Cycadophyta

Cycads

These plants look very much like palm trees. They were a very dominant part of the vegetation about 200 million years ago.

This is a cycad with a male strobilus. There will be some microsporophylls for you to examine in the lab.

This is the surface of a stem of a cycad. These plants have very little secondary growth. The rough protective surface you see here is due to the presence of persistent leaf bases.

This cross-section should look familiar. This is Cycas (a cycad), the example you looked at in lab of a xerophytic leaf.

This is a handmade cross-section through a leaflet which has been stained with toluidine blue.

This is a close-up of the stomatal crypt. Remember the guard cells of this organism are sunken to prevent water loss.