Nature Around Us
Concept : All About Plants
Plants are living organisms that make their food and provide oxygen to humans and animals.
- Since plants make their food, they are called autotrophs, while the others dependent on plants for food are called heterotrophs.
- Plans need water, air, soil, and sunlight to survive. Plants can be of different sizes and shapes.
Types of Plants:
Based on the size and shape, plants can be classified as follows—
1.Tree: Tall plants with firm and strong trunks. They live for many years. Example: Banyan tree, mango tree, palm tree.
2.Twiner/Climber: Plants with weak trunks that twine themselves around any support. Example: Grapes.
3.Shrub: Plants with soft trunks and short branches, are
of low height and stay near the ground.
Example: Rose plant.
4.Herb: These plants have soft and delicate stems that
are green in colour. They grow up to a short height and only live for
one or two seasons.
Example: Basil plant.
5.Grass: Very flexible plants with green stems, and the leaves are long and narrow. They have a very short lifespan.
Example:
Bamboo.
Habitats of Plants:
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Some plants grow entirely on land.
Examples: Guava, papaya, neem, etc. -
Some plants grow in water and float on the surface.
Examples: Water lily, lotus, etc. -
Some plants grow below the surface of the water.
Examples: Waterweed
Neem Tree
Water Lilly
Waterweed
Leaves of Plants:
Leaves are the food manufacturing units of a plant. We see many plants around us with different kinds of leaves. Some are long, slender, thin, and flexible (grass); some are broad, thick, and rough with varying shades of green (peepal, fig), and some are of completely different colours (ornamental plants).
-
The amla plant has very small leaves, while the leaves of a banana tree
are huge. The leaves of apple and cherry trees have grooves in the leaf
margin.
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The lines visible on a leaf’s surface are called veins. The leaf's surface
is called the leaf blade, and the border is called the leaf margin.
- Some plants can be identified by crushing the leaves and smelling them. When crushed, a particular aroma comes out of it. Examples: Leaves of the lemon tree, tulsi, neem, nilgiri, etc.
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| Tulsi leaves | Neem leaves | Nilgiri leaves | Lemon leaves |
Trunk:
The trunk of a tree connects the leaves and branches with the roots.
- The trunks of plants are called stems, and young stems are green in colour.
- As the stem becomes older, it becomes hard and brown/black in colour.
- The tree gets support above the soil due to the trunk.
- The main function of the trunk is to supply water and nutrients coming up from the roots to the different parts of the tree.
Roots:
Roots grow downwards into the soil and give underground support to the tree.
- The roots divide into branches that help absorb water and minerals from the soil.
- Grasses have very soft and small roots, whereas roots of trees like banyan go deep into the soil and spread across a huge area.
New Words:
- Autotrophs: Those who can make their food using sunlight, water, and other ingredients. Example: Green plants.
- Heterototrophs: Those who cannot make their food and
- depend on plants for their food. Example: Man, animals, birds.
Did You Know?
There is a plant named Touch-Me-Not, which folds its leaves quickly if someone touches it.
The Great Banyan Tree in the Botanical Garden of Kolkata is around 250 years old and covers 4.67 acres of land.
