BIO BOTANY
Chapter 10 Secondary Growth
1. Consider the following statements In spring season vascular cambium:
(i) is less active
(ii) produces a large number of xylary elements
(iii) forms vessels with wide cavities of these
a. (b) (i) is not correct but (ii) and (iii) are correct
2. Usually, the monocotyledons do not increase their girth, because:
(b) They do not possess actively dividing cambium
3. In the diagram of lenticel identify the parts marked as A,B,C,D.
(a) A. Phellem, B. Complementary tissue, C. Phelloderm, D. Phellogen.
4. What is the fate of primary xylem in a dicot root showing extensive secondary growth?
(b) It gets crushed
5. In a forest, if the bark of a tree is damaged by the horn of a deer, How will the plant overcome the
damage?
When the bark is damaged, the phellogem forms a complete cylinder around the stem and it
gives rise to ring barks.
OR
When the bark is damaged, the tree seal the wound from outside to prevent microbial
infection. Then the tree builds a barrier zone ‘callus’ to compartmentalize the wounded area.
The callus grow and cover the wound area. This allows new wood to grow on it.
6. In which season the vessels of angiosperms are larger in size, why?
In the spring season, cambium is very active and produces a large number of xylary elements
having vessels/tracheids with wide lumen. The wood formed during this season is called spring
wood or early wood. This is because in spring season the climatic condition are favourable for the
growth of plants with optimum temperature, light and water availability. The photosynthesis is at
peak.
7. Continuous state of dividing tissue is called meristem. In connection to this, what is the role of
lateral meristem?
Apical meristems produce the primary plant body. In some plants, the lateral meristem increase the
girth of a plant. This type of growth is secondary because the lateral meristem are not directly
produced by apical meristems. Woody plants have two types of lateral meristems: a vascular
cambium that produces xylem, phloem tissues and cork cambium that produces the bark of a tree.
8. A timber merchant bought 2 logs of wood from a forest & named them A & B, The log A was 50
year old & B was 20 years old. Which log of wood will last longer for the merchant? Why?
The wood of 50 years old will last longer than 20 years old wood, because timber from hard
wood is more durable and more resistant to the attack of micro organisms and insect than the timber
from sap wood.
9. A transverse section of the trunk of a tree shows concentric rings which are known as growth rings.
How are these rings formed? What are the significances of these rings?
Annual Rings The activity of vascular cambium is under the control of many physiological
and environmental factors. The annual ring denotes the combination of early wood and late wood
and the ring becomes evident to our eye due to the high density of late wood. In the spring season,
cambium is very active and produces a large number of xylary elements having vessels/tracheids
with wide lumen. The wood formed during this season is called spring wood or early wood. The
tracheary elements are fairly thin walled. In winter, the cambium is less active and forms fewer
xylary elements that have narrow vessels/ tracheids and this wood is called autumn wood or late
[Link] treachery elements are with narrow lumen, very thick walled.
Sometimes annual rings are called growth rings but it should be remembered all the growth
rings are not annual. In some trees more than one growth ring is formed with in a year due to
climatic changes. Additional growth rings are developed within a year due to adverse natural
calamities like drought, frost, defoliation, flood, mechanical injury and biotic factors during the
middle of a growing season, which results in the formation of more than one annual ring.
Such rings are called pseudo – or false – annual rings. Each annual ring corresponds to one
year’s growth and on the basis of these rings, the age of a particular plant can easily be calculated.
The determination of the age of a tree by counting the annual rings is called dendrochronology.
Significance of Growth Rings
• Age of wood can be calculated.
• The quality of timber can be ascertained.
• Radio-Carbon dating can be verified.
• Past climate and archaeological dating can be made.
• Provides evidence in forensic investigation.
10. Differentiate sap wood and heart wood
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