AP Biology Objectives

Unit 8
By Kandace Thomas

1. The characteristics of the members of the kingdom

Plantae are leaves with a waxy coat, a root system, which
branches out, provides support, absorbs water, a stem the
provides support and is the reproductive organ of the
plant, organs, organ system, and chloroplasts.

2. Non-Vascular plants have true roots, stems, and leaves

without vascular tissue. Vascular plants have true roots,
stems and leaves with vascular tissues. Vascular plants are
seeded. Angiosperms have seeds enclosed in a hollow ovary
and gymnosperms have seeds but they are not enclosed in a
hollow ovary. Cycads are another group of plants. They have
taproots and small branched lateral roots. Nonvascular seed
plants do not develop or reproduce like vascular plants.
Moss is nonvascular just like ginkgo. Ferns are vascular.

3. The function of antheridia and archegonia in alternation

of generations is the sex organs. The archegonia is the
female gametangia and archegonia is the male gametangia.
Antheridia and archegonia are diploid while the generation
before theirs and after is haploid. This allows the
generation to alternation and survival.

4. The plant kingdom has made seed plant adaptations for

life on land. They have adapted to a system that allows for
alternation of generations. They have a cell wall to
protect themselves and plastids in their cytoplasm.
Chloroplasts help plants get their energy from the sun.
They have developed waterproof surfaces and a way to
exchange gases. To survive on land plants had to make
specialized cells and tissues to support themselves. The
xylem and phloem were created for materials moving in and
out and within the plant. Plants also had to adapted to
reproduction issues. To overcome those issues pollen tubes
were made, lived in moist environments, and special
delivery systems just to survive on land.

5. Stoma position relates to photosynthesis because it has

to gain carbon dioxide, release oxygen, and do it all
without losing water. Carbon dioxide is required for
photosynthesis. Gas exchange and water is required to and
since both of those happen in the stoma, it controls
photosynthesis.

6. Pith is internal to the vascular tissue, in the center

of the stem. It is a light, spongy substance consisting of
parenchyma cells. Bark is the outermost layers of stems and
roots of woody plants in the vascular group. It is the
outer dermis. It is thick and rough. The cambium is the
meristems. The cells are incompletely differentiated from
one another. They are apical meristems on root tips and
shoot tips. Spring wood is formed early in the season and
is on the inside. It is a lighter color and forms rapidly.
Summer wood is the darker wood on the outside making up the
ring that is formed slower in the summer time. Heartwood is
the wood that has died and won’t decay as fast. It is a
colored circle, darker than the living wood and it forms
with age. The other kind of wood is sapwood. It is the
living wood in the tree. All wood in the tree is originally
sap wood. It conducts water from the roots to the leaves.

7. Leaf medications help conserve water sometimes. Needle-

shaped leaves help control water loss. Sunken stomata help
prevent excessive water loss and thick waxy cuticles help
keep water in the same place. The stomata can even be moved
to the inner surface to prevent water loss.

8. The most important nutrients to plants are hydrogen,

oxygen and carbon. Without these nutrients, photosynthesis
could not occur and the plant would die. The other
important nutrients are phosphorous, potassium, nitrogen,
sulfur, calcium, magnesium, and iron.

9. The role of nitrogenase to nitrogen fixation is very

important. It is the enzyme that is used to fix atmospheric
nitrogen gas and it is the only known enzyme that can
accomplish the task of fixing nitrogen.

10. Some nutritional adaptations observed in the plant

kingdom are parasitic plants and carnivorous plants.
Parasitic plants like mistletoe supplement their nutrition
made by photosynthesis by being a parasite. Other parasitic
plants little Doffer do not use photosynthesis at all, but
live off other plants. Another adaptation is carnivorous
plants like the Venus Fly-Trap. If the soil is poor then
certain plants like the Pitcher Plant will supplement their
photosynthesis with insects.
11. The general features of photosynthesis are Sun and
light hit the leaf, the chloroplast makes ATP, and
reactions to dark and light. The leaves are made how they
are so that they can catch light easily for the
chloroplast. The roots are there to absorb water for the
plant and minerals for energy so it can grow and produce
more ATP. The plants have a stem to allow transport of the
different processes in photosynthesis.

12. Pollination is what brings the male and female

gametophytes together which leads to fertilization. Without
pollination, the male and female gametophytes would never
be bought together and the ovary would never be fertilized
and reproduction would never occur. The process for
pollination starts with a pollen sac on a flower. That
pollen sac will have a micro-sporocyte that will become
microspores that will split and there will be 4. The
generative cell will form 2 sperms which make a male
gametophyte. This male gametophyte will be carried by air,
insects, or other animals to another flower where it will
fertilize a female gametophyte.

13. Pollination can occur when some angiosperms release

quantities of tiny pollen grains into the air. For this to
work the adaptation is enormous quantities to make up for
the randomness. Another way is insects or animals. The
flowers make their nectar appealing and know that it will
be carried to the next flower of its kind. Pollen transfer
between flowers is the last way and the way that would work
is the flowers would have to adapt to grow close to one
another.

14. There are various types of tropism. In phototropism

plants grow towards light. In chemotropism there is growth
in response to chemicals. In gravitropism there is movement
in response to gravity. In Heliotropism there is movement
in response to sunlight. In Thermotropism there is movement
in response to temperature. In Thigmotropism there is
movement in response to touch. All of these are different
based on what they respond to. They all respond to
different things, but all require the same things that
plants need to survive. All the tropisms also are in
response and can be found affecting a plant alone or
together.
15. The definition of photoperiodism is the reaction of a
plant to the length of a response like day or night or
seasons.
Long day plants are plants that bloom in late spring or the
beginning of summer.
Day neutral are plants that flower at a certain stage
regardless of season or day length.
Short day plants are plants that require less light to
flower than most plants.