Anthophyta (Angiosperms)
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The division of plants known as anthophyta is also known as magnoliophyta and angiosperms. The name doesn't matter though. A flowering plant by any other name would still smell as sweet.
These plants are familiar to everyone. You've eaten them, walked on them, probably cared for one and may have climbed one or two in your life. Most plants on the earth are angiosperms. They appeared on earth as the dinosaurs were in decline, and after the dinosaurs were gone, they flourished and covered the earth.
The division of anthophyta is divided into two classes, the monocotyledons and dicotyledons. Here's a breakdown on what these words mean:
There are major differences between the two classes, and they're easy to tell apart.
Monocots (as they're abbreviated) belong to the class Liliopsida. Characteristically, monocots have seeds with only one major part. When you think of a monocot, think corn, wheat or grass. A kernel of corn is a seed. Monocots have flowers with leaves in multiples of three, and when you look at a monocot leaf, you'll notice all the veins are going the same direction. They're parallel.
The iris in the picture is a typical monocot. The flower has six petals (multiple of three) and you can even see the veins on the leaves in the picture.
Monocots generally have weak, shallow roots. Monocot roots aren't capable of growing very thick, so what they lack in strength, the make up for in numbers. If you have ever dug up grass, you have seen how branched and numerous the roots are.
Because of the shallowness and weakness of monocot roots, you won't find a lot of monocot trees. Palm trees are monocots though. So is bamboo.
Grasses comprise the bulk of the monocots. The grasses include the grains such as wheat, rice, rye, oats, barley and others. The importance of grains to humans cannot be overstated. In that one single sead-leaf, these plants have managed to store a lot of nutrients.
Dicotyledons, or dicots, belong to the class Magnoliopsida. These plants typicaly have flowers with four or five parts, as compared to the three of the monocots. They also have developed a large taproot, or a vertical main root. Leaves of the dicots have branched and non-parallel veins.
Dicotyledons have seeds which come in two parts. Visualize a lima bean. Each half of the bean is a sead-leaf. These protect and nourish the seedling as it grows.
Dicots have another unique characteristic. The vascular tissue in their stems is arranged in rings. Generally, the xylem is in the center and the phloem is near the outside. Dicots can grow in diameter, as well as vertically, and so as the plant gets larger, it lays down another ring of vascular tissue.
Dicots are well known for their showy flowers, woody trees and nutritious fruits and vegetables. They range from the impressive old oak to the miniscule flower, and so many species in between. Dicots include most of the plants on earth today.
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to vascular spore-bearing plants,
visit the gymnosperms,
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