Plant nutrition

• Photosynthesis


  A chemical process which takes place in every green plant to produce food in the form of glucose (a carbohydrate)
• Photosynthesis


  1. Sunlight

  2. Chlorophyll

  3. Carbon dioxide

  4. Water
• Photosynthesis happens in all the green bits of a plant but mainly in the leaves
• The plant can then use the glucose produced in photosynthesis to increase its biomass, i.e. to grow
• Things needed for photosynthesis

  • Sunlight
  • Chlorophyll
  • Carbon dioxide
  • Water
• Chlorophyll


  • A green chemical found in the chloroplasts of plant cells that absorbs sunlight and uses its energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen
• Stomata


  • Tiny holes on the underside of leaves that allow carbon dioxide to diffuse into the leaf and oxygen to diffuse out
• Leaves are adapted for efficient photosynthesis because they are broad with a large surface area, have chloroplasts near the top to get the most sunlight, and have a network of veins to deliver water and take away glucose
• Plants absorb mineral nutrients from the soil through their roots
• Plants grow using the food they make themselves in photosynthesis
• Hormones are chemical messengers that regulate various physiological processes such as growth, metabolism, reproduction, and homeostasis.