Classification of Plants

Biologists have developed a complex way to classify each plant species in order to study the billions of plants on earth. This classification system is referred to as taxonomy, which includes both English and Latin names for different divisions. Plants are grouped into categories based upon their characteristic that relate them to each category. The first group is called the Plant Kingdom which is broken down into twelve divisions. After Division, species are put into classes, then Family, Genus, and finally Specific epithet. The ordering of these categories is called the Hierarchy of Classification.

Plants in the Big Thicket

The Big Thicket, located in East Texas, is composed of 97,000 acres of dense forest, swamps, and rivers. Biodiversity in this region is greatly influenced by the vast variety of biological systems. These natural habitats are home to over 1300 species of trees, shrubs, forbs, vines, and grasses. There are also four of North America's five carnivorous plants found in the Big Thicket.

Vascular and Non-Vascular Plants

There two major types of plants, vascular and non-vascular. The majority of plants found in the Big Thicket are vascular, which means they have root, shoot (stems and leaves), and a vascular system. A vascular system is comprised of tubes called a xylem and phloem. These tubes, also known as conducting tissues, help transport food and water between the roots, stems, and leaves. Vascular plants found in the Big Thicket include over 1,000 flowering plants, 26 ferns, 20 orchids and the 4 of 5 carnivorous plants in the United States. Non-vascular plants are the simplest of all land dwelling plants. They normally only reach the height of 2 cm because they lack woody tissues needed for support.

Nonvascular plants also lack conducting tissues, which also limits their size because they cannot transport water or food very far against gravity. Without the ability to transport water from the ground causes them to have little resistance to drying. For this reason nonvascular plants are almost always found in moist habitats.

Resources

National Parks Conservation Association

Ohio State University