Situated at the growing tips of stems and roots (shoot apex and root apex)
Apical meristem
Helps in the elongation of root tips and shoot tips
Intercalary meristem
Present at the nodes, at the bases of leaves and the bases of internodes
Intercalary meristem
Helps in the formation of leaves, lengthening of internodes and also helps in giving rise to branches at the nodes
Lateral meristem
Meristematic tissue present on the lateral sides of the plant
Lateral meristem
Helps in increasing the girth of the plant, this growth is called secondary growth
Types of lateral meristem
Vascular cambium
Cork cambium
Vascular cambium
A ring of undifferentiated dividing cells, as these cells divide on the inner side, they form xylem (water and mineral conducting tissue) and on the outer side they form phloem (food conducting tissue)
Cork cambium
Also called phellogen, outside the vascular cambium, undifferentiated dividing cells
Cork cambium
When they divide on the outer side, they form cork cells or phellem (initially living cells but as they mature, they die, have a pigment called suberin which makes them impermeable to pathogens) and on the inner side it forms phelloderm (living cells lacking suberin, give protection to the plant and sometimes contain chlorophyll and help the plant in photosynthesis)
