Xylem

Mica Piro Chapter 36: Resource Acquisition & Transport in Vascular Plants Adaptations for acquiring resources were key steps in the evolution of vascular plants (36.1) EVOLUTON Land plants typically inhabit 2 worlds?above ground (where shoots acquire sunlight and CO2) and below ground (where roots acquire water and minerals) The algal ancestors of land plants absorbed water, minerals, and CO2 directly from the water in which they lived Earliest land plants were nonvascular plants that grew photosynthetic shoots above the shallow fresh water in which they lived The leafless shoots had waxy cuticles and few stomata, which allowed them to avoid excessive water loss while still permitting some exchange of CO2 and O2 for photosynthesis