allow more photosynthesis) which causes
increase in transpiration

• Wind speed: Windy day, water evaporates more quickly.

Transpiration increases as wind speed increases

19 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Why does transpiration vary?

20 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

How is the rate of transpiration measured?
Transpiration can be measured using a potometer.
A cut plant stem is sealed into the
potometer using a rubber bung.
An air bubble is introduced
to the capillary tube.
The distance the bubble
travels shows how much
water the stem has taken up.

This gives an indirect measurement of the rate of

transpiration.
21 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
Transpiration – true or false?

22 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

How do minerals enter plants?
Like water, minerals enter plants through the roots.
However, they do this by different methods.
Water passively diffuses with a
concentration gradient from the
soil into the roots and up the stem.
Minerals are usually found in the
soil in lower concentrations than
they occur in the plant.
Why can they not be
transported by diffusion?
Diffusion cannot take place
against a concentration gradient.
Instead, minerals enter the roots by active transport.
23 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
What is active transport?
Active transport uses energy from respiration to move
substances against a concentration gradient.
Specific minerals from soil root hair cell
the soil enter through
channels in the cell walls
of the root hair cells.
The minerals then travel
around the plant in the
xylem vessels.
Plants may take up some
minerals in the soil but not
others. Why is it important
that plants select which
minerals to transport? mineral
24 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007
 Translocation

• Translocation: Movement of sucrose and amino acids

in phloem; from regions of production (sources) to
regions of storage or to regions of utilization in
respiration or growth (sinks).

25 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007

Translocation

26 of 40 © Boardworks Ltd 2007