Plant
noun, plural: plants
(botany) Any organism that belongs to Kingdom Plantae, which is characterized by the following fundamental features:
noun, plural: plants
(botany) Any organism that belongs to Kingdom Plantae, which is characterized by the following fundamental features:
- ability to make its own food by photosynthesis, i.e. capable of capturing energy via the green pigment (chlorophyll) inside the chloroplast, and of using carbon dioxide and water to produce sugars as food and oxygen as byproduct
- foods are stored in forms of sugars and starch.
- presence of rigid cell walls apart from the cell membrane.
- eukaryotic cells, i.e. the presence of a distinct nucleus surrounded by a membrane
- mostly are multicellular, i.e. made up of many cells organized to perform a specific function as a unit
- unlimited growth at meristems (when present).
- organs are specialized for anchorage, support, and photosynthesis (e.g. roots, stems, leaves, etc.)
- response to stimuli is rather slow due to the absence of sensory organs and nervous systems, as do animals
- limited movements due to a lack of organs for mobility, as do animals
- life cycle that involves both sporophytic and gametophytic phases (alternation of generation)