Question

What is the difference between xylem and phloem ?

Hint:

Use this mnemonic to remember their functions: 'Xylem' transports water, which starts with 'w', a letter close to 'x' in the alphabet. 'Phloem' transports food, which starts with 'f', phonetically similar to 'ph'.

Answer 1

Xylem and phloem are the two types of vascular tissues in plants responsible for transport. The key differences are:
\[\begin{array}{|l|l|l|} \hline \textbf{Feature} & \textbf{Xylem} & \textbf{Phloem} \\ \hline \textbf{Function} & Transports water and minerals from the roots to other parts of the plant. & Transports food (sugars) from the leaves to other parts of the plant. \\ \hline \textbf{Direction} & Unidirectional (upwards only). & Bidirectional (up and down, from source to sink). \\ \hline \textbf{Components} & Consists of tracheids, vessel elements, xylem parenchyma, and xylem fibres. & Consists of sieve tubes, companion cells, phloem parenchyma, and phloem fibres. \\ \hline \textbf{Nature of Tissue} & Composed mostly of dead cells at maturity (tracheids and vessels). & Composed mostly of living cells (sieve tubes and companion cells). \\ \hline \end{array}\]