Kingdom Plantae
The Kingdom Plantae includes all land plants: mosses, ferns, conifers, flowering plants, and so on—an amazing range of diverse forms. With more than 250,000 species, they are second in size only to the arthropods.
Plants have been around for a very long time. About 360 million years ago, plants began to resemble the plants of today and there were a wide variety of shapes and sizes of plants around, including tiny creeping plants and tall forest trees.
The most striking, and important, feature of plants is their green color, the result of a pigment called chlorophyll. Plants use chlorophyll to capture light energy from the sun, which aids in manufacturing of food, such as sugar, starch, and other carbohydrates. Without these food sources, most life on earth would be impossible. There would still be mushrooms and algae, but there would be no fruits, vegetables, grains, or any animals (which ultimately rely on plants for their food too!)
Plants have been around for a very long time. About 360 million years ago, plants began to resemble the plants of today and there were a wide variety of shapes and sizes of plants around, including tiny creeping plants and tall forest trees.
The most striking, and important, feature of plants is their green color, the result of a pigment called chlorophyll. Plants use chlorophyll to capture light energy from the sun, which aids in manufacturing of food, such as sugar, starch, and other carbohydrates. Without these food sources, most life on earth would be impossible. There would still be mushrooms and algae, but there would be no fruits, vegetables, grains, or any animals (which ultimately rely on plants for their food too!)
Kingdom Plantae in a Nutshell
The Leaf
Functions:
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Photosynthesis