Republic of the Philippines

CENTRAL BICOL STATE UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE- PASACAO CAMPUS

Sta Rosa del Norte, Pasacao, Camarines Sur
Website: www.cbsua.edu.ph

Week 17
The Angiosperms

Welcome to the world of plants. The scientific study of plants is among the earliest
sciences to develop because of the paramount importance of plants to human existence.

Intended Learning Outcomes:

In this module, we are going to:

1. describe the general feature and economic or ecological importance of
angiosperms;
2. develop entrepreneurial skills and enhance creativity through a plant
bazaar plant selling activity.

Learning Resources:

VanDerZanden, A. (2012, July). How hormones and growth regulators affect your plants.
Oregon State University. Website: https://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/techniques/how-
hormones-growth-regulators-affect-your-plants

Boundless (2021, March). Abscisic Acid, Ethylene, and Nontraditional Hormones.

LibreTexts.Website:https://bio.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Introductory_and_General_Biology/Bo
ok%3A_General_Biology_(Boundless)/30%3A_Plant_Form_and_Physiology/30.7%3A_Plant_S
ensory_Systems_and_Responses/30.7F%3A_Abscisic_Acid_Ethylene_and_Nontraditional_Hor
mones
 Pre-Competency Checklist:

Before we start with this module, let us have first a recall of some important lessons you
had in the past that relates to angiosperms. Let’s try to answer some of these questions:

Bridging Connection Questions: Recalling Past Experience

1.

INTRODUCTION

Angiosperm, also called flowering plant, any of about 300,000 species of flowering
plants, the largest and most diverse group within the kingdom Plantae. Angiosperms
represent approximately 80 percent of all the known green plants now living. The
angiosperms are vascular seed plants in which the ovule (egg) is fertilized and develops
into a seed in an enclosed hollow ovary. The ovary itself is usually enclosed in a flower,
that part of the angiospermous plant that contains the male or female reproductive organs
or both.
Fruits are derived from the maturing floral organs of the angiospermous plant and
are therefore characteristic of angiosperms. By contrast, in gymnosperms (e.g., conifers
and cycads), the other large group of vascular seed plants, the seeds do not develop
enclosed within an ovary but are usually borne exposed on the surfaces of reproductive
structures, such as cones.

DISTRIBUTION &
PHYTOGEOGRAPHY

Angiosperms are a very widely distributed group of plants. They occur virtually in
all ecosystems of the world. In spite of their ubiquitous nature, their distribution is very
uneven, with nearly 67 % of the world’s flowering plants occurring in tropical zones.
The patterns of distribution of angiosperms (and other plants) on the earth and the
 factors accounting for such observed patterns are covered under phytogeography. These
patterns of distribution are often discussed only at the family and the lower hierarchical
levels of genus and species.
Angiosperms (and other plants) are also spoken of in terms of their original place
of distribution in the world, and these, due to various factors, particularly anthropogenic,
might have spread to other parts of the world. We speak of northern hemisphere taxa and
southern hemi-sphere taxa.

CLASSIFICATIONS

Angiosperms are classified into four groups based on their life span:
1. Annuals: Annuals are plants that complete their entire life cycle within a season or year
(e.g., paddy).
2. Biennials: Plants that live for two seasons, in the first season they live a vegetative life,
make food materials and store them in under-ground organs and in the second season
they reproduce using the stored materials (e.g., radish, carrot).
3. Perennials: Plants that live for a number of years but flower invariably every year (=
polycarpic), they are mostly trees, shrubs and lianes. There are also perennial herbs like
gin-ger, turmeric, banana, etc.
4. Multiennials: Plants are perennials but do not produce flowers every year. They flower
only once in their lifetime and die soon after (e.g. talipot palm, species of Agave ) (=
monocarpic )

The angiosperms dominate Earth’s surface and vegetation in more environments,

particularly terrestrial habitats, than any other group of plants. As a result, angiosperms are
the most important ultimate source of food for birds and mammals, including humans. In
addition, the flowering plants are the most economically important group of green plants,
serving as a source of pharmaceuticals, fiber products, timber, ornamentals, and other
commercial products.
 TAXONOMY

Although the taxonomy of the angiosperms is still incompletely known, the latest
classification system incorporates a large body of comparative data derived from studies
of DNA sequences. It is known as the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group IV (APG IV) botanical
classification system. The angiosperms came to be considered a group at the division
level (comparable to the phylum level in animal classification systems) called Anthophyta,
though the APG system recognizes only informal groups above the level of order.

STRUCTURE

The basic angiosperm body has three parts: roots, stems, and leaves. These
primary organs constitute the vegetative (nonreproductive) plant body. Together, the stem
and its attached leaves constitute the shoot. Collectively, the roots of an individual plant
make up the root system and the shoots the shoot system.
I. ROOT SYSTEMS
The roots anchor a plant, absorb water and minerals, and provide a storage area
for food. The two basic types of root systems are a primary root system and an
adventitious root system. The most common type, the primary system, consists of a
taproot (primary root) that grows vertically downward (positive geotropism). From the
taproot are produced smaller lateral roots (secondary roots) that grow horizontally or
diagonally. These secondary roots further produce their own smaller lateral roots (tertiary
roots). Thus, many orders of roots of descending size are produced from a single
prominent root, the taproot.
Many primary root and adventitious root systems have become modified for special
functions, the most common being the formation of tuberous (fleshy) roots for food
storage. For example, carrots and beets are tuberous roots that are modified from
taproots, and cassava (manioc) is a tuberous root that is modified from an adventitious
root. (Tubers, on the other hand, are modified, fleshy, underground stems and will be
discussed below.)
II. STEMS
The stem is an aerial axis of the plant that bears leaves and flowers and conducts
water and minerals from the roots and food from the site of synthesis to areas where it is to
be used. The main stem of a plant is continuous with the root system through a transition
region called the hypocotyl. In the developing embryo, the hypocotyl is the embryonic axis
that bears the seedling leaves (cotyledons).
In a maturing stem, the area where a leaf attaches to the stem is called a node, and
the region between successive nodes is called an internode. Stems bear leafy shoots
(branches) at the nodes, which arise from buds (dormant shoots). Lateral branches develop
either from axillary, or lateral, buds found in the angle between the leaf and the stem or from
terminal buds at the end of the shoot. In temperate-climate plants these buds have extended
periods of dormancy, whereas in tropical plants the period of dormancy is either very short or
nonexistent.
III. LEAVES
The basic angiosperm leaf is composed of a leaf base, two stipules, a petiole, and a
blade (lamina). The leaf base is the slightly expanded area where the leaf attaches to the
stem. The paired stipules, when present, are located on each side of the leaf base and may
resemble scales, spines, glands, or leaflike structures. The petiole is a stalk that connects the
blade with the leaf base. The blade is the major photosynthetic surface of the plant and
appears green and flattened in a plane perpendicular to the stem.
Many leaves contain only some of these leaf parts; for example, many leaves lack a
petiole and so are attached directly to the stem (sessile), and others lack stipules (exstipulate).
In compound leaves, a blade has two or more subunits called leaflets: in palmately compound
leaves, the leaflets radiate from a single point at the distal end of the petiole; in pinnately
compound leaves, a row of leaflets forms on either side of an extension of the petiole called
the rachis. Some pinnately compound leaves branch again, developing a second set of
pinnately compound leaflets (bipinnately compound). The many degrees of compoundness in
highly elaborated leaves, such as bipinnately or tripinnately compound, cause these leaves
to often appear to be shoot systems. It is always possible to distinguish them, however,
because axillary buds are found in the angle between the stem and the petiole (axil) of
pinnately or palmately compound leaves but not in the axils of leaflets.
CHARACTERISTICS OF
ANGIOSPERMS

Angiosperms have diverse characteristics. The important characteristics of

angiosperms are mentioned below:
1. All plants have flowers at some stage in their life. The flowers are the reproductive
organs for the plant, providing them with a means of exchanging genetic
information.
2. The sporophyte is differentiated into stems, roots, and leaves.
3. The vascular system has true vessels in the xylem and companion cells in the
phloem.
4. The stamens (microsporophyll) and the carpels (megasporophyll) are organized
into a structure called the flower.
5. Each microsporophyll has four microsporangia.
6. The ovules are enclosed in the ovary at the base of the megasporophyll.
7. Angiosperms are heterosporous, i.e., produce two kinds of spores, microspore
(pollen grains) and megaspores.
8. A single functional megaspore is permanently retained within the nucellus.
9. The pollen grains transfer from the anther to stigma and reproduction takes place
by pollination. They are responsible for the transfer of genetic information from one
flower to the other. The pollen grains are much smaller than the gametophytes or
reproductive cells present in the non-flowering plants.
10. The sporophytes are diploid.
11. The root system is very complex and consists of cortex, xylem, phloem, and
epidermis.
12. The flowers undergo double and triple fusion which leads to the formation of a
diploid zygote and triploid endosperm.
13. Angiosperms can survive in a variety of habitats, including marine habitats.
14. The process of fertilization is quicker in angiosperms. The seeds are also produced
quickly due to the smaller female reproductive parts.
15. All angiosperms are comprised of stamens which are the reproductive structures
of the flowers. They produce the pollen grains that carry the hereditary information.
16. The carpels enclose developing seeds that may turn into a fruit.
17. The production of the endosperm is one of the greatest advantages of
angiosperms. The endosperm is formed after fertilization and is a source of food
 for the developing seed and seedling.

SUMMARY

 Angiosperms are the dominant form of plant life in most terrestrial ecosystems, comprising
about 90 percent of all plant species. Most crops and ornamental plants are angiosperms.
 Flowers were derived from modified leaves. The main parts of a flower are the sepals and
petals, which protect the reproductive parts: the stamens and the carpels. The stamens
produce the male gametes in pollen grains. The carpels contain the female gametes (the
eggs inside the ovules), which are within the ovary of a carpel. The walls of the ovary
thicken after fertilization, ripening into fruit that ensures dispersal by wind, water, or
animals.
 The angiosperm life cycle is dominated by the sporophyte stage. Double fertilization is an
event unique to angiosperms. One sperm in the pollen fertilizes the egg, forming a diploid
zygote, while the other combines with the two polar nuclei, forming a triploid cell that
develops into a food storage tissue called the endosperm. Flowering plants are divided
into two main groups, the monocots and eudicots, according to the number of cotyledons
in the seedlings. Basal angiosperms belong to an older lineage than monocots and
eudicot.

Discussion Board
Explain how can angiosperms are classified.
Discuss the importance of Angiosperm to Environmental
Science