EFB530 Plant Physiology

Intro to Plant Growth and Development

Plant development is different than animal development

• asexual reproduction is very common among plants (clonal progeny)
• sexuality is not as well-defined in plants as in animals (90% have both male & female parts)
• plants have a distinct gametophytic phase of their life cycle (1n)
• environment has a strong influence on plant development
• most animal development occurs during embryogenesis
• plant cells are rarely terminally differentiated (most are totipotent)
• plants do not establish a germ line (special cells destined to produce gametes)
• cell migration is important in animal embryogenesis, plant cell fate is determined by position
• growth in plants can be indeterminate

Basic structures involved in plant growth and development

• embryo (cotyledons, shoot & root apical meristems)
• meristems - shoot, axillary, root (apical and lateral), floral, cambiums (cork, vascular)

Plant development occurs due to:

• orientation of the plane of cell division
• cell expansion (according to pattern of cellulose deposition, driven by turgor)

In common, there must be communication between cells in a multicellular organism to coordinate development

• signal molecules (long-distance or short-distance) are hormones

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