Introduction to Plant Life Lecture 1

What do you do on a daily basis that involves plants?

Plants: living organisms belonging to the Plantae kingdom that can live on land or in water Over 300,0100 species of plants Over 250,000 of them produce flowers Able to produce their own food through a chemical process (photosynthesis)

Key role in the history of life on Earth Responsible for the presence of oxygen Earth’s atmosphere had almost no oxygen, rich in carbon dioxide (in the form of water-steam and nitrogen) Would be unbreatheable for most species today 2000 million year ago when certain bacteria and plants began to initiate the process of photosynthesis

Photosynthesis: the production of sugar from carbon dioxide minerals and water with the help of sunlight Photo= lightsynthesis=to make Need energy the plant takes from the sun Conversion of light energy into chemical energy Resulting from process is oxygen, a waste product that comes from the decomposition of water Oxygen is expelled from plants through leaves

Developed seeds, fruits, and flowers Contributed to the formation of ozone (gas produced by the action of sunlight on oxygen) Absorb excess carbon dioxide “global warming” “greenhouse effect”

Primary producers All other living organisms on earth feed on organic matter produced by plants Primary consumers (herbivores) Primary consumers  secondary consumers  tertiary consumers