Question

The leaves of a well-watered potted plant were found wilted during a hot sunny day.

1. Suggest two reasons which could have caused the wilting of the leaves.

Answer 1

Wilting:

The loss of rigidity of non-woody plant parts is known as wilting. It is majorly caused by the loss of turgor pressure in the non-lignified plant parts due to excessive water loss from the plants.

Reasons for wilting of well-watered plants:

1. Excessive loss of water from the leaves in the form of water vapor. This water loss in the form of water vapor is known as transpiration.
2. The increased rate of transpiration is one of the major causes of wilting.
3. Another reason for wilting is the low rate of absorption as compared to the rate of transpiration.
4. The low rate of absorption will not be able to compensate for the amount of water lost and can lead to the wilting of plants.
5. Both the reasons lead to the loss of turgor pressure which eventually causes the wilting of plants.