Ej R.

Agsalda General Botany

BS BIO-1 BIO 5036

Journal No. 3
“Specialized Leaves”

Abstract

This observational research activity presents the different plant morphologies of ten
specialized leaves and their benefits in the plant system that can be found and study in the locality
of Cabarroguis, Quirino, Province. This study also tends to examine/analyze one specific
breeding technique of plants and discuss how it is being done by presenting credible references
found in the internet. And lastly the study aims to draw 2 representations of modified/specialized
leaves according to the chosen plant breeding technique.

INTRODUCTION
Obviously, not all plants look the same. They have different flowers, stems, and even root
structures. Extreme examples have given some plants big advantages. These advantages have let
them settle in new environments and become more successful.

What kinds of leaves are there? What kinds aren't there? There are thick ones for storing
water as in succulents. There are long twisting vine-like leaves that can wrap around and dig in for
support as in grapes. There are also thorns. Nothing says, "Don't eat me" like a bunch of sharp
thorns on your branches.

Some leaves have special functions along with or instead of food making. Such specialized
leaves include protective leaves, storage leaves, tendrils, thorns, bracts, and insect-capturing
leaves. Tendrils can be exclusively leaf tissue (e.g. pea leaflets, nasturtium petioles, or cucumber
leaves that twine and aid in supporting the shoots) or they can be modified special shoots with
thin, modified stems (e.g. morning glories, grapes, and Boston ivy). Bracts are modified leaves at
the base of flowers or flower stalks. Some are highly‐colored and resemble petals (e.g. the red
“petals” of poinsettia are bracts surrounding the small, yellow flowers). Spines are small,
unbranched, sharp outgrowths of leaf tissue in which the parenchyma is replaced by sclerenchyma
(e.g. cactus). Thorns are woody, sharply pointed branch stems (e.g. honey locust). Storage leaves
are modified leaves that stores nutrients through bulb scales (e.g. onion). Those are only few
examples and functions of specialized leaves while most of the specialized leaves are for protection
and pollination.
Plant breeding can be considered a coevolutionary process between humans and edible
plants. People caused changes in the plants that were used for agriculture and, in turn, those new
plant types allowed changes in human populations to take place. Plants yielding more generous
harvests freed some of the people’s time for developing art, handcrafting, and science, eventually
leading to modern human life as we know it. Civilization could not exist without agriculture, and
agriculture could not sustain the civilized world without modern crop varieties. (Harlan, J. R 1992).
From this point of view, it becomes clear that plant breeding is one of the main foundations of
civilization.

MATERIALS
Table 1.1 List of Materials
Materials Quantity Cost
Mask 1 -
Phone/Camera 1 -
Coupon Bond 1 -
Pencil 1 -
Eraser 1 -

Table 1.2 List of Collected Specimens

Leaves
Common Names Scientific Name
Bougainvillea Bougainvillea glabra
Kalabasa Cucurbita maxima
Succulent plant (Stonecrops) Sedum dasyphyllum
Onion Allium cepa
Aloe vera Aloe barbadensis miller
Ball cactus Escobaria missouriensis
Spanish Dagger Yuca gloriosa
Dragon Bones Euphorbia lactea
Water lily Nymphaeaceae
Ampalaya Momordica charantia
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

A. SPECIALIZED LEAF’S

Table 1. 3 Leaf Visuals, Morphology and Benefits

Specialized leaf Leaf Morphology Benefits

Leaf shape Specialized leaves: Bracts

 Ovate -acuminate
Leaf type  The bright colors
 Simple of the leaves makes
Leaf margin the insects to come
 Undulate for pollination
Specialized leaf no.
 4
Leaf color
 purple

Leaf shape Specialized leaves:

 Lobe Tendrils
Leaf type
 Simple  Slender, whiplike
Leaf margin structures that
 Dentate helps hold
 Blade never forms, climbing plants in
while the place.
rachis/petiole
elongates by apical  Wrap arounds solid
and intercalary objects
growth.
 Leaf shape Specialized leaves:
 Lobe Vegetative Reproduction
Leaf type
 Simple  With plantlets or
Leaf margin buds may grow
 Dentate along the notches,
bases, apices and
tips of blades and
petioles

 Fleshy thick leaves Storage leaves/Bulbs
LEAVES  Consist of many
bulb scales
 Inner bulb scales
are white in most
onions
 Short and broad,
and they overlap
like roof shingles
Specialized leaves:
 Acts as reserve
food storage
 Also protects the
bulb from drying
and mechanical
injury to the bulb.
 Stores sugar and
Carbohydrates

Leaf shape Specialized leaves:

 Linear-lanceolate Storage leaves, Spines
Leaf type
 Simple  Modified leaves
Leaf margin designed to reduce
 Serrate water loss and
Thick fleshy, concave on protect from
the top side, green in color herbivory.
  Hard spines Specialized leaves:
 Sharp leaves Spines
 Pointed
morphological  Spines and thorns
structure for protectio for
animals to eat
them.
 Also this helps to
maintain water in
the plant especially
in dry lands
Specialized leaves:
Leaf shape Thorns
 Linear-lanceolate  For Protections
Leaf type agains humans and
 Simple animals.
Leaf margin
 Serrate
Leaf color
 Green
Sharp thorns at the end of
the leaves.

Specialized leaves:
 Sharp Thorns Thorns, Support
 Deaplylobe  The thorns are
 Pinnate mainly fron
arrangement of the protection.
thorns  Uniqueness of the
thorns helps
support the plant
turgidity and
abnormal
composition of the
branches
 Leaf shape Specialized leaves:
 Lobates Bouyancy
Leaf type
 Simple  Large leaf helps for
Leaf blade the bouyancy of
 Orbicular the plant.
Leaf color  Also it helps in
 Green absorbing more
Flat leaves and waxy outer light, and waxy
skin. outer skin helps to
protect from insect
in landing.

Leaf shape Specialized leaves:

 Palmate Tendrils, Support
Leaf type
 Simple  Used for
Leaf color supporting the
 Green plants for climbing
Heart shaped at the base,  Used for cellular
the margins are toothed. invasion for
The tendrils grow up to parasitic plants
20cm long.  Used to for
No blades nutrient absorption

B. PLANT BREEDING TECHNIQUES

Plant breeding is defined as identifying and selecting desirable traits in plants and
combining these into one individual plant. Since 1900, Mendel's laws of genetics provided the
scientific basis for plant breeding. As all traits of a plant are controlled by genes located on
chromosomes, conventional plant breeding can be considered as the manipulation of the
combination of chromosomes. In general, there are three main procedures to manipulate plant
chromosome combination.

a) HYBRIDIZATION
The most frequently employed plant breeding technique is hybridization. The aim of
hybridization is to bring together desired traits found in different plant lines into one plant line via
cross- pollination. The first step is to generate homozygous inbred lines. This is normally done by
using self-pollinating plants where pollen from male flowers pollinates female flowers from the
same plants. Once a pure line is generated, it is outcrossed, i. e. combined with another inbred line.
Then the resulting progeny is selected for combination of the desired traits. If a trait from a wild
relative of a crop species, e.g. resistance against a disease, is to be brought into the genome of the
crop, a large quantity of undesired traits (like low yield, bad taste, low nutritional value) are
transferred to the crop as well. These unfavorable traits must be removed by time-consuming back-
crossing, i. e. repeated crossing with the crop parent. There are two types of hybrid plants:
interspecific and intergeneric hybrids. Beyond this biological boundary, hybridization cannot be
accomplished due to sexual incompatibility, which limits the possibilities of introducing desired
traits into crop Plants.

C. PLANT BREEDING DRAWING

Figure 1.4 Hybridization of Ball cactus and Dragon bone specialized leaf

GENERALIZATION
Based on what I have observed though this observational activity. I realize that there are
certain leaves that have specialized of modified characteristics that help them to survive or defend
themselves from different organisms. I also want to include the different types of specialized leaves
according to my activity. I was able find Bracts, which attracts pollinators through their bright and
colorful leaves. The tendrils, the specialized leave that helps the plant for support and nutrient
absorption. I also found Vegetative Reproduction leaves which regenerate and grow even if they
are not connected to the stems of the plant. Storage leaves, primary functions is to store food and
nutrients needed by the plant to grow and survive. Thorns and Spines, specialized leaves mainly
helps the plants for protection from animals and other organisms. And lastly I found Buoyancy
specialized leaves that helps aquatics plants to float.
Furthermore I want to include what I’ve learned about the different plant breeding
techniques. The hybridization, which is the frequently used breeding technique today. In addition,
I realized the importance of Plant breeding technique in order to achieve the desired structure of a
certain organisms to have specialized leaves, stem or roots. And lastly I reflected to myself that
even the tiniest structure of a plant “the leaves” can have great function in a life of a plant.
REFERENCE
“Bulbs” Department of Environmental Horticulture, University of Florida, Institute of Food and
Agricultural Sciences - UF/IFAS
https://irrecenvhort.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-prop-glossary/07-geophytes/01-bulbs/02-geophytes-
bulbs.html#:~:text=Most%20of%20the%20bulb%20consists,that%20are%20dry%20and%20pap
ery

“Bougainvillea” Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bougainvillea

Doherty G. (2008) “Aloe vera structures and application” Micscape Magazine (Microscopy-UK).
http://www.microscopy-
uk.org.uk/mag/artnov08macro/GDoherty/index.html#:~:text=Aloe%20vera%20has%20thick%2
C%20fleshy,are%20characteristic%20of%20Aloe%20plants

Harlan, J. R. Crops and Men, 2nd ed.; American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science
Society: Madison, WI, 1992; 284 pp.

Hilty J. (2019) “Squash”

http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/weeds/plants/squash.html#:~:text=Individual%20leaves%20
are%204%E2%80%9310,shallowly%20to%20moderately%205%2Dlobed.&text=The%20leaf%
20margin%20is%20irregularly,sometimes%20has%20shallow%20secondary%20lobes.

Padua S. (2015) “Leaves” Slideshare.net

https://www.slideshare.net/smmc02/leaves-43346381

“Specialized leaves” (1997-2018) Andrew Rader Studios

http://www.biology4kids.com/files/plants_structure2.html

“Specialized leaves” (2014) Blogger.com

http://forestry-learning.blogspot.com/2010/10/specialized-leaves.html
APPENDICES

Figure 1.5 (Visuals of the outcome of hybridization of Ball cactus and Dragon bone plant,
including the materials that been used.)