PLANT KINGDOM

characteristic features:
• They are non-motile.
• They make their own food hence are called autotrophs.
• They reproduce asexually by vegetative propagation or sexually.
• These are multicellular eukaryotes. The plant cell contains the outer cell
wall and a large central vacuole.
• Plants contain photosynthetic pigments called chlorophyll present in the
plastids.
• They have different parts for anchorage, reproduction, support and
photosynthesis.
 CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS
Artificial classification – oldest classification and it is based on few
vegetative and sexual characters.
Natural classification system – it is based on natural affinities
among the organisms in their external and internal features.
Phylogenetic classification system – it is based on evolutionary
relationship
Numerical taxonomy – by using computers numbers and codes are
assigned to all the characters and data are processed.
Cytotaxonomy – it is based on cytological information like
chromosome number, structure and behaviour
Chemotaxonomy – it is based chemical constituents of the plants.
Artificial System of Classification :
• Used superficial morphological characters.
• Based on a few characteristics like habit, colours, number
and shape of leaf.
• Mainly based on vegetative characters.
• Such system developed by Linnaeus.
• Natural System of Classification :
• Based on natural affinities among organisms
• Included external as well as internal features like
anatomy, embryology and phytochemistry.
• Developed by George Bentham and J. D. Hooker
Phylogenetic System of Classification :
• Based on evolutionary relationships between the
various organisms.
• Organism belongs to same taxa have a common
ancestors.
• Developed by Hutchinson.
Numerical Taxonomy :
• Carried out using computers
• Based on all observable characteristics
• Data processed after assigning number
and codes to all the characters.
Thallophyta
1. Plant body: Presence or absence of a well-differentiated
plant body. E.g. Root, Stem and Leaves.
2. Vascular system: Presence or absence of a vascular
system for the transportation of water and other substances.
E.g. Phloem and Xylem.
3. Seed formation: Presence or absence of flowers and seeds
and if the seeds are naked or enclosed in a fruit.
The plant kingdom has been classified into five subgroups

1.Thallophyta
2.Bryophyta
3.Pteridophyta
4.Gymnosperms
5.Angiosperms
ALGAE :
· Simple, thalloid, autotrophic, aquatic organisms.

· Habitats – grow in moist soil and wood.

· Symbiotic –Lichens(with fungi) grow on other animals (sloth bear)

· Size ranges from Unicellular(chlamydomonas) ,colonial (volvox),

Filamentous
(spirogyra) and Massive bodies (kelp)

· Reproduce vegetatively, asexually and sexually

· Spores are Zoospores (male) à isogamous / anisogamous;

Oospores (egg).
Importance of Algae:
• At least half of the total carbon dioxide fixation on earth carried out by algae.
• Increase oxygen level in the environment.
• Many species like Laminaria, Sargassum etc. are used as food.
• Agar obtained from Gelidium and Gracilaria is used in ice-creams and jellies.
• Algin from brown algae and carrageen from red algae are used commercially.
• Chlorella and Spirullina are unicellular algae, rich in protein and used even by
space travellers
 summarise
• ALGAE
• • Are simple, thalloid, autotrophic and occur in water, soil, wood
etc
• Algae are unicellular like Chlamydomonas, colonial like Volvox
or filamentous like Spirogyra.
• Reproduction:-
• Vegetative reproduction: by fragmentation
• Asexual Reproduction: by flagellated zoospores
• Sexual Reproduction: Isogamous [chlamydomonas, spirogyra] ,
anisogamous [Chlamydomonas ]or
• oogamous [volvox, fucus].
Economic importance:
1. Porphyra, Laminaria, Sargassum are used as food.

2. Marine brown algae (Algin) and red algae

(Carrageen) are used as Hydrocolloids, which is a fibrous
structure holds water and used to transport seedling.

3. Gelidium, Gracilaria are used to grow microbes,

make ice creams and jellies.

4. Chlorella and Spirullina are rich in proteins and used

as food supplements.
• Algae are divided into 3 main classes ;

a) Chlorophyceae – green algae

b) Phaeophyceae – brown algae

c) Rhodophyceae – red algae

 CHLOROPHYCEAE (green algae)
• Unicellular (chlamydomonas)
• Colonial (volvox)
• filamentous(spirogyra, oscillatoria)

• Major pigments are chlorophyll a & b- localised in chloroplasts. (different shapes-

cup, spiral, reticulate, plate-like ,etc)
• Storage bodies containing proteins and starch ( pyrenoids)
• Some store oil forms (oil droplets)
• Cell wall is rigid and made of inner cellulose and outer pectose
• Vegetative reproduction is by fragmentation / spores
• Asexual reproduction is by flagellated Zoospores
• Sexual reproduction is by isogamous / anisogamous / oogamous
 SPIROGYRA

OSCILLATORIA
 Phaeophyceae (Brown algae)
• Marine habitats – vary in size and form, from simple,
filamentous, branched to profusely branched form(Kelps (100 m) )
• possess chlorophyll a & c, carotenoid,Xanthophylls(Fucoxanthin).
• Food is stored as carbohydrates in the form of Laminarin /
Mannitol
• They have cellulose wall with gelatinous coating of algin.
• plantbody- 3 parts
They are Holdfast (root like), stipe(stalk/stem like) and frond (leaf like)

• Vegetative reproduction by fragmentation

• Asexual reproduction is by biflagellated zoospores(uneqaual)
• Sexual reproduction is by Isogamous / Anisogamous / Oogamous.
Gametes are flagellated
Examples :- Laminaria, Sargassum, Ectocarpus, Dictyota,
Fucus
 Rhodophyceae ( Red algae)
• They have red pigment called “r-phycoerythrin”.

· They are marine.(well lighted surface region and deep in ocean)

· Food is stored as Floridean starch, which is similar to amylopectin and
glycogen in structure.
• Cell wall –cellulose, pectin and polysulphate esters

· Vegetative reproduction is by fragmentation.

· Asexually by non-motile spores.

· Sexually by non-motile gametes.(oogamous)

 GRACILARIA

GELIDIUM
 Chlorophyceae Phaeophyceae Rhodophyceae
• Brown algae
•Green algae. • pigments chlorophyll ‘a’, ‘c’ •Red algae
• Main pigment is and fucoxanthin. pigments chlorophyll ‘a’, ‘d’
chlorophyll ‘a’ and ‘b’. • Cell wall has cellulose and and r-phycoerythrin.
• Cell wall has inner layer of lignin or gelantinous coating of • Found on surface as well
cellulose and outer layer of algin. as great depths in oceans.
pectose. • mannitol and laminarin as • Cell wall inner cellulose
• Reserve food is starch reserve food material. and outer polysulphate
• Has pyrenoids in • Flagella 2, unequal and esters
chloroplast made up of lateral •. Reserve food material is
starch and proteins. • Body divisible into holdfast, floridean starch
• Flagella 2-8, equal and stipe and frond. • Flagella are absent
apical • e.g., Ectocarpus, Fucus, • e.g., Polysiphonia,
• e.g., Chlamydomona, Laminaria,Dictyota,Sargassum Porphyra,
Volvox, Spirogyra,Chara Gelidium,Gracilaria.
• They live in moist shaded areas.
• They occur in damp soil, humid and
shaded places.
 They are known as “amphibians of plant kingdom”.

•These plants can live in soil but are

dependent on water for sexual
reproduction.
 PLANT BODY
• Thallus-like plant body
• Prostrate or erect
• Plant body lacks true roots, stem,
leaves, but they possess root-like,
stem-like ,and leaf –like structures
• The plant body are attached to
the substratum by unicellular /
multicellular Rhizoids.
 REPRODUCTION IN BRYOPHYTES :
• Vegetative reproduction by fragmentation.
• Asexual reproduction by gemmae formed in
gemma cups.
• Sexual reproduction : with the help of sex
organs which produce gametes.
Main plant body is gametophyte.
The sex organs in bryophytes are multicellular.
• The main plant is haploid and they produce
gametes (Gametophyte – dominant).
• The male sex organ is Antheridium (antherozoids)
• The female sex organ is Archegonium(flask
shaped) (single egg)
• Antherozoids are released in water come into
contact with Archegonium to form Zygote.
• Zygote develops into Sporophyte (diploid)
undergoes meiosis to form haploid spores
germinate to produce Gametophyte.
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
 Economic importance:

• Provide food for herbaceous mammals / birds.

• Sphagnum species (mosses) provide peat, used as a fuel.
Due to its water holding capacity is used as packing
material for trans-shipment of living materials.
• Mosses and Lichens form Pioneer community on bare
rocks.(play important role in plant succession)
• Form dense mats on soil, so reduce the impact of rain
and soil erosion.

.
Brophytes are LIVERWORTS AND MOSSES
LIVERWORTS
• Grow in moist and shady habitats
• Thalloid plant body-dorsiventral
and closely appressed to the
substratum.
• Have tiny leaf like and stem like
appendages
• Eg: MARCHANTIA
• Vegetative- fragmentation
• Asexual- formation of gemma cups
• Gemma cups are specialised structures for asexual reproduction
in liverworts.
• Green, multicellular asexual buds called gemmae are produced in
gemma cups.
• The new individual thalli form when gemmae germinate

reproduction
 Sexual reproduction in liverworts
• Sex organs are produced
• Antherozoid fuses with the egg in archegonium.
• Zygote is produced which develops into
sporophyte(diploid)
• Sporophyte consists of three parts –base foot,middle
seta and top capsule.
• Few cells in capsule undergo meiosis to form spores.
• Later, these spores geminate into free living
Gemma cup
 • Grow in moist habitats
MOSSES • Thallus is erect and more developed than liverworts
• Gametophyte consists of two stages a) protonema b)
leafy stage
capsule spore
sporophyte protonema

zygote Secondary
protonema
antherozoid anthredium
Leafy
egg stage
archegonium
Haplontic life cycle
 • Amphibians of plant kingdom
REPRODUCTION IN BRYOPHYTES : • Lack true roots, stem or leaves.
• Vegetative reproduction by fragmentation. • Anchorage by unicellular or multicellular
• Asexual reproduction by gemmae formed in gemma cups. rhizoids.
Sexual reproduction • Main plant body is haploid (n), or gametophytic.
• Main plant body is gametophyte.
• Male sex organ -antheridium-produces biflagellate antherozoids as male gamete.
• Female sex organ – archegonium(flask shaped)- a single egg.
• Fertilization takes place in water results in formation of zygote.
• The zygote developed into a multicellular body called sporophyte which remains attached on
female gametophyte.
• The sporophyte differentiated into foot, seta and capsule.
• Some cells of the capsule undergo meiotic division to produce haploid spores. These spores
germinated into an independent gametophyte.
• Moss gametophyte consists of two stages
• First stage is called protonema stage which developed from the spore and is creeping, green,
branched.
• Second stage is leafy stage which developed from the protonema stage as a lateral bud. They
consist of upright, slender axes bearing spirally arranged leaves.
PTERIDOPHYTA (HORSETAILS AND
FERNS)
• First terrestrial plant possesses vascular tissue like xylem and
phloem
• The plant body differentiated into true root, stem and leaf.
• The main plant body is sporophytic.
• Leaves may be small (microphyll) as in Selaginella or large
(macrophyll) as in ferns.
• Sporangia having spores are subtended by leaf-like appendages
called sporophylls. (Sporophylls may be arranged to form strobili
or cones.)
• In Sporangia, the spore mother cells give rise to spores after
• Spores germinate to form haploid gametophytic
structure called prothallus which is free living,
small, multicellular and photosynthetic
• Prothallus bears antheridia and archegonia
which bear antherozoids and egg cell
respectively
• On fertilisation form zygote.
• Zygote produces multicellular, well
differentiated sporophyte.
 LIFE CYCLE

sporophyte SPOROPHYLL
meiosi
zygote spore
antherozoid anthredium germinate
egg PROTHALLU
archegonium S
• Most of pteridophytes produce similar kinds of spores
hence called homosporous.
• Genera like Selaginella and Salvinia which produce
two kind of spores, macro (large) and small (micro)
spores are known as heterosporous. Microspore and
macrospore germinate and gives rise to male and
female gametophyte respectively.
• The female gametophytes in these plants are
retained on the parent sporophyte for
variable period.
• The development of zygote into young
embryo takes place within the female
gametophytes.
• This events is a precursor to the seed habits
considered an important steps in evolution
• Selaginella & Salvinia produce 2 kinds of spores-
large macrospores & small
microspores(HETEROSPOROUS)
• The development of zygote into young embryos
takes place within the female gametophyte which
is
• retained on parent sporophyte.
• This is an important step in seed habit evolution
and is found in Selaginella and Salvinia
•The 4 classes are :
•Psilopsida (Psilotum),
•Lycopsida (Selaginella,Lycopodium),
•Sphenopsida (Equisetum) and
•Pteropsida (Pteris,Dryopteris,Adiantum).
Psilotum
Lycopodium
Equisetum
Pteris
 Pteridophyta -summary
• Main plant body is sporophyte which is differentiated into true stem and leaves.
• Leaves may be small (microsporophyll) as in Selaginella or large (macrophyll) as in ferns.
• Sporangia having spores are subtended by leaf-like appendages called sporophylls.
• (Sporophylls may be arranged to form strobili or cones.)
• In Sporangia, the spore mother cells give rise to spores after meiosis.
• Spores germinate to form haploid gametophytic structure called prothallus which is free living,
• small, multicellular and photosynthetic.
• Selaginella & Salvinia produce 2 kinds of spores- large macrospores & small
microspores
•The development of zygote into young embryos takes place within the female gametophyte which
is
• retained on parent sporophyte.
•This is an important step in seed habit evolution and is found in Selaginella and Salvinia
• The 4 classes are : Psilopsida (Psilotum), Lycopsida (Selaginella,Lycopodium),
 GYMNOSPERMS
•Group of vascular plants
•Produce naked seeds
•The ovules are not enclosed by ovary wall
•Sequoia [giant red wood tree],Pinus,
Cycas, Ginkgo, Cedrus etc are common
members
 They are known as conifers
•Produce cones instead of
flowers
Medium sized trees, tall trees and shrubs
The giant red wood trees
roots
• Tap roots
• Mycorrhiza – fungal association with its
roots (eg: PINUS)
• Coralloid roots- association with nitrogen
fixing cyanobacteria(eg: CYCAS)
stem

•Strong and thick

•Branched - pinus
•Unbranched - cycas
Leaves
• Simple or compound
• Leaves are well adapted to withstand extremes of
temperatures
• Needle shaped leaves reuce the surface area
• Thick cuticle
• Sunken stomata(stomata those which are not directly
exposed to surface. It is in a small pit, which protects the
escaping water vapour from air currents, decreasing water loss
from the leaf. )
Gymnosperms are heterosporous
•Produce microspores and megaspores
•Spores are produced within the
sporangia
•Sporangia are borne on sporophylls
•Sporophylls are arranged spirally along
the axis to form a compact strobilus-
CONES
• Male cone has microsporophylls which bear
microsporangia having microspores
• Which develop into reduced gametophyte
called pollen grain.
•Female cone has megasporophylls which
bear megasporongia(OVULE) having
megaspores
•Which are enclosed within the
megasporangium.
MALE CONE FEMALE CONE

MALE FEMALE CONE

STOBILI/MICROSPORANGIATE STROBILI/
MEGASPORANGIATE
microsporophyll megasporophyll
Microsporangium/ megasporangium
ovule
• One of the cells in the nucellus act as megaspore mother
cell
• It undergoes meiotic division to form four megaspores
• One of the megaspore develops into multicellular female
gametophyte- archegonia (female sex organ)
• Pollen grains carried in air currents reach ovules, form
pollen tube which reach archegonia and
• release male gametes which fertilise egg cell and form
zygote which produce embryos.
• Ovules develop into seeds which are not covered.
 Plant body(sporophyte)
Seed formation Male strobili Female strobili
(Embyo development)

microsporangium megasporangium
zygote
Microspore Megasprore
egg Pollen grains mother cells mother cell
meiosis
Microspores(haploid)
Megaspores(one
archegonia will be functional)
ANGIOSPERMS
flowering
plants and
have seeds
enclosed in
fruits
Wide range of habitat
Size-tiny to large
Smallest flowering plant –Wolffia
Tallest flowering trees- eucalyptus
Commercially important plant groups
• Vascular plants
• Seeds are enclosed in fruits
• Flowers are the reproductive parts
• Based on the presence of number of cotyledons
in their seeds, they are two;
MONOCOTYLEDONS

• One cotyledon

DICOTYLEDONS

• Two cotyledons
FLOWER-reproductive part
•CALYX
•COROLLA
•ANDROECIUM
•GYNOECIUM
 REPRODUCTION
ANDROECIUM GYNOECIUM
stamen pistil
anther Ovule/megasporangium
Pollen grains Embryosac(7 celled 8 nucleated )
Male gametes Egg and polar nuclei
Double fertilization
Zygote,endosperm
•Ovary - fruit
•Ovule - seed
•Zygote - embryo
•Polar nuclei(secondary nucleus)
- endosperm
• Embryo sac has 7 cells and 8 nuclei.
• One egg cell, 2 synergids, 3 antipodals and
• two polar nuclei which fuse to form secondary nucleus [2n].
• One male gamete fuses with egg cell to form zygote [syngamy]
which develops into embryo.
• Other male gamete fuses with secondary nucleus which forms
triploid [3n] primary endosperm nucleus (PEN).This is called
Triple fusion.
• Syngamy and Triple fusion together called Double fertilisation
• PEN develops into endosperm which nourishes the developing
embryo.
• Ovules develop into seeds and ovaries into fruits.
 Life cycle
Haplontic life cycle -- Thallophyta

Diplontic life cycle -- Gymnosperms and

Angiosperms

Haplo-Diplontic life cycle -- Bryophytes

and Pterodophytes