Improve Your Gardening Skills and Impress Neighbors With an Understanding of These Plant Parts

To get a better understanding of how a plant works, lets take a look at its individual plant parts and the role they play.

Starting at the bottom, plant roots are essentially its feet. They act as a to securely anchor the plant into the ground. They also are responsible for absorbing important nutrients from the soil. The roots absorb its nutrients through tiny projections call root hair. These roots hairs also take in oxygen from the dirt, release carbon dioxide and absorb water.

The roots can store H20 and other vital nutrients for extended periods of time, in some cases more than a year. The plant parts where these essential nutrients are stored are known as the bulb or tubers. Once stored, the nutrients travel through the stem system to areas where the plant needs them most.

One of the main jobs of the stem is to support the plant as it grows. Most plants are constantly trying to grow upwards where sunlight and airflow is abundant. Without a sturdy stem a plant would fall over under its own weight. Stems also act like veins, bringing key nutrients from the roots to the leaves as needed.

The leaves of a plant can also absorb nutrients. On the underside of a plant leaf are tiny pores known as stomata. This is where carbon dioxide enters, and is combined with water and other nutrients. The chemical reactions of the nutrients combined create carbohydrates that feed the plant.

The by-products of this chemical mixture include water vapor and oxygen. They in turn pass back through the stomata and are release into the air. So, essentially, the more leaves' a plant has the more it can grow. Plants are complex in their basic structure. The plant parts discussed here are only a small part of what's going on behind the scenes of a plants growth cycle.

Steve Habib is a active gardener and researcher on growing and caring for a variety of plants. You can find more insights and free reports how to become a better gardener at the: HOME PAGE: To discover more about PLANT PARTS: visit here.

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