Question

What are the constituents of phloem?

Answer 1

Phloem:

1. Food supplies are transported via phloem from leaves to other plant sections.
2. Phloem is a vascular tissue that is responsible for the transport of organic constituents.
3. It is comprised of companion cells, sieve tube elements, phloem fibres, and phloem parenchyma.

Sieve tube elements:

1. They are long, tube-like structures that are aligned longitudinally.
2. The sieve plates are formed by perforating their end walls in a sieve-like pattern.

Companion cells:

1. Companion cells are parenchymatous cells with specialized functions.
2. They aid in maintaining the sieve tubes' pressure gradient.

Phloem parenchyma:

1. Elongated, tapered cylindrical cells with rich cytoplasm and nucleus make up phloem parenchyma.
2. Food and other compounds like resins, latex, and mucilage are stored in the phloem parenchyma.

Phloem fibres:

1. Sclerenchymatous cells make up phloem fibres.
2. These are long and unbranched, with sharp, needle-like apices and have a very thick cell wall.