Plant Microscope Exercise

Available prepared slides:

1. monocot and dicot root (on one slide)
2. buttercup stem (you determine - monocot or dicot?)
3. monocot (lily) and dicot (lilac) leaves (on one slide)

Include:

• meaningful title/caption
  
• labelled drawings, including magnification (drawings should be from the slides - not the images below or from the internet)
  
• identification of sample tissue (by binomial nomenclature when possible)
  
• size measurements using mm ruler guide, showing procedure and sample calculations
  

Dicot and Monocot Stem cross sections:

the dicot vascular bundle can be complicated:

basic xylem and phloem

reinforced with (sclerenchyma) fibers

Dicot and Monocot Root cross sections:

dicot root

monocot root

Dicot and Monocot leaf cross sections - note the differences in arrangement of internal layers of cells...

a little more on lily leaves and variability...

click to enlarge - note the reference to dicot like leaves in an otherwise typical monocot

Epidermal Peels (not a spa treatment)

Following the instructions in the diagram below, prepare a wet mount of the lower epidermis of a succulent leaf.  

• Identify the stomata.  Are they open or closed?  What does this mean about the environmental conditions faced by the plant?  
• What regulation exists for the opening and closing of the guard cells around the stomata?  Think about both environmental and biochemical cues.
• Do you see any leaf hairs like the one in the image on the right below?  Why or why not?  
  

Bonus:

 What type of plant do you think may have been the source of the stem cross section on the left below?  What might its habitat have been like?

And how beautiful are these? By Bridget May