Question

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

b. Would the cells of the leaves in the wilted state be flaccid or turgid?

c. Explain briefly the meaning of the term mentioned in your answer to (b).

Answer 1

b. Turgid condition:

The state of the cell being fully distended as a result of high water content inside the cell is referred to as the turgid state or turgidity.

Flaccid condition:

The state of the cell being shrunken in which the plasma membrane is not pushed against the cell wall is known as the flaccid state.

Leaves in the wilted state:

1. If the plant is in a wilted state, it means there is lower availability of water due to excessive loss of water.
2. In this condition, the cells of the leaves will be in a flaccid or shrunken state.
3. Due to the loss of water from the plant, the cell wall of leaf cells has contracted away and the cell has started to shrink. This state is known as the flaccid state.
4. Therefore, the cells of the leaves in the wilted state are in flaccid condition.
5. Turgid condition of leaf cells can be observed when the plant is not in a wilted state and is well-watered.

c. The term mentioned in b is flaccid.

Flaccid:

1. The flaccid state is the state of the cell between plasmolysis and turgidity in which the plasma membrane is not pushed against the cell wall.
2. A cell in a flaccid state has less water potential as compared to a fully-distended cell.
3. In this state, there is no net movement of water molecules.