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Before we look at food chains we will go over the way green plants capture energy from the
Sun to make food. This is the start of all the food chains we will look at.
carbon dioxide
water
light
These are the things that plants make by photosynthesis:
glucose
oxygen
We can show photosynthesis in a word equation, where light energy is shown in brackets
because it is not a substance:
carbon dioxide + water (+ light energy) glucose + oxygen
Plants get carbon dioxide from the air through their leaves, and water from the ground
through their roots. Light energy comes from the sun.
The oxygen produced is released into the air from the leaves. The glucose produced can be
turned into other substances, such as starch, which is used as a store of energy. This energy
can be released by respiration.
Carbon dioxide
Plants get carbon dioxide from the air through their leaves. The carbon
dioxidediffuses through small holes in the underside of the leaf called stomata. (One of these
holes is called a stoma. The plural is stomata.)
The lower part of the leaf has loose-fitting cells, to allow carbon dioxide to reach the other
cells in the leaf. This also allow the oxygen produced in photosynthesis to leave the leaf easily.
Light
A leaf usually has a large surface area, so that it can absorb a lot of light. Its top surface is
protected from water loss, disease and weather damage by a waxy layer.
The upper part of the leaf is where the light falls, and it contains a type of cell called
a palisade cell. This is adapted to absorb a lot of light. It has lots of chloroplasts and is
shaped like a tall box.
Water
Turgid plant that's watered regularly and a flacid plant without enough water.
Plants get the water they need for photosynthesis through their roots.
The roots have a type of cell called a root hair cell - these project out from the root into the
soil. Roots have a big surface area and thin walls, which allow water to pass into them easily.
Note that root cells do not contain chloroplasts, as they are normally in the dark and cannot
photosynthesise.
The water absorbed by the root hair cells passes through the plant in xylem tubes, and
eventually reaches the leaves. If a plant does not absorb enough water, it will wilt or go floppy.
Without water it may also not photosynthesise quickly enough, and it may die.