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One of the most representative parts of higher plants is that they have leaves. The functions of the leaves are varied and very important for the plant: without them, higher plants as we know them would not exist. Thus, not all current plants have leaves, as there are without, as is the case with mosses and other similar plants that do not have leaves as such.
If you want to learn more about parts of a sheet and their functions To learn about the great importance of these, keep reading us in this Green Ecologist article in which you will find the names of the parts of the leaf and their functions, as well as the functions of the leaves with respect to the plant as a whole and the different types of leaves that exist.
The parts of the sheet and the functions of each
In the leaf structure several parts are distinguished. These are the main parts of the blade and their functions:
Limbo
Limbo, also called sheet, is what is often commonly referred to as leaf, despite the fact that the word really does all the other parts as well. It refers to the part (usually flat and wide or long) of the leaf that is responsible for collecting sunlight, hence its shape usually offers as large a surface as possible. It has two faces, the beam or upper face and the underside or underside. The first tends to be smoother and shinier, while in the second we find the ribs or ribs more clearly. leaf veins, which can cross it giving rise to different shapes or patterns and circulate through them the SAP.
Furthermore, if we ask ourselves what the external part of the leaf is, we may be referring to either the outer margin of the blade, which can have very different shapes, or the apex, which is the extreme furthest from the birth of it. Depending on the shape of the leaves, we can easily recognize the different species of plants and trees. Here you can learn about How to identify trees from leaves.
Petiole
The petiole is what unites the leaf blade with the stem of the plant. It is a thin structure with an intense green color, whose function is to supply sap to the leaf and back from it, in addition to giving the blade a firm hold against the elements.
Sheath
In the petiole base is the sheath, which is the point at which it widens to join and accommodate in the stem. Therefore, it is the point at which the leaf begins to grow from the stem of the plant.
Stipule
Finally we have the stipules, which grow on both sides from the petiole or the base of the leaf. Not all plants have stipules and these can have many different shapes. Its function is always to protect the stems and young leaves, which is why some fall off when the leaf matures.
In the cover image of this article and in this one below you will see a diagram of the parts of the sheet and their functions you will be able to see it more easily.
Leaf functions
When we talk about functions of a sheet, the main and most important of them comes to mind, photosynthesis, but it is true that there are more:
- Carry out photosynthesis. Thanks to the chloroplasts, which give the plant its green color by chlorophyll they contain, the plant is capable of forming sugars from the energy received from sunlight and the CO2 that the plant absorbs. To learn more about these topics, we recommend you read these other posts about the Difference between photosynthesis and respiration of plants and Why plant leaves are green. The function of photosynthesis is vital not only for the plant, but for the conformation of life on our planet. During the evolution of plants, photosynthesis was what allowed the Earth's atmosphere to be enriched in oxygen, the ozone layer to be created, and life on Earth was possible. Thus, the plant can be nourished thanks to this process in which the plant uses the solar energy captured by the leaves to transform the raw sap that reaches them into elaborated or enriched sap, which is loaded with nutrients and is distributed to the parts of the plant that need it.
- Another function of the leaves is breathing function. The plant absorbs the oxygen present in the atmosphere, expelling carbon dioxide in return. This respiration is produced by the stomata of the leaf.
- Finally, the blades also comply with the perspiration function. The stomata, in addition to breathing, can open to release water and evaporate it, thus eliminating the excess of this and allowing the thermal and hydric regulation of the plant. In addition, there are theories that argue that this evaporation helps to create a negative pressure in the ducts of the plant, which allows the circulation of the raw sap from the roots, thus facilitating that even large trees can lead it to their high branches without expense. of energy.
Knowing all this, now you may also be interested in learning about the Parts of a plant and their functions and also about the Parts of a tree and their functions, because in addition to the leaves, there are many more parts that make up these vegetables.
Kind of leafs
There is a great diversity in the forms and characteristics that the leaves adopt. In fact, although most blades are flattened and wide or elongated, they do not always have that shape. Conifers, for example, are characterized by their squamiform, that is, needle-shaped leaves. So, we can sort the sheets according to different criteria:
- Depending on whether they are simple or compound leaves: when a blade is born from each petiole, the leaf is simple. On the contrary, if several blades are born from a single petiole, it is a compound leaf. These can be binate, ternate, quinate or finger, depending on the number of leaflets, or pinnate, if the leaflets all come out of a single axis.
- According to the arrangement of the veins or the veins of the leaves: these can be parallelinervias, penninervias, palminervias, dichotomicos or uninervias.
- According to leaf blade shapeThese can be sagittate, oval, orbicular, spatulate, acicular, squamous, heart-shaped, rhomboid, lanceolate, linear, webbed, webbed or kidney-shaped.
- There are many other classifications, such as according to the shape of the edge of the blade, according to the petiole or according to the arrangement of the leaves on the stem, among others. Discover all these ways of classifying leaves with this other guide from Green Ecologist on the Types of leaves.
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