NCERT Class 7 Science Chapter 10
Life Processes in Plants
This chapter explains the vital life processes in plants, including photosynthesis, transportation, respiration, and excretion, as part of the CBSE Class 7 Science curriculum. Students learn how plants make their own food using sunlight, how water and minerals travel from roots to leaves, and how plants exchange gases. The chapter highlights the importance of plants as primary producers in ecosystems.
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Key Terms
- Photosynthesis
- The process by which green plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to produce glucose (food) and release oxygen. It occurs in chloroplasts, which contain the pigment chlorophyll.
- Chlorophyll
- The green pigment found in the chloroplasts of plant cells that absorbs light energy (mainly red and blue wavelengths) needed for photosynthesis.
- Transpiration
- The process of loss of water vapour from the surfaces of leaves through tiny pores called stomata. It helps in the upward transport of water and minerals from roots.
- Stomata
- Tiny pores on the surface of leaves through which gas exchange (oxygen and carbon dioxide) and water vapour loss (transpiration) occur.
- Xylem
- The vascular tissue in plants that transports water and dissolved minerals from the roots upward to the rest of the plant.
- Phloem
- The vascular tissue in plants that transports food (sugars produced during photosynthesis) from the leaves to other parts of the plant.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is photosynthesis and what are the conditions required for it?▾
Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants prepare their own food. It requires sunlight (energy source), water (absorbed through roots), carbon dioxide (taken in through stomata), and chlorophyll (the green pigment in leaves). The products are glucose and oxygen.
What is the difference between xylem and phloem?▾
Xylem is a vascular tissue that carries water and minerals from the roots to the leaves and other parts of the plant. Phloem carries food (sugars made during photosynthesis) from the leaves to all other parts of the plant including roots and stems.
What is transpiration and why is it important?▾
Transpiration is the loss of water vapour from plant leaves through stomata. It helps draw water and minerals upward from the roots through xylem (creating a suction pull), cools the plant, and maintains the water balance of the plant.
How do plants carry out respiration?▾
Plants respire continuously, both day and night, using oxygen to break down glucose and release energy. During the day, the oxygen released during photosynthesis is more than the oxygen consumed by respiration, so plants appear to only absorb CO2 in daylight.
What are stomata and what is their function?▾
Stomata are tiny pores on the surface of leaves, surrounded by guard cells that control their opening and closing. They allow the exchange of gases (carbon dioxide in, oxygen out during photosynthesis) and facilitate transpiration.
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