Water’s Journey Through Plants
Abdullah Al-Hendi
Qatar Academy
Mr. Rhodes
8B
General Aim . . Is to
Understand more on
 How water enters the plant.
 How it moves through out the plant.
 Why the plant needs water to survive
And an Overview of a more
detailed contents will cover ;
 How water enters the plant through its roots.
 TRANSPIRATION . . What it is . . And it’s process.
 What are XYLEM and PHLOEM and how they
transport water and nutrients through the plant
and there differences.
 CHLOROPLASTS's need for water.
 The process of OSMOSIS.
 What are ADHESION and COHESION, how they
help the movement of water through the plant,
and there differences.
Water’s Entry
 The entry of water is through the roots.
 These roots are the main part of the plants body.
 The roots are located in the soil beneath the
earth’s surface.
 The absorption of mineral salts and water is
mainly through the root hair.
 These root hairs can be found all around the
roots.
Water’s Entry: pictures
This picture shows the root tip and the root hair located on it.
Transpiration
 The process of transpiration is the the
conversion of liquid water into vapor and
released into the atmosphere.
 This process will occur when the stomata on the
leafs surface open up to release water vapor.
 The plant does this because the passage of
oxygen (O2) out and carbon dioxide (CO2) in for
the plant to produce photosynthesis
 The water is transported from the roots in liquid
form through the xylem into the stems and
leaves.
Transpiration: Pictures
These pictures clearly explain
how transpiration works from the
First step to the last step.
Xylem
 The responsibility of xylem is to transport mostly
water, but also from the roots through the stem
and to the leaves.
 One of its other uses is to replace the loss of
water from transpiration.
 Xylem is one of two transport types in vascular
plants.
 Vascular plants are plants that have certain
tissues that can conduct minerals, water, and
products that are produced from
photosynthesis.
Xylem: . . continued
 The xylem is composed of nonliving, hollow cells.
 The xylem is a tube in the innermost of the stem.
 Xylem can only transport water going up the xylem tubes
through the plant.
 Xylem cells support the weight of the plant because of
the reinforcements they have on there cell walls.
Cross Section:
Phloem
 Tubes in the plant that transports organic
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nutrients from the leaves to the roots.
The cells of the phloem are living.
Transports sap that is filled with sugar
(glucose) produced by photosynthesis.
The sap is sent to locations that are nonphotosynthetic in the plant such as the roots.
The phloem can transport these nutrients up
and down the plant.
Phloem and Xylem differences
Xylem
Phloem
 The xylem tissue dies in
 The phloem is always alive.
one year’s time and is
created anew.
 Xylem can only move
water upwards the plant.
 Phloem can transport
nutrients upwards and
downwards the plant.
Xylem and Phloem: Picture
This picture shows the differences of the xylem vessel and the phloem vessel and how they
transport nutrients and water through the plant.
Adhesion and Cohesion
 Adhesion is the process of any form of
attraction between unfamiliar species of
molecules.
 Cohesion is the attraction of like molecules
(same specie of molecule).
How are they related to Xylem
and Phloem
 Adhesion sticks to the cell walls of the xylem
and cohesion attracts like molecules in this
case, hydrogen (O2), the water molecules
(hydrogen, O2) form a continuous stream of
water up the tube.
 This allows water travel up the xylem tube.
 After transpiration, the stage of phloem takes
place.
Adhesion and Cohesion
differences
Adhesion
Cohesion
 Adhesion attracts
 Cohesion attracts like
unfamiliar molecular
species.
molecular species .
Osmosis
 Osmosis is the movement of water through
the cell membrane…
 Or, it is the movement of water through a
selectively permeable from an area with a
large amount of water (Low Concentration)
to an area to a low amount of water (High
Concentration).
 It can produce energy and be used for the
plant to do work, however it is a passive
process.
Chloroplasts
 Chloroplasts are organelles in plant cells that
capture light energy and use it to make
photosynthesis.
 Using osmosis water enters the chloroplasts
and then is able to react with carbon dioxide
(CO2) and create sugar (glucose) and oxygen
(O2).
 The sugars and oxygen are then used to
create energy for the plant to survive and
continue its life.
Chloroplasts: pictures
These are chloroplasts from an
elodea leaf.
This picture shows how chloroplasts take in
the sunlight and convert it into energy.
Bibliography: Cited Websites
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"BBC - GCSE Bitesize: Plant Transport." BBC - Homepage. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_gateway/greenworld/planttransportrev1.sh
tml>.
"Plant Structure." Clinton Community College. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://faculty.clintoncc.suny.edu/faculty/michael.gregory/files/bio 102/bio 102 lectures/plant
structure/plant structure.htm>.
"Phloem." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phloem>. "Adhesion." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 16 Feb.
2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adhesion>.
"Cohesion." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cohesion>.
"What Is the Role of Cohesion and Adhesion in Water Movement within Plants? -Yahoo! Answers."
Yahoo! Answers - Home. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100304194541AAvqVq2>.
"Biology4Kids.com: Plants: Xylem and Phloem." Rader's BIOLOGY 4 KIDS.COM. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://www.biology4kids.com/files/plants_xylemphloem.html>.
"Biology4Kids.com: Cell Function: Passive Transport." Rader's BIOLOGY 4 KIDS.COM. Web. 16 Feb.
2011. <http://www.biology4kids.com/files/cell2_passivetran.html>.
"Osmosis." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 16 Feb. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmosis#Basic_explanations>.