Plant Development

plant development, a multiphasic process in which two distinct plant forms succeed each other in alternating generations. One form, the sporophyte, is created by the union of gametes (sex cells) and is thus diploid (contains two sets of similar chromosomes). At maturity, the sporophyte produces haploid (containing a single set of chromosomes) spores, which grow into the gametophyte generation. At their sexual maturity, the gametophytes produce haploid gametes that unite to begin a new cycle.

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Although both plants and animals share the chemical basis of inheritance and of translation of the genetic code into structural units called proteins, plant development differs from that of animals in several important ways. Higher plants sustain growth throughout life and, in this sense, are perpetually embryonic; animals, on the other hand, generally have a determinate period of growth, after which they are considered mature. Furthermore, both growth and organ formation in plants are influenced by their possession of a rigid cell wall and a fluid-filled space called the vacuole, two features unique to the plant cell. Conversely, certain features of animal cells are absent in plants. Notable is the lack of cellular movements and fusions that play an important part in tissue and organ development in higher animals.