I haven't been on this account in a couple years. I may be yelling into the void right now, but college has a way of genuinely draining every ounce of passion you have. I'm starting to come back around and I'd like to start being active on this blog.
I'm now a fourth year college student hoping to graduate next semester. I'm majoring in biology with an emphasis in ecology, evolution, and organismal biology and I have a minor in environmental science.
I have an interest in microbes, streams, plants, and animals.
The purpose of my blog is to share news and information related to biology and environmental science.
Hello plant people! Here's a brief explanation of how monocots and dicots differ:
Where do the names come from?
You may be wondering how these taxon were named. Mono- and Di- are self explanatory -- one and two. But what about the -cot part? Well, the full names are Monocotyledons and Dicotyledons. A cotyledon is the embryonic leaf of the plant. Despite getting their names from this feature, it is not the most reliable way to characterize these since cotyledons are only present for a very short time in a plant's life. Here is a good picture of monocot vs dicot cotyledons:
By w:User:Pengo - Peter Halasz https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=837422
Now, what are some other ways to differentiate the two?
Plant Life-Form -- Herbaceous vs Arboraceous (Woody)
Monocots are typically herbaceous, but can be arboraceous.
Dicots are commonly either herbaceous or arboraceous.
Pollen
Monocot pollen has only one furrow. AKA monocolpate:
Monocots have trimerous flowers, meaning their flower structures (petals, septals, stamens, etc.) are in multiples of 3.
Dicots have tetramerous, flower structures in multiples of 4 or pentamerous, flower structures in multiples of 5.
Stem
Monocots have a hollow stem with scattered vascular bundles. They lack vascular cambium, which is the tissue that produces secondary growth, resulting in woody flesh.
Dicots have a non-hollow stem with a uniform ring of vascular bundles. They contain vascular cambium.
Leaf
Monocots have narrow, parallel-veined leaves with a sheathing base:
Dicots have broad leaves with a network of veins:
Root
Monocot roots are adventitious, meaning they develop wherever they can -- often in strange places. It's very cool! Here's a picture example:
Monocot roots briefly have a primary root, and then end up forming fibrous or fleshy root systems:
https://allen.in/neet/biology/fibrous-root
Dicots keep their primary root, which grows into a strong taproot. This taproot can grow small fibrous roots:
Taproots are often what we would call a vegetable!
I'm a second year college student. I'm majoring in biology with an emphasis in ecology, evolution, and organismal biology and I have a minor in environmental science.
The purpose of my blog is to share news related to wildlife biology and the environment in general.
