Chapter 8:
Transport in
Plants
Biology with Teacher Joyce Heah
[Link] 1
The xylem & phloem
Function of the xylem and phloem
• Plants contain two types of transport vessel:
• Xylem vessels – transport water and minerals
from the roots to the stem and leaves
• Phloem vessels – transport food materials (mainly
sucrose and amino acids) made by the plant from
photosynthesising leaves to non-
photosynthesising regions in the roots and stem
• These vessels are arranged throughout the root,
stem and leaves in groups called vascular bundles
[Link] 2
Adaptations of xylem vessels
Function: transport tissue for water and dissolved mineral ions
• Adaptations:
1. Cells joined end to end with no cross walls to form a long
continuous tube
2. Cells are essentially dead, without cell contents, to
allow free passage of water
3. Outer walls are thickened with a substance
called lignin, strengthening the tubes, which
helps support the plant
*To identify the xylem or phloem in a diagram
showing a cross-section of a root, stem or leaf
just remember that xylem is always on the
inside and phloem is always on the outside.
[Link] 3
Root Hair Cells
• Root hairs are single-celled extensions
of epidermis cells in the root
• They grow between soil particles and absorb
water and minerals from the soil
• Water enters the root hair cells by osmosis as soil
water has a higher water potential than the
cytoplasm of the root hair cell
Structure of the root
The root hair increases the surface area of the
cells significantly to increase the rate of the
absorption of water by osmosis and mineral
ions by active transport
[Link] 4
Pathway taken by water
• Water is taken up from the soil into root
hair cells
• Water then moves across the
root cortex and into the xylem vessels
by osmosis
• Water is then transported in
the xylem to the leaves where it
enters the leaf mesophyll cells
So the pathway is:
root hair cell → root cortex cells → xylem → leaf mesophyll cells
[Link] 5
Investigating water
movement in plants
The pathway taken by water through a
plant can be studied using a suitable
stain, or dye, as follows:
1. Place a plant stem, e.g. celery, into
a beaker of water that has had a
stain added to it
2. Leave for a few hours, or until the
leaves of the celery turn the same
colour as the dyed water
3. This indicates that the dye has
travelled all the way up the xylem
4. Cut a cross-section of the stem and
view the position of the coloured
dye, which will correspond with the
location of the xylem vessels [Link] 6
Transpiration
• Transpiration - the loss of water vapour
from plant leaves by evaporation of
water at the surfaces of the mesophyll
cells followed by diffusion of water
vapour through the stomata
• Water travels up xylem from the roots into the
leaves of the plant to replace the water that has
been lost due to transpiration
• Movement in xylem only takes place in
one direction - from roots to
leaves (unlike phloem where movement
takes place in different directions)
[Link] 7
Xylem Adaptation
1. Lignin is deposited in the cell walls which causes the xylem cells to die
2. These cells then become hollow and join end-to-end to form a continuous
tube for water and mineral ions to travel through from the roots
3. Lignin strengthens the plant to help it withstand the pressure of the water
movement
[Link] 8
Providing water to
Transporting keep cells turgid to
mineral ions support the
structure of the
plant
Functions of
Transpiration
Keeping the leaves
Providing water cool as it leaves the
to leaf cells for cells and enters the
photosynthesis airspace requires
[Link] heat energy 9
Investigating the Role of Environmental Factors in Determining
the Rate of Transpiration from a Leafy Shoot
1. Cut a shoot underwater to prevent air entering the xylem and place in tube
2. Set up the apparatus as shown in the diagram and use vaseline to seal any gaps to make sure
it is airtight
3. Dry the leaves of the shoot (wet leaves will affect the results)
4. Remove the capillary tube from the beaker of water to allow a single air bubble to form and
place the tube back into the water
5. Set up the environmental factor (temperature & wind speed) you are investigating
6. Allow the plant to adapt to the new environment for 5 minutes
7. Record the starting location of the air bubble
8. Leave for a set period of time and record the end location of air bubble
9. Change the wind speed or temperature (only one - whichever factor is being investigated)
[Link] the bubble by opening the tap below the reservoir
[Link] the experiment
[Link] further the bubble travels in the same time period, the faster transpiration is
occurring and vice versa [Link] 10
Environmental factors can be
investigated in the following ways:
1. Temperature: Temperature of room
(cold room and warm room)
• As temperature increases, the rate
of transpiration also increases
2. Wind speed: Use an electric fan to
mimic different wind speeds
• As wind speed increases, the
rate of transpiration also
increases
[Link] 11
Water Vapour Loss
• Evaporation takes place from the
surfaces of spongy mesophyll cells
• The many interconnecting air
spaces between these cells and the
stomata create a large surface area
• This means evaporation can happen
rapidly when stomata are open
[Link] 12
Transpiration Stream
Water molecules are attracted to each other by cohesion - creating a continuous column
of water up the plant
• Water moves through the xylem vessels in a continuous transpiration stream from
roots to leaves via the stem
• Transpiration produces a tension or ‘pull’ on the water in the xylem vessels by the
leaves
• As water molecules are held together by cohesive forces (each individual molecule
‘pulls’ on the one below it), so water is pulled up through the plant
• If the rate of transpiration from the leaves increases, water molecules are pulled up
the xylem vessels quicker
[Link] 13
[Link] 14
Explaining the Effects of Temperature, Wind Speed & Humidity
• Wind speed, humidity and
temperature all have an effect on
the rate at which transpiration
occurs
• The table explains how these
factors affect the rate of
transpiration when they are all
high; the opposite effect would be
observed if they were low
• A potometer can be used to
investigate the effect of
environmental factors on the rate
of transpiration
[Link] 15
Wilting
• If more water evaporates from
the leaves of a plant than is
available in the soil to move into
the root by osmosis,
then wilting will occur
(evaporation > osmosis)
• This is when all the cells of the
plant are not full of water, so the
strength of the cell walls cannot
support the plant and it starts to
collapse
[Link] 16
Translocation
• Translocation - The transport of sucrose and amino acids in the phloem, from regions of
production to regions of storage or use
• The soluble products of photosynthesis are sugars (mainly sucrose) and amino acids
• These are transported around the plant in the phloem tubes which are made of living cells
o The cells are joined end to end and contain holes in the end cell walls (called sieve plates)
which allow easy flow of substances from one cell to the next
o Transport in the phloem goes in many different directions depending on the stage of
development of the plant or the time of year; however dissolved food is always transported
from the source (where it’s made) to sink (where it’s stored or used):
• Winter - many plants have no leaves, the phloem tubes may transport dissolved sucrose and
amino acids from the storage organs to other parts of the plant so that respiration can
continue
• Spring - During a growth period, the storage organs (eg. roots) would be the source and the
many growing areas of the plant would be the sinks
• Summer - After the plant has grown, the leaves are photosynthesizing and producing large
quantities of sugars; so they become the [Link]
source and the roots become the sinks – storing17
sucrose as starch until it is needed again
[Link] 18
Comparison between Xylem and Phloem Tissue Table
[Link] 19