Question

Explain why xylem transport is unidirectional and phloem transport bi-directional.

Answer 1

Transport over longer distances proceeds through the vascular system (the xylem and the phloem) and is called translocation. In rooted plants, transport in xylem (to water and minerals) is essentially unidirectional, from roots to the stems. Organic and mineral nutrients however, undergo multidirectional transport. Food, primarily sucrose, is transported by the vascular tissue, phloem, from a source to a sink. Usually the source is part of the plant which synthesises the food, i.e., the leaf, and sink, the part that needs or stores the food.

But, the source and sink may be reversed depending on the season, or the plant’s needs. Since the source-sink relationship is variable, the direction of movement in the phloem can be upward or downward, i.e., bi-directional. Hence, unlike one-way flow of water in xylem, food in phloem tissues can be transported in any required direction

Answer 2

During the growth of a plant, its leaves act as the source of food as they carry out photosynthesis. The phloem conducts the food from the source to the sink (the part of the plant requiring or storing food). During spring, this process is reversed as the food stored in the sink is mobilised toward the growing buds of the plant, through the phloem. Thus, the movement of food in the phloem is bidirectional (i.e., upward and downward).

The transport of water in the xylem takes place only from the roots to the leaves. Therefore, the movement of water and nutrients in the xylem is unidirectional.