Four Main Types of Plants

In the Plant Kingdom there are 2 main categories which include 4 types of plants:

  • Non-vascular plants
    • Phylum Bryophyta – – Mosses, Liverworts Hornworts
    • lack vascular tissue and wood that can render support
    • small and inconspicuous
    • Reproduce through spores
    • Lack true leaves, stems, and roots.
    • Narrow range of habitats
    • Importance – minimizing erosion, carrying out water and nutrient cycling, regulate temperature in permafrost
  • Vascular Plants
    • Tracheophytes – – Ferns, Salvinia Natans, Horsetail
      • Seedless plants that reproduce with spores on undersides of leaves (sporophylls)
      • Adapted to a wide range of habitats
        • Aquatic, terrestrial, even cold-resistant but most are tropical.
    • Gymnosperms – – Conifers
      • Giant Sequoia Tree, Sago Palm, Maidenhair Tree
      • pines, hemlocks, fir, and spruces
      • wood and green needle-like or scale-like foliage
      • cones (strobilus or plural strobili)
      • heterosporous – produce female (larger) and male(smaller) cones.
      • Good source of wood and paper, habitat, animal food.
    • Angiosperms – – Flowering Plants
      • Trees, herbs, shrubs, bulbs, epiphytes(parasitic plants)
      • Marine and freshwater habitats
      • Orchids, daisies, and Legumes make up the largest groups.
        • ovules/seeds that are enclosed within carpel/fruit
        • double fertilization is the process that leads to the formation of endosperm (edible).
      • food, medicine, clothing fibers, wood sources, etc.

Sources:
http://bioexplorer.net/plan