The journey of a water drop through a plant

The journey of a water drop through a plant

Abdul Rahman Al Sayed

In the soil entering the rootHow and what is the process of water getting to the top of a plant?At first, water is absorbed into a plant by the younger parts of the

roots. The root has what is called a piliferous region at the growing tip. This part has a bunch of hair-like epidermal tissue projections, which widens the surface area of the root so that as much water is absorbed as possible. Water is absorbed through the epidermal tissue projections through osmosis, which is when water moves from an area of higher concentration to one with a lower concentration.

Inside the rootsAfter the entrance the water is transferred to the xylem, which is the

vascular tissue of a plant that conducts water and dissolved nutrients to all parts of the plant and replaces water lost during photosynthesis and transpiration. The xylem sap flows through a plant due to the forces of transpiration, which is the evaporation of water from plants. Plants transpire more rapidly in the light (and at higher temperatures) because the light warms the leaf and stimulates the opening of the stomata, the tiny openings in the outer layer of the leaf that control the passing of water vapor into and out of the plant and is what collects carbon dioxide. Plus, the drier the air and the windier it is, the more a plant transpires.

The stemAfter the root the water goes into the stem. The stem contains many

things, the cambium, which is where cells make new xylem and phloem for the plant to use, the epidermis, which is a single layer of cells which helps protect the stem and decrease the amount of moist from dehydrating, the vascular bundle, which is made out of xylem, cambium and phloem, the cortex, which is the outer layer located next to the epidermis.

The way the water goes upwards is called the cohesion theory, it is the effect of water evaporating at the top of the column at the leaves creates a tension which pulls water up to take its place. This tension pulls the water molecules upwards, and due to the presence of the hydrogen atoms in the water molecules, they happen to 'stick' together, and so the whole water parts are pulled upwards.

The stomataA plant's stomata, which are openings on the surface of the plant

open and close in order to absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen. The opening and closing of stomata is regulated by sunlight. Stomata close to prevent extra moisture loss. If the stomata does not close on time, plants suffer excessive water loss and air begins to pass through xylem, causing cavities in the cell structure.

The leavesThe leaves contain a number of xylem and phloem tubes, the epidermis is on

the outside of the leaf to protect it. palisade mesophyll, has possesses something called chloroplast, which have a green substance called chlorophyll in them which is the reason why the plant is green. There is also something called the spongy cells, have a job to protect the epidermis. They are more round and contain much less chlorophyll, this is where the stomata connects, between the empty spaces of the spongy cells. The carbon dioxide travels into the plant from the stomata, and the chlorophyll creates energy using the carbon dioxide and water which turn into glucose. The plants keep this as energy and then releases it as oxygen for us to breath.

photosynthesis

Photosynthesis means putting together with light, this process takes place in the chlorophyll inside the leaves. The chlorophyll absorbs the sunlight, then it combines water and carbon dioxide to make sugar and oxygen.

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