Question

How is it possible that the water potential in one part of a plant is the same in all parts of a plant in a pressure gradient?

Answer 1

The factor which maintains same pressure gradient in all parts of plant are

Water potential:- water potential in plant solution is influenced by solute concentration, pressure, gravity, and factors called matric effects.water potential is fornedby adding up of individual components by equation

  ψ(system) = ψ(total) = ψ s + ψ p + ψ g + ψm

g= gravity potential

m= matric potential

s= solute potential

p= pressure potential

System includes soil water, root water, stem water, leaf water and the water in atmosphere.

water moves from higher water potential to lower water potential this brings the difference in water potential between two systems

Solute potential:- it is also called as osmotic potential,it us negative in a plant cells and zero in distilled water. The amount of available potential energy is reduced when solute are added to an aqueous ayssys, because of reduced potential in cytoplasm water moves from soil into a plants roots via osmosis.

Pressure potential:- it is also called as turgor potential. The higher the pressure potential the more potential energy in a system.

Plants lose water via transcription through the stomata in leaves and replenish

Positive pressure inside cells is contained cell wall, producing turgor pressure in a plant. Pressure potential is around 0.6-0.8Mpa and can reach up to 1.5Mpa in well watered plant.

Gravity potential:- it is always negative or zero in a plant with no height, without height there is no potential energy in the system. The taller the plant ,taller the water column and higher the potential energy.

Matric potential:- it is a amount of water bound to the matrix of a plant via hydrogen bonda and is always negative to zero . Every plant cells has a cellulose cell wall ,whi whis hydrophilic and provides a matrix for water adhesion hence the name matric potential.

By all this factors plants have equal pressure gradient.

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