Lecture 5

Plant tissue types: primary & secondary growth

 Overview of plant tissue types in above

and below-ground organs
 Distinguishing between primary and
secondary growth

 Reading: Chapters 10 and 35

 Lecture 4 Summary

 Stress, particularly drought and

temperature stress, reduces crop
growth, leading to yield gaps
 Plant species characteristic of
contrasting habitats differ in
maximal growth rate
Adaptation to contrasting environments:
classification
 Grime’s triangular
ordination
 Separates environments
on basis of environmental
favorability and
disturbance
 Ruderals (R), competitors
(C), stress-tolerators (S)
genotypes
 Adaptation to contrasting habitats – variation in
maximum relative growth rate of plants

 Plant species from high resource environments are inherently

fast-growing, while species adapted to stressful habitats are
inherently slow growing

W hy?
 Genotypic variation

Productive Unproductive

Genetic potential

Environment

salt water

nutrients light
temperature

phenotypic variation
• Why are some
genotypes/species faster
growing than others?
• And…why does growth rate
change with environment?

• Need consider growth

responses of individual
organs, tissues and cells
• Roots, stems and leaves may
differ in their response
• Overall response reflects the
different roles played by
each organ

• Relevant for wild plants and

cultivated crop plants
 Differentiated
plant cells

• Fast and slow

growing species
differ in the relative
proportion of
differentiated cell
types

• Fast growers contain

a greater proportion
of parenchyma (e.g.
mesophyll) cells

• Conversely, more
sclerenchyma in
slower growers
 Root functions
• Provides anchorage
• Uptake of nutrients and water
(particularly near root tip)
• Function changes during
development
• Storage organ (taproots of
eudicots and gymnosperms)
• Branching pattern differs among
species and can vary in response
to environment
Modified
roots

Prop roots Storage roots Arial roots

Buttress roots Pneumatophores (air roots)

 Stems

• Alternating system of nodes and

internodes
• Axillary buds can form branches
• Environment can alter shoot
morphology via changes in
elongation of shoot tip versus
lateral growth of side branches
(via growth of axillary buds)
 Modified stems
• Stolons
• Rhizomes
• Tubers
• bulbs
 Leaves
• Primary site of photosynthesis

• Monocots often lack petioles

• Leaf shape highly variable

- can change during plant
development and in
response to changes in
environment
 Phyllodes
(flattened petioles)

Leaves

Acacia koa
 Tendrils
(Pea)

Spines
Modified (Cacti)
leaves
Storage leaves
(CAM/succulents)
Bracts
(Poinsetta)

Reproductive leaves
(Kalanchoe)
 Primary and secondary growth
• Primary growth:
produced by apical
meristems – analogous to
stem cells in animals –
where cells divide rapidly
and are indeterminate (no
defined end status)

• Herbaceous: whole plant

• Woody: youngest parts

• Secondary growth from

lateral meristems. Found in
vascular and cork cambium;
vascular cambium adds 2o
layers of xylem and
phloem; cork cambium
replaces epidermis with
periderm
 Primary growth
in shoots

• Eudicots: apical meristem

embedded in tip of terminal
bud (not visible)

• Leaf primordia ⇒ leaves

• Axillary buds ⇒ lateral shoots

• Most growth occurs as a

result of cell division and
elongation below shoot apex
Monocot apical and intercalary meristems

Monocots: apical meristem at

base of each leaf, and in some
cases (e.g. lawn grasses), also
have intercalary meristems at the
base of nodes and leaf blades
Products of primary
growth include a
range of leaf cells
Signals to meristems can result in changes in cell
shape, number & size (e.g. growth irradiance)

7% 17% Full light

Acer sp.

Hanba et al. (2002) Plant Cell Environ 25: 1021-1030

 Products of primary growth include a
range of different cell types in stems
• Vascular tissue runs length of stem in bundles
• Eudicots & gymnosperms: bundles form ring
• Monocots: bundles scattered through ground tissue
• Lateral shoots arise from axillary buds on stem
surface
Secondary growth in a conifer stem
Vascular cambium Cork cambium
Xylem Phloem Cortex: cork

Epidermis
Secondary growth via the vascular cambium

Poll 5b
Using tree rings to assess climate change
Tissue organization in roots
 Primary growth leading to lateral roots

• Originate from
pericycle (outer most
layer of vascular
cylinder)
• Signals lead to a
latent meristematic
activity in the root
pericycle being
activated and cell
divisions resume

• Lateral roots
proliferate in response
to nutrient patches
Lateral root formation and nutrient ‘patches’

Drew 1975
Recap
• Meristematic activity underpins primary and
secondary growth
• Sensing of environment leads to signals to control
meristematic activity in shoots and roots, leading to
phenotypic change

• So, unlike Homer

Simpson, plants can
change – indeed, they
are amazingly plastic
Adaptation to contrasting environments:
classification
 Grime’s triangular
ordination
 Separates environments
on basis of environmental
favorability and
disturbance
 Ruderals (R), competitors
(C), stress-tolerators (S)
genotypes

 Similarities with the r/K

selection model
 r species commit all
energy to max seed
production
 K species allocate energy
into a few highly fit
individuals
 Adaptation to contrasting habitats – variation in
maximum relative growth rate of plants

 Plant species from high resource environments are inherently

fast-growing, while species adapted to stressful habitats are
inherently slow growing Atkin et al. (1998) Plant Cell Env 21, 1007-1017

Lambers, H., et al. (1989). Causes and Consequences of

Variation in Growth Rate and Productivity of Higher Plants.
SPB Academic Publishing bv.
W hy?
 Plant growth and resource acquisition

 Genotypic or environmentally
induced differences in RGR reflect
differences in components of
growth, and ability to acquire
resources
 Light
 Carbon CO2
 Water
 Nutrients
 Need to convert resources into
useable energy
 What is plant growth?
 Increase in plant mass over time. Requires division,
expansion and differentiation of cells
 Absolute growth rate (AGR): mg day-1
 Relative growth rate (RGR): mg g-1 day-1
Plant mass (mg)

Log mass (mg)

Time (days) Time (days)

How to increase crop yields?

• Improve max potential RGR during vegetative growth

• Also improve RGR during stress events
• Efficiency of energy capture (photosynthesis) and
energy use (respiration)
• Allocation of carbon will be crucial
 Plant growth and resource acquisition

 Genotypic or environmentally
induced differences in RGR reflect
differences in components of
growth, and ability to acquire
resources
 Light
 Carbon CO2
 Water
 Nutrients
 Need to convert resources into
useable energy

Poll 5c
 Growth: acquisition of resources

 Leaf photosynthesis ⇒ C uptake

 Roots ⇒ nutrient/water uptake
 Respiration liberates energy
stored in sugars to drive
biosynthesis
CO2

 Physiology and biomass

allocation important in
determining how quickly a plant
grows
 Study questions
• List the five types of differentiated cells found in plants
• Give 2 examples of modified stems and modified leaves
• What is a phyllode?
• Give 2 examples of modified leaves
• What cell types produce primary growth and secondary
growth in shoots?