Plant Evolution and Classification

1. Plant Evolution and Classification

2. Adapting to Land • Life flourished in oceans for more than 3 billion years. • No organisms lived on land until about 475 million years ago, when the Earth’s Ozone Layer was formed. • Three adaptations were required to allow plants to thrive on land: • The ability to prevent water loss • The ability to reproduce in the absence of water • The ability to absorb and transport nutrients.

3. Preventing Water Loss • Moving to land had its advantages • More direct sunlight, increased carbon dioxide, and a greater supply of inorganic material. • However, the land environment also presented challenges. • Plants on land are susceptible to drying out through evaporation. • The Cuticle, a waxy protective covering on plant surfaces that prevents water loss, was one early adaptation to life on land. • Plants that had a small opening in their surfaces, called stomata, were able to survive. Stomata allow the exchange of CO2 and O2

4. Reproducing by Spores and Seeds • A spore is a haploid reproductive cell surrounded by a hard outer wall. • Spores allow widespread dispersal of the plant species. • Eventually most spores develop into seeds. • A seed is an embryo surrounded by a protective coat. • Some seeds contain endosperm, a tissue that provides nourishment for the developing plant.

5. Absorbing and Transporting Materials • On land plants absorb nutrients through the soil with their roots. • Plants evolved to contain a specialized tissue known as vascular tissue, which transports water and dissolved substances from one part of the plant to another. • Made up of the • Xylem carries absorbed water and inorganic nutrients in one direction, from the roots to the stems and leaves. • Phloem carries organic compounds, such as carbohydrates, and some inorganic compounds in any direction.

6. Classifying Plants

7. Classifying Plants • 12 phyla can be divided into two groups based on the presence of vascular tissue. • Three phyla of nonvascular plants have neither true vascular tissue nor true roots, stems, or leaves. • Nine phyla of vascular plants have vascular tissue and true roots, stems, and leaves.

8. Classifying Plants • Notice vascular plants can be further divided into two groups, seedless and seed plants. • Seedless include the phylum of ferns and there phyla made up of plants closely associated with ferns. • Seed plants are plants that produce seed for reproduction including four phyla of gymnosperms and one phylum of angiosperms.

9. Gymnosperms • Which are pine trees, are seed plants that produce seeds that are not enclosed in fruits.

10. Angiosperms • Also known as flowering plants, are seed plants that produce seeds within a protective fruit.

11. Alternating Life Cycles • All plants have a life cycle that includes two phases, which are named for the type of reproduction cells they produce. • Diploid, Haploid • The first phase of the life cycle consists of a diploid (2n) sporophyte plant that produces spores. • The second phase consists of a haploid (1n) gametophyte plant the produces eggs and sperm. • A life cycle that alternates between the sporophyte and gametophyte is called alternation of generations.