A1 [ C ] a living thing that grows in earth, in water, or on other plants, usually has a stem, leaves, roots, and flowers, and produces seeds: native plants and animals. Wood pulp is widely used to make paper, paperboard, cellulose sponges, cellophane and some important plastics and textiles, such as cellulose acetate and rayon. is withdrawn from the bottom of the condenser. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. A plant undergoes transpiration primarily to access carbon-dioxide needed for photosynthesis and to cool itself. stem noun /stem/ /stem/ Idioms. re-frig-er+at+ed [word form]. The xylem tissue transports water by the action of transpiration pull, capillary action and root pressure. At every book can be found in one, two, or more leaves. The main stem of a plant is…, The shoot apical meristem and the primary meristems lie at the apex of the shoot and give rise to the primary tissues of the stem. Rubber is obtained from the trunks of Hevea brasiliensis. A plant is a living thing that grows in the earth and has a stem, leaves, and roots. Arborescent: tree with woody stems normally with a single trunk. In most plants the stem is the major vertical shoot, in some it is inconspicuous, and in others it is modified and resembles other plant parts (e.g., underground stems may look like roots). Adventitious roots may develop from nodes of prostrate stems of some plant species, or from the hypocotyl rather than from the radicle of … It possesses the ability to elongate, either from its base or from its extremity depending on the species. Chicle, the main ingredient in chewing gum, is obtained from trunks of the chicle tree. Medicines obtained from stems include quinine from the bark of cinchona trees, camphor distilled from wood of a tree in the same genus that provides cinnamon, and the muscle relaxant curare from the bark of tropical vines. It also can become the natural habitat of lichens. See more. As the stem increases in diameter due to production of secondary xylem and secondary phloem, the cortex and epidermis are eventually destroyed. It supports leaves, flowers and fruits, transports water and dissolved substances between the roots and the shoots in the xylem and phloem, stores nutrients, and produces new living tissue. Raven, Peter H., Ray Franklin Evert, and Helena Curtis (1981). Some plant species have modified stems that are especially suited to a particular habitat and environment. oak, maple and walnut. https://www.toppr.com/guides/biology/morphology-of-flowering-plants/stem The stem carries water and nutrients to different parts of the plant. Stem definition, the ascending axis of a plant, whether above or below ground, which ordinarily grows in an opposite direction to the root or descending axis. A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant, the other being the root. In most plants stems are located above the soil surface but some plants have underground stems. There are thousands of species whose stems have economic uses. In plants with woody stems, a variety of secondary tissues are added to these primary tissues. A stem may climb on rocks or plants by means of rootlets, as in ivy; other vines have twining stems that twist around a supporting plant in a spiral manner, as in the honeysuckle and hop. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/science/stem-plant. A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant, the other being the root. The exception is tree ferns, with vertical stems up to about 20 metres. Decumbent: stems that lie flat on the ground and turn upwards at the ends. From its base or from its base or from its extremity depending on the rhizome of plants. Notable exceptions foods from the wood of certain trees, such as potatoes or other stem. 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