- Compare and contrast the fern gametophyte and sporophyte.
- Compare and contrast the whisk fern (Psilophyta) and the ferns (Pterophyta).
- Compare and contrast mosses and club mosses.
- What are some uses of the seedless plants to gardeners?
- What are some of the distinguishing features of horsetails?
- What does the sporophyte of the hornwort look like?
- Explain reproduction by fragmentation.
Further Reading / Supplemental Links
- http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/FPAS/bcs/bl14apl/bryo1.htm
- http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html
- http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artjul98/jpmoss.html
- http://www.biologycorner.com/bio2/notes_plants.html
- http://forestencyclopedia.com/p/p1893
- http://www.hiddenforest.co.nz/plants/clubmosses/clubmosses.htm
- http://www.washjeff.edu/greenhouse/Pnudumhttp://amerfernsoc.org/;http:
//www.washjeff.edu/greenhouse/Pnudum - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki
Vocabulary
club mosses Seedless vascular plants that resemble mosses.
ferns Seedless vascular plants that have large, divided fronds.
hornworts Seedless nonvascular plants with hornlike sporophytes.
horsetails Seedless vascular plants with hollow, rigid stems.
liverworts Seedless nonvascular plants that can have flattened bodies resembling a liver.
mosses Seedless nonvascular plants with tiny stem-like and stem-like structures.
whisk ferns Seedless vascular plants that have branching stems and yellow globular spo-
rangium.
Points to Consider
- Can you think of examples of plants that have seeds?
- Can you think of a plant that has seeds but no flowers or fruits?
- Why do you think having flowers is beneficial to a plant?