Question

Demonstrate an experiment to show that water is conducted by xylem.

Answer 1

Xylem:

1. Xylem is a complex vascular tissue in plants that helps in the transportation of water and minerals from the root system to other parts of the plant.
2. Xylem has four major components- xylem parenchyma, fibres, vessels, and tracheids.

Experiment to demonstrate water conduction by xylem:

Requirements of the experiment:

A beaker, balsam plant, eosin dye, and a stand.

The procedure of the experiment:

1. The balsam plant is placed in the eosin solution (red dye) for some time.
2. The veins of the plants have turned red and the shoot appears to be red.
3. The transverse section of the shoot is cut and xylem tissues were observed.

Observation:

After staining xylem tissues (tracheids and vessels) appeared stained while the rest of the tissues remain unstained.

Conclusion of the experiment:

The above experiment proves that xylem tracheids and vessels are responsible for the transportation of water and minerals as they appear red when the plant is placed in an eosin solution.