Parts of a Plant — Biology (Grade 7)

Define and explain Parts of a Plant in your own words
Use key terms such as roots accurately
Apply what you have learned to new examples and questions
Avoid the common mistakes learners make with this topic

Plants cannot walk to find food or water, yet they thrive in almost every habitat on Earth. In this chapter you will meet the parts of a plant, find out what plants need to stay healthy, watch a seed germinate, and learn how leaves cook up food using sunlight.

This lesson focuses on Parts of a Plant: name the roots, stem, leaves and flower and learn what each part does for the plant.

Definition: Parts of a Plant

Name the roots, stem, leaves and flower and learn what each part does for the plant.

Key ideas

The jobs of plant parts

Roots anchor the plant and take in water and minerals. The stem holds the plant upright and carries water up to the leaves. Leaves are the food factories where photosynthesis happens. Flowers make seeds so new plants can grow. Each part has a job, and the plant suffers if any part is damaged.

What plants need

Plants need light, water, warmth and air to grow well. Without enough light, stems grow tall, pale and weak as they stretch towards it. Without enough water, leaves droop and wilt. Gardeners test one need at a time, keeping everything else the same, so they know exactly what makes the difference.

Key term — roots: The part of the plant that grows underground, anchoring the plant and absorbing water and minerals from the soil.

Worked example: Parts of a Plant

Name the four main parts of a flowering plant.

Roots, stem, leaves and flower.

Answer: Roots, stem, leaves and flower.

Common mistakes

Saying plants eat soil Plants absorb water and minerals from soil, but they make their own food in their leaves using sunlight. Soil is not their food.
Forgetting that roots grow first During germination the root appears before the shoot, so the young plant can absorb water straight away.

Practice

What is the job of the roots?

Think about water and holding on.

Roots anchor the plant in the soil and absorb water and minerals.

List three things a plant needs to grow healthily.

Light is one of them.

Any three of: light, water, warmth, air (carbon dioxide).

In the fair test example, why must both plants get the same amount of water?

What would happen if only one got water?

So that water cannot explain any difference in growth. If only one plant were watered, you would not know whether light or water caused the result.

Why are green plants called producers?

What do they make that animals cannot?

Because they produce their own food by photosynthesis, so they are the starting point of food chains.

Quick check

Parts of a Plant — quick check

Which of these best defines "roots"?

The part of the plant that grows underground, anchoring the plant and absorbing water and minerals from the soil.

What happens during germination?

The seed starts to grow: the root emerges first to absorb water, then the shoot grows upwards towards the light.

Key takeaways

Parts of a Plant: name the roots, stem, leaves and flower and learn what each part does for the plant.
The jobs of plant parts: Roots anchor the plant and take in water and minerals.
photosynthesis: The process by which green plants use light energy to make food (glucose) from carbon dioxide and water.
Watch out for: saying plants eat soil

What Plants Need →Back to Grade 7 chapters Related resources →