Question

In your own words and understanding, explain any five(5) functions of the epidermis in flowering plants

Answer 1

Skin creates a boundary between us and the outer environment in animals. Like skin , plants have a protoderm layer which function as a boundary between the internal parts of the plant and the outer environment. These layer is called epidermis. It serves many function which are as follows:

A. We have lungs to exhale and inhale the gas from athmosphere. But plant doesnot posses such organ but it requires oxygen to carry out its daily function and needs to realese carbon di oxide. Moreover it also takes carbon di oxide and releases oxygen. These process is maintaines by the epedermis of the plant. Hence epidermis help in the gaseos exchange.

B. Excess water in our body is removed by our excretory organ. But plant does not have such organ. Excess water releases from plant as evaporation. But plant needs to control the rate of evaporation . In this work epidermis regulates the rate of eveporation from leaves, stem and flowers. Both of these parts are covered with epidermis.

C. Wet places are favourable for the growth of fungi. During rain the water slips through the leave , flower and step. The epidermis of a plant has a waxy coating which helps the above part to run off excess water and thus prevent the growth of fungus.

D. Epidermis releases a fat known as cutin which is stored and formed the cuticle which help to prevent the external injury of a plant.

E. In flower , the colour , brightness are determined by anthocyacin which resides in the epideramal vacuoles. The petal of a flower has the conical epidermis which focuses the light to the epidermal vacuoles and triggeres the function of  the anthocyacin which makes the colour bright and most attractive for pollinators.