Rock City Educational Resource Guide

Plants

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Plants at Rock City

Underlined words defined in Plant Vocabulary

Plants are an important part of our lives. Plants produce oxygen that we breathe; they are also an important food source for people. There are more than 350,000 types of plants in many different shapes and sizes.

Plant Parts

• Roots anchor a plant and are used to absorb water and minerals from the soil. There are different types of roots. A taproot grows straight down. Fibrous roots spread out under the plant to gather water.  At Rock City Gardens you will see fibrous roots growing above ground over rocks and boulders as they search for water.

• Stems hold the plant upright, allowing it to reach out toward the light.  The stem also moves water and minerals up from the roots to other parts of the plant. The trunk of a tree acts as the stem. You will see some trees at Rock City Gardens that have twisted or leaned their trunks in the direction of light through boulders.

• Leaves make food for the plant and allow it to breathe. A plant will turn its leaves toward light so that it can absorb it. You will notice how some trees at Rock City have limbs that reach out and above the boulders to allow their leaves to absorb the sunlight easier. In the autumn a tree will shed its leaves because of the cold and dry season. The tree survives on the food that it has stored.

• Flowers are used for plant reproduction. Most trees have flowers, too, but they are not as “showy” or pronounced as on most plants.

Plant Processes

• The roots of a plant take in water and minerals from the soil. Water and minerals are transported through the stem all the way to the leaves.

• Plants absorb carbon dioxide from the air. (Carbon dioxide is what humans and other animals breathe out.) The carbon dioxide enters the plant through the leaves.

• Green chlorophyll in the leaf of a plant absorbs sunlight a plant needs.  Plants use the sunlight in a chemical process to turn water, minerals, and carbon dioxide into sugars the plant can use for survival. The plant releases water and the oxygen that humans and other animals breathe in.

• Plants use the sugar for growth and reproduction.

• The process that plants go through to make sugar is called photosynthesis. The formula for photosynthesis is: Chlorophyll + carbon dioxide + water + sunlight = sugar

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Plant Reproduction
Underlined words defined in Plant Vocabulary

Flowering Plants
Plants have several different ways of reproduction. Some very simple plants simply divide and copy themselves in asexual reproduction. Most plants use sexual reproduction that requires both male and female parts. The male part of a plant is pollen. Pollen is found at the end of a stalk called a stamen. The female part is called on ovule. After fertilization the ovule will become a seed. For this to happen, the pollen must reach the ovule. Plants rely on insects (like bees), birds, animals, wind or water to do this. (Bees in a flower brush against the pollen on a stamen and it sticks to them. They carry it to another flower and brush against the female stigma of a flower. The stigma has a tube called a style that the pollen travels down. It is connected to the ovule that is waiting for the pollen to produce a seed.) Pollination is the movement of pollen from the stamen of a flower to the stigma of another flower. Fertilization occurs when the pollen reaches the ovule. After fertilization plants can produce seeds. Some plants produce seeds inside a fruit. Some plants produce seeds in a nut. Some plants like dandelions produce their seeds and release them into the wind.

Cones

Conifers are cone-producing plants (like pine trees). They do not produce flowers like most plants. Conifers have male pinecones and female pinecones.  The female cone is sticky. The male cone releases pollen into the wind that sticks to the female cone. Pine trees and other conifers rely on wind for pollination. After fertilization a cone grows with seeds inside. The cone swells and releases the seeds into the wind. It can take over two years for a coniferous tree to produce seeds.

Spores

Ferns, mosses, liverworts, and hornworts produce spores. Ferns do not have pollen like other plants. Ferns have a very strange life cycle. A fern starts out as a gametophyte. It is a tiny plant and is both male and female. The male part “swims” to the female part so a fern plant can grow. A fern plant produces spores on the bottom of its leaves. The spores are released with the wind and a new generation starts.

When you visit Rock City Gardens you have a chance to examine plants. Look for flowers with pollen used for reproduction. Examine the ferns you will see and check for spores. You might see spores, flowers, and nuts. Also watch for birds. Birds are an important part of plant reproduction because they carry seeds away so that the plants can grow in a whole new place.

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                           Rock City Gardens Plant Vocabulary


Asexual Reproduction Reproduction that does not need both male and female plant parts

Chlorophyll A special green pigment in plants that traps sunlight that it needs to produce sugar

Conifers Plants that produce seeds in cones (like pine trees)

Fertilization Occurs when pollen meets the ovule of a plant

Fibrous Roots Roots that spread out under a plant

Gametophyte A tiny plant in the life cycle of a fern that is both male and female

Ovule The female part of a plant that after fertilization becomes a seed

Photosynthesis Process that plants use to produce sugar from sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide

Pollen Male part of the plant that has to be moved to the ovule to produce seeds.

Pollination Occurs when pollen is transferred to the stigma of a flower. (Usually helped by birds, bees, wind, and water)

Roots Part of the plant that absorbs water and minerals from the soil. They also hold the plant in place

Sexual Reproduction Reproduction with both male and female parts needed

Spores In plants like ferns used to grow the gametophyte that is used in reproduction

Stamen Male part of the flower where you find pollen

Stems Part of the plant that holds it up. Also used to transfer water and minerals from the roots to other parts of the plant

Stigma Sticky tip of the style of a flower that catches the pollen

Style Long tube that leads to the ovule. The pollen sticks to the stigma and travels down the style during pollination

Taproot A root that grows straight down instead of spreading out

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