PLANT

EXCRETION
TRANSPIRATION
GUTTATION

TRANSPIRATION
Water is lost from the leaves and
other aerial parts of terrestrial plants
by transpiration
Transpiration is the evaporation of
water from the aerial parts of the
plant
The wet mesophyll cells evaporate
large quantities of water into the
intercellular air spaces

TRANSPIRATION
The water vapour diffuses out of the
leaves through the stomata
A small amount of water is also lost
through the cuticle
Transpiration can also occur through
the lenticels of the stem

TRANSPIRATION COHESION THEORY

The theory explains

water transport
The columns of water
molecules are pulled
upwards much like tiny
ropes being pulled up
the tree

TRANSPIRATION
As water vapour evaporates during
transpiration, the water deficit general
pressure strong enough to pull more water
up the tall tree
When leaves are heated by sunlight, water
evaporates from the mesophyll cells
The evaporated water is replaced
immediately, with water from the cells
which is in turn replaced with water from
the xylem

TRANSPIRATION
In the xylem, water molecules cling to each
other by strong cohesive bonds forming an
unbroken water column that extends from
the leaf vein to the roots
When one water molecule exits the xylem
vessel to replace water lost through
transpiration, it exerts a pull on the adjacent
water molecules
In this way, cohesive bonds pull water up
the tree. This is known as the transpiration
pull

TRANSPIRATION
Mineral salts which have been
absorbed by the roots are
transported up the plant together
with water by the xylem tissues
The concentration of minerals in the
cell sap of root hairs is greater than
that in the soil
This results in the flow of water into
the root hair cell which increases the
cells turgor pressure

TRANSPIRATION
Water is forced out through the cell wall into
the next cell
This continues right across the cortex of the
root to the xylem vessels in the endodermis
of the stem
Once water reaches the endodermis, the
water molecules get to the vascular cylinder
of the root by moving through the protoplasm
of an endodermal cell as mineral ions are
actively transported into and out of cells

TRANSPIRATION
Water continues to follow the actively
transported mineral ions to the
pericycle and finally into the xylem
vessels
Once inside the xylem, water and
minerals ions are transported up the
vascular cylinder through the plant

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
Water is the most abundant
component of active plant cells
More than 90 % of the fresh weight
of some tissues is moisture
Plants continuously absorb water
from the medium in which they grow
and lose it to the environment

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
The leaf is essentially a thin layer of
wet, photosynthetically active cells
which are encased in a fairly
waterproof but perforated epidermis
It is adapted for the process of
photosynthesis
Its adaptations facilitate a high rate
of water loss during transpiration

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
The mesophyll cells have wet
surfaces with a large total surface
area
A large quantity of water vapour
finds its way to the stomata, through
which it passes to the outside
atmosphere
Under conditions of low humidity and
strong wind, water loss through
transpiration increases

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
The large intercellular and
substomatal air spaces inside the
leaf are saturated with water vapour
Water molecules diffuse out of the
leaf through the stomata
In most plants, epidermal cells are
well covered with a waxy, waterimpervious layer called the cuticle

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
In such leaves, water loss occurs
almost exclusively through the
stomata
Plants adapted for life in arid regions
tend to have fewer stomata per unit
leaf surface
Water loss can be reduced
tremendously

RATE OF WATER LOSS THROUGH

TRANSPIRATION
In most plants stomata are abundant on
both surfaces of the leaf
In dicotyledonous plants the stomata are
limited to the lower surface of the leaf
The larger the number of stomata, the
greater is the rate of water loss through
transpiration
The rate of transpiration also increases if
the stomata are exposed directly to sunlight
or if the stomata remain open

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT

AFFECT TRANSPIRATION
Environmental factors also affect the
rate of transpiration
They either influence guard cell
action or change the concentration
gradient of water vapour between
the air inside the leaf and the outside
atmosphere

1. TEMPERATURE
Solar radiation raises the temperature of a leaf,
resulting in a higher rate of transpiration
For every 100C rise in the temperature of the
leaf, the rate of transpiration doubles
This is true for temperatures not exceeding 300C
The higher the temperature, the greater is the
evaporation of water inside the leaf
This increases the difference in the
concentration of water vapour inside and
outside the leaf
This leads to a faster rate of transpiration

2. AIR HUMIDITY
The air inside the leaf is always
saturated with water vapour
When the atmospheric humidity
decreases, the concentration
gradient increases
This leads to rapid rates of
transpiration
On humid days especially after a
downpour, the concentration
gradient and the rate of transpiration

3. LIGHT INTENSITY
Light intensity affects the size of the
stomata
When light intensity increases, the
guard cells become turgid and the
stomata open
The amount of light decreases, the
guard cells become flaccid and the
stomata close
The loss of water through the
stomata decreases and finally stops

4.WIND
Air currents increase the rate of
transpiration by blowing away water
vapour at the surface of leaves
This increases the concentration
gradient of the water vapour
resulting in an increase in
transpiration
In still air, the rate of transpiration
decreases or transpiration stops

5. CARBON DIOXIDE
CONCENTRATION
Generally, stomata open
when the carbon dioxide
concentration in the
intercellular air spaces of a
leaf falls below a critical
concentration

HOW DOES WILTING

OCCUR?

The great bulk of the plants

water requirement is concerned
with transpiration
When the rate of water loss from
the leaves exceeds the rate of
water replacement, the cells of
the leaf gradually lose their
turgor
The cells become flaccid and the

HOW DOES WILTING

OCCUR?
Wilting, if sufficiently
prolonged may damage the
tissues and may lead to the
death of the plant
If the wilting is not severe, the
condition can be reversed by
supplying water to the plant

HOW DOES WILTING

OCCUR?
During wilting the young shoot tip
and the leaves become soft and
droop down due to gravitational pull
The parts of the plant with woody
tissues do not change nor wilt
This explains why the woody stem is
upright whilst the leaves droop down