Thanks Josusa, I understand the seed leave parts anyway and I’ve looking into the many differences monocots and dicots have. Can you confirm that monocots often have bulbs? Information I’ve found on the internet (one source) says that dicots have bulbs? But I thought that monocots often have sheathes thus are often a bulb.
Sorry to have waffled on I got carried away 🤣
It's many years since my biology degree, so I had to consult Wikipedia on this one. Yes, most (if not all) plants that grow from bulbs are monocots. So are grasses and lots of other things such as asparagus. But you needn't dig them up to check: monocots are recognisable by the leaf veins. Parallel from base to tip of the leaf, while dicots have branching veins. The first leaf to emerge from a monocot seed is a true leaf; the cotyledon stays within the seed.
I can't think of any dicots that form bulbs, but that doesn't mean there aren't any. Bear in mind that for nurserymen, the term "bulb" has a broader meaning than it does for botanists. In a "bulb" catalogue, you're also likely to find corms, tubers and rhizomes. Dahlias, for instance, which are dicots, grow from tubers, but are often marketed as "summer flowering bulbs".
You learn something every day: in looking this up, I discovered that while two cotyledons is the limit for angiosperms (flowering plants), gymnosperms (cone-bearing plants) have varying numbers up to 24.
Most hybridisation is within genus, across species, and the 'x' goes between the two terms. This is known as an interspecific hybrid.
Intergeneric hybrids are signified by an 'x' in front of the genus name, which is also usually a new term created from a combination of the two original genus names. For example, x Fatshedera lizei is an intergeneric cross between Fatsia and Hedera (ivy). Or x Cupressocyparis leylandii (Leyland cypress) which is a cross between a Chamaecyparis and a Cupressus. The preceding 'x' is often omitted, which can be confusing.
'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.'
PS If you're planning on doing the L2 exams, listing the different features of monocots and dicots (parallel veins etc) is something that comes up a LOT. They don't always phrase it as a simple question but it's there, so worth getting those committed to memory.
'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.'
LG, well maybe I could list what I remember and you could correct me if that’s ok?
Monocots one seed leaf (cotolydon) loses main root and then develops smaller finer roots often sheathed (like an onion) longer leaves, veins are often parallel usually woody no cambium layer
Dicots 2 seed leaves has a taproot and branches out from the taproot sheathing infrequent leaves are usually varying shapes, palmate, pinnate can be woody or herbaceous has a cambium later and second thickening
I'm not sure about the sheathing thing - may well be true, but I've not come across it as a defining feature. Monocots are rarely woody, not usually woody. Here's the textbook summary: No point worrying too much about the vascular bundles, cambium layer, secondary thickening etc until you're doing the cellular stuff in more detail. Though the lack of a cambium layer in monocots will help you to remember that they're non-woody!
'If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.'
So the next part is the life cycle of plants. So according to the study material some plants (such as beech) retain their young leaves even if they are dead. Why is this?
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I can't think of any dicots that form bulbs, but that doesn't mean there aren't any. Bear in mind that for nurserymen, the term "bulb" has a broader meaning than it does for botanists. In a "bulb" catalogue, you're also likely to find corms, tubers and rhizomes. Dahlias, for instance, which are dicots, grow from tubers, but are often marketed as "summer flowering bulbs".
You learn something every day: in looking this up, I discovered that while two cotyledons is the limit for angiosperms (flowering plants), gymnosperms (cone-bearing plants) have varying numbers up to 24.
Intergeneric hybrids are signified by an 'x' in front of the genus name, which is also usually a new term created from a combination of the two original genus names. For example, x Fatshedera lizei is an intergeneric cross between Fatsia and Hedera (ivy). Or x Cupressocyparis leylandii (Leyland cypress) which is a cross between a Chamaecyparis and a Cupressus. The preceding 'x' is often omitted, which can be confusing.
Monocots
one seed leaf (cotolydon)
loses main root and then develops smaller finer roots
often sheathed (like an onion)
longer leaves, veins are often parallel
usually woody
no cambium layer
Dicots
2 seed leaves
has a taproot and branches out from the taproot
sheathing infrequent
leaves are usually varying shapes, palmate, pinnate
can be woody or herbaceous
has a cambium later and second thickening
Monocots are rarely woody, not usually woody. Here's the textbook summary:
No point worrying too much about the vascular bundles, cambium layer, secondary thickening etc until you're doing the cellular stuff in more detail. Though the lack of a cambium layer in monocots will help you to remember that they're non-woody!