Download Seed Plants – The Gymnosperms

The Gymnosperms
Phylum Cycadophyta – The Cycads (“palm plants”)
 Primitive plants, native to the _____________________ Generally have a short, thick _________________ with a crown of palm like leaves
 They have separate male and female plants (called ______________________) with large cones at the top.

Cycads are __________________ growing, which help to explain their decline
 Many are endangered as they are used by people as _____________________
 Also, arrowroot starch was once extracted from the plant and used as a
__________________ for cooking
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However, care must be taken as it is ________________ if not prepared correctly
(cause gastrointestinal issues and liver failure)
Phylum Ginkgophyta – The ginkgos (“silver apricot plant”)
 Just 1 species remains – Ginkgo biloba – called the _________________________ tree / fern
 Chinese _____________________ placed them around their temples, possibly saving them as they are
___________ in the wild
 Ginkgo leaves will turn yellow in the autumn and fall off (a ____________________ tree). It is the only
type of gymnosperm that regularly does this.
 They are very resistant to ____________________ and male plants are generally planted in urban areas.
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Female trees are not planted as their fruit produces a compound called butyric acid as it matures. This
chemical has the smell of _____________________________
 The seeds of these plants is completely exposed, not even a _____________________
 These are another example of a _________________ plant (separate sexes)
 Ginkgo seeds are often eaten, especially at ___________________
 Extracts from the ginkgo are proven to improve ____________________________, which helps with
brain and lung function
Phylum Gnetophyta – One phylum with 3 diverse classes of plants
 Gnetum are gentophytes that have large leathery leaves or can be tropical vines
 Gnetum is eaten in Java after being boiled in ______________________
 Ephedrales – densely branched shrubs with tiny leaves in _________________ climates
 Produces __________________________, a chemical derived from the plant that acts as a
stimulant and can be used for _________________________________________________
 Also produces ________________ tea, a native American cure for venereal disease and to
make a ____________________
 Welwitschia – found in ________________________
 Has a large ________________ like root that be a feet long and store gallons of _________________.
The exposed part is a low woody crown the branches into 2 leaves that become frayed as they brush
against the sand.
 Biggest human use is for __________________ storage
Phylum Coniferophyta – conifers – (“cone bearing plants”)
 Largest of the phylum
 Most live in _______________ or ______________ regions and have adaptations, such as
________________
 In addition to the adaptations we discussed, needles also contain _________________, a
substance that acts as an _________________ and prevents organisms from eating them.
 When exposed to the air, resin hardens and becomes _______________, a hard yellow
substance that can be used for studying ancient creatures (because it traps and preserves
them) which some people make into ________________________
 Only 2 species in the phylum, the larch and the bald cyprus, are deciduous.
 Most of the species are __________________, meaning male and female on the same plant.
 Generally the smaller ________________ cones are near the bottom and the larger
_______________ cones are near the top.
 Pollen (________________) cones are generally _______________ lived, producing
clouds of pollen in the ______________________. If pollen falls on the correct
female cone and fertilizes the egg, a liquid will evaporate and close the scales of the cone. It
may stay this way from a few _________________ to a few _______________________.
When mature, the cone will open and the _____________________ can be dispersed.
 Pines seeds are used by humans because they have a high _____________ content and can
be used to make _______________, _____________, __________________etc
 Conifers have MANY other important economic uses to humans.
 The _____________________ and __________________ plants on Earth today are conifers.
 Some coast redwoods can reach ________________________ feet
 The general Sherman is one of the largest sequoias (by ____________________) on record,
with a measurement of _______________ feet at the base. If you cut it down you could make
___________________ toothpicks or __________________ houses.
 There is a bristle cone tree in NV that is estimated to be _______ years old – called
Methuselah
 Conifers were used by the crown to make ____________________, and this provided the
term “___________________________________”
 Conifers are edible and the needles were used by sailors to make _____________
______________ and also spruce ___________ made by the Native Americans.
 Turpentine, a ____________________, rosin (for _____________________) and pitch are
all products made from pine secretions
 The drug __________________ was originally derived from the yew tree and is beneficial in
fighting _______________________
 Yew berries, which are not actually berries, but adapted cones, are used to make
___________________
 They are used as telephone poles and toilet seats.
 Many wood structures, furniture, etc are produced by _______________________
 Many species, such as the redwood and cyprus are also significant as the wood is resistant to
_____________________