Where is Psilotum usually found?
P. nudum is found in tropical Africa, Central America, tropical and subtropical North America, South America, tropical Asia, Australia, Hawaii, southern Japan, Lord Howe Island, New Zealand, with a few isolated populations in SW Europe (“Los Alcornocales”, Spain, Cádiz province).
What division does Psilotum belong to?
whisk fern, either of the two species of the primitive fern genus Psilotum in the family Psilotaceae of the order Psilotales and the class Psilotopsida of the division Pteridophyta (the lower vascular plants).
What do Psilotum spores grow into?
The whisk ferns (Psilotum spp.) are a peculiar group of plants. If you hang out in greenhouses long enough, you are most likely to encounter them as “weeds” growing in pots with other plants. Like all sporophytes, its job is to produce the spores that will go on to make new whisk ferns.
What is the unique feature of Psilotum?
The unusual features of Psilotum that suggest an affinity with early vascular plants include dichotomously branching sporophytes, aerial stems arising from horizontal rhizomes, a simple vascular cylinder, homosporous and terminal eusporangia and a lack of roots.
Why is Psilotum a living fossil?
Psilotum is the only living vascular plant to lack both leaves and roots so they are called living fossils.
How do you grow Psilotum?
Using Whisk Fern in the Garden P. nudum thrives best in partial shade and can tolerate more sunny locations, and prefers moist but well-drained soil. Plants will grow in full shade but are somewhat reduced in density, extent and size. It also is commonly found growing as an epiphyte throughout Central Florida.
Is Psilotum a bryophyte?
In Psilotum, much like in bryophytes (especially mosses), the embryo starts out with a single pole of growth that points away from the foot. Growth from the apical cell of this pole produces the undifferentiated branching sporophyte axis (Fig. 5).
Where does photosynthesis occur in Psilotum?
Psilotum stems arise from short branching ______ just beneath the surface of the ground. If Psilotum lacks leaves, where does photosynthesis occur? Photosynthesis takes place in the outer cells of the stem.
What is the morphology of Psilotum?
Morphology: ADVERTISEMENTS: The plant body of Psilotum is differentiated into two parts viz., a horizontal underground rhizome and an erect aerial shoot. The rhizome is brownish in colour and dichotomously branched. The aerial shoots are 20-75 cm long and are usually ribbed and multi-angular.
Is Psilotum Homosporous or Heterosporous?
Psilotum is a fern with synangia formed by the fusion of three sporangia that bear the spores. The spores are of similar structure and hence they are homosporous. The spores germinate to form the gametophyte.
Is Psilotum a living fossil?
The psilotales have often been called ‘living fossils’. In some respects, the order Psilotales, with its two genera of primitive vascular plants, Tmesipteris and Psilotum, can be said to occupy a similar position in the Plant Kingdom to that which the tuatara occupies in the Animal Kingdom.
How do ferns move to new locations?
Fern varieties propagate through spores or by division. You can dig and divide a mature plant or transplant a young plant to a more desirable location in your garden. The homeowner must either sacrifice the cooling shade or choose plants that thrive in cool, shady conditions.
Where is Psilotum found?
The distribution of Psilotum is tropical and subtropical, in the New World, Asia, and the Pacific, with a few isolated populations in south-west Europe. The highest latitudes known are in South Carolina, Cádiz province in Spain, and southern Japan for P. nudum.
What is the scientific name ofpsilotum?
Psilotum is a genus that has only two species. They are Psilotum nudum and Psilotum flaccidum. The word Psilotum is derived from the Greek word Psilos which means naked or bare which is in regard to its lack of true leaves on the stem.
What is the difference between Psilotum nudum and Psilotum flaccidum?
Psilotum nudum is more commonly known as the Whisk Fern, and is also known by the scientific name Psilotum triquetrum. On the other hand, Psilotum flaccidum, known more as a Hawaiian fern ally is also known by the scientific name Psilotum complanatum. Both these species differ in their distribution and general description.
What division is Psilotum nudum in?
It belongs to the division Pteridophyta which essentially comprises of plants that reproduce by means of spores rather than seeds. Psilotum nudum is more commonly known as the Whisk Fern, and is also known by the scientific name Psilotum triquetrum.