Excretion in Plants

Excess carbon dioxide and oxygen are expelled as plant waste products by the plants. The waste product of aerobic respiration in plant cells is carbon dioxide. A byproduct of photosynthesis is oxygen. Excess CO₂ or O₂ in the leaves exits through stomata to the air as part of the excretion process. They are also transported to the location where stomata are present to exit the plant body to the air by phloem and xylem from various areas of the plant body. Guttation and transpiration are additional methods of excretion.

Excretory Products of Plants and Their Uses

Plants create a large number of excretory products as a result of cellular respiration, photosynthesis, and other metabolic processes. Plant excretory products are carbon dioxide, extra water created during respiration, and nitrogenous chemicals produced during protein metabolism.

Two gaseous waste products, namely oxygen during photosynthesis and carbon dioxide during respiration, are produced by plants. Stomatal pores on leaves are used by plants to excrete gaseous waste. While carbon dioxide emitted during respiration is used for photosynthesis, oxygen released during photosynthesis is used for respiration. Additionally, extra water is expelled from the body of the plant through stomatal pores, as well as from the surfaces of fruits and stems. Transpiration is the term for the process of water evaporation.

In addition to gaseous wastes, plants' metabolism also produces organic by-products. These wastes are kept in various locations and various forms. Waste materials, including gums and resins, are kept in plant components like bark, stems, and leaves. Plants eventually shed these components. Different types of accumulated waste products include oil made from orange, eucalyptus, jasmine, and latex from rubber trees.

Following are the excretory products of plants useful to humans.

• Oxygen is a byproduct of photosynthesis essential for human survival on earth and is produced as an excretory substance.

• Tannin, another waste product from plants, is typically preserved in leaves and bark. Around the world, tea is made with it.

• Plants store waste materials in their components, such as the leaves and bark that they regularly shed. These leftovers from sheds can be used to generate manure.

• Essential oils are another plant waste product that is kept in the leaves of the plant. We employ these essential oils for a number of applications.

• Adhesives are frequently made with gums that are taken from plants.

• Resins are used to create glazing agents, varnishes, etc.

• The tyre industry uses natural rubber, which is derived from rubber plants, as a raw material.

How Do Plants Excrete?

Plant excretory products are removed from the plant body by a variety of methods. The carbon dioxide created during respiration is used up during photosynthesis, and oxygen gas produced as a byproduct of photosynthesis is consumed during respiration.

The process of excretion in plants occurs in the following ways:

• Through the stomata of leaves and lenticels of stems, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water vapour are expelled as gaseous wastes.

• Some waste materials gather in tree bark and leaves. The wastes are removed when the leaves and bark are shed.

• Some waste materials are made harmless before being stored inside the body of the plant as solid objects. These wastes include raffia, tannins, resins, gum, rubber, and essential oils.

Different types of stored waste products include oil made from eucalyptus, and jasmine trees, latex from rubber trees, papaya trees, and acacia gums. Even excretion of these compounds into the soil occurs occasionally.

The process of guttation takes place in hydathodes located in the leaf epidermis of some plants. In a humid environment, plants secrete water and its solutes through a process called guttation. Water evaporation from the surface of leaves occurs during transpiration through the stomata. Excess amino acids in terrestrial plants are converted by deamination into uric acid and keto acids, which are then deposited as crystals in the leaves and excreted down the leaves. Salt glands present in halophytes excrete surplus salts in the body.

Excretion in Plants Diagram

How Do Leaves of Plants Help in Excretion?

In plants, leaves are crucial to excretion. The majority of carbon dioxide leaves the plants through stomata in leaves. The majority of the waste materials are kept in the plant's leaves, which also serve as a storage area. Plants expel leaves to get rid of waste materials. Excretion in plants pdf can be downloaded from Vedantu sites for better understanding.

Interesting Facts

• Water is eliminated from plants by transpiration.

• Gums and resins stored in the bark are reported to be expelled from the lenticels.

Important Questions

1. What are stomata?

Ans: In the epidermis of tree leaves, there are cell structures called stomata that play a role in the exchange of water and carbon dioxide between plants and the atmosphere.

2. What are resins?

Ans: Plant cells produce resins as a defense mechanism against injury or infection in trees and shrubs.

Key Features of Excretion in Plants

• The process of water droplets being excreted from vascular plants' pores, such as grass, is known as guttation.

• Stomata, stem lenticels, the outside of stems, fruits, etc., are the places through which gaseous wastes and water are expelled.