Energy From Plants
Chapter 2
Plant Characteristics
They are made of small building blocks called cells
Different parts of a cell do different jobs
Plants make LOOK different but have many of same cells
1. Special parts that use the water and materials absorb
from the soil
2. Change sunlight into energy
3. Transport food to the rest of the plant
Plant Habitats
Live in MANY kinds of habitats
From cold mountain meadows to blistering deserts
They have special ADAPTIONS to help them survive
Water lilies grow in the soil at
the bottom of ponds . Stems reach
up above the water, and the flower
blooms above the surface
What a Plant Needs
1.Sunlight
2.Water
to live, grow, and
reproduce
3.Carbon Dioxide
From the air
4.Mineral Nutrients
From the soil
Photosynthesis
Plants make their own food
The food they make is sugar
The process of making the sugar is
called photosynthesis
Chloroplasts
This is where photosynthesis takes place,
in leaf cells
It contains chlorophyll- the substance in
plants that make them green
It also captures energy from sunlight
which the plants uses to make food
Parts of a Plant
Leaves
All have the same role
Their job is to produce food so the plant survive in
its environment
To make their job easier they are different shapes
and sizes
Most are flat on top to catch as much sunlight as
possible
Pine
Thin, sharp needles
The narrow shape
helps prevent the
tree from loosing too
much water
Banana Plant
Grow in places with
plenty of water
Their leaves can be
almost as wide as a
kitchen table
Stems
Vary in size and shape
Have two basic functions
1. Carry water, minerals, and food between the
roots and leaves
2. Support the plant, holding the leaves helping it
get sunlight
Stems – Soft and Flexible
Daisies
Dandelions
Tomato plants
Usually GREEN and carry out
photosynthesis just like the leaves
Stems – Strong and Thick
Trees
Support larger plants
The outer layer of
dead cells forms bark
that protects the
plant
Counting
Tree
Lives
Roots
Anchor the plant firmly into the ground
Most are underground, so they can absorb, or
take in, water
DO NOT make food, but DO store food
DOES NOT have any chlorophyll
Fibrous Roots
The roots spread out in many
directions
Takes in extra water and stores it in its
stem
Are all about the same size
DO Grow larger, but DO NOT grow
very thick or very dee
Most grasses and trees
 Plants that grow in hot, dry areas
Taproots
A large main root that grows straight
down
Absorbs water and nutrients from the soil
As it stores, it grows thicker
Some smaller roots will grow from the
side, that will help get even more
nutrients
Carrots, Turnips, and Dandelions
Parts of a Flower
1.Petals
2.Sepal
3.Pistil
4.Stamen
Petals
You can see easily
Often colorful
Different Shapes and sizes
Protect the parts of the flower that
makes the seed
Attract bees, butterflies, birds, and other
living things
Sepals
Small green leaves below
the petals
Cover and protect the
flower when it grows inside
the bud
They push apart when the
flower blooms
Pistil
Small knoblike structures
center of the flower
Stamens
Smaller, surrounds the pistil
Antlers are part of this
They make the tiny grains of
pollen
Plant Reproduction
Plants that make seeds
One way scientist classify plants is how they reproduce
(make more flowers)
Sperm cells in pollen and egg cells combine to make
seeds
That means pollen has to get from the stamen to the
pistil
Moving Pollen
Flowers make a sweet liquid called nectar
This is tasty food for bats, bees, butterflies, and birds
(4Bs)
They help move the pollen on the flowers
The colors of the petals and the smell of the nectar
attract the animals
This movement of pollen from stamen to pistil is called
pollination
1. Pollen grain lands on pistil
2. Thin tube grows through pistil
3. Pollen tube reaches the thick
bottom part of the pistil
called the ovary
4. Sperm cells from the pollen
travel down the pollen tube
to the egg cells in the ovary
5. The sperm and egg cells
combine in a process called
fertilization
Moving Pollen
Flowers make a sweet liquid called nectar
This is tasty food for bats, bees, butterflies, and birds
(4Bs)
They help move the pollen on the flowers
The colors of the petals and the smell of the nectar
attract the animals
This movement of pollen from stamen to pistil is called
pollination
Wind Pollination
Animals do not pollinate all flowers
Grasses and most trees depend on wind for pollination
The winds blows the pollen from stamens to pistils
These plants do not have sweet smells or big flowers
with colorful petals
Instead they produced HUGE amounts of pollen
Plant Life Cycle
• Like animals plants have a life cycle
• But Plants continue to grow as long as they
live, which animals can not
• How long a plant lives depends on the kind of
plant
Seeds on the Move
What would happen if seeds fell onto the ground where
there parent plant is located?
There wouldn’t be enough water, and nutrients for the
new seed to grow
Plants have adaptions that help them to scatter their
seeds
Helpers
Water
Wind
Animals
WATER as a Helper
Some fruits and seeds get around by FLOATING ON
WATER
Coconuts, a fruit, can float between islands
Storms can wash the fruit from one island to another
WIND as a Helper
Have you ever blown on a dandelion puff?
The threads you blow catch the wind and carry fruits
and seeds far away
They float like “parachutes”
Tumbleweeds blow across the land, and seeds fall of as
they go
ANIMALS as a Helper
Many animals eat fruit
Because of the seeds protective covering, they can
pass through the animal’s digestive system unharmed
They end up on the ground from the animals
“droppings” far from the parent plant
Other seeds have hooks that attach to the animal’s fur
Other animals gather and bury nuts and seeds
Even with the many ways seeds can be
moved MOST SEEDS DO NO BECOME
PLANTS
FINAL JEOPARDY
Jeopardy
Plant Reproduction
Characteristics
Parts of a
Flowering Plant
10
10
10
10
20
20
20
20
30
30
30
30
40
40
40
40
50
50
50
50
Parts of a Plant
Parts of a Plant
10
Type of root that is thin and
spreads out in different
directions
Fibrous Root
Parts of a Plant
20
A large main root the grow
straight down
Taproot
Parts of a Plant
30
Part of the leaf where
photosynthesis takes place
Chloroplasts
Parts of a Plant
40
Why are most leaves flat?
So they can catch as much
sunlight as possible
Parts of a Plant
50
What are the 2 functions of
the stem?
1. To carry food, water, and minerals between the
roots and leaves
2. Support the plant and allow leaves to catch the suns
rays
Plant Reproduction
10
4B’s that carry pollen and
help with reproduction
Bats
Butterflies
Bees
Birds
Plant Reproduction
20
Female part of the flower
Pistil
Plant Reproduction
30
Male Part of the Flower
Stamen
Plant Reproduction
40
The process of the egg and
sperm cell creating a new
seed
Fertilization
Plant Reproduction
50
Part of the flower that
hold the eggs
Ovaries
Characteristics
10
What are the 4 things every
plant needs to survive?
1. Water
2. Sunlight
3. Carbon Dioxide
4. Mineral Nutrients
Characteristics
20
What does Photosynthesis
let out of the plant ?
Oxygen
Characteristics
30
Process of making sugar,
needed for energy
Photosynthesis
Characteristics
40
What makes the plant
green?
Chlorophyll
Characteristics
50
What are the 3
characteristics of a plant?
1. Special Parts
2. Convert sunlight to energy
3. Transport food
Parts of a Flowering Plant
10
Name the 4 parts of a
flowering plant
1. Petals
2. Stigma
3. Stamen
4. Pistil
Parts of a Flowering Plant
20
Protect the parts of the
flower that makes seeds
Petals
Parts of a Flowering Plant
30
Cover and protect the bud
Sepal
Parts of a Flowering Plant
40
Center of the flower
Pistil
Parts of a Flowering Plant
50
Make the tiny grains of
pollen
Stamen
FINAL JEOPARDY
Name the three helpers for
moving seeds and a example
for each!
1. Water
2.Wind
3.Animals