BOTANY. PLANT MORPHOLOGY - O. A. Shevchuk - 2014

INTRODUCTION

Plant Morphology is a branch of science that investigates the external and Internal Structure of organisms, as well as the patterns of form generation throughout historical and individual development. The process by which biological and morphological features of organisms evolve during phylogenesis or morphogenesis is referred to as biomorphogenesis.

The primary objective of plant morphology is to examine the principles governing the origin and development of plant forms, both as a whole and in terms of their constituent parts, namely Organs. While plant morphology studies structures across all levels—ranging from the entire plant down to cellular Organelles and macromolecules—in a narrower sense, it focuses exclusively on macrostructures. In this context, plant anatomy, Embryology, and Cytology branch off as independent disciplines. Certain subfields derive their names directly from their Objects of Study: palynology (The Study of the structure and dispersal of plant spores and pollen), carpology (the Study of the evolution, morphology, and Classification of fruits and seeds), rhizology (the study of ROOT systems), florology (the study of the genesis, structure, diversity, and modifications of the flower), and teratology (the study of hereditary and non-hereditary deviations from normal structure, as well as structural abnormalities in individual organs and whole plants, such as The formation of pollen sacs on tulip petals), among others.

Modern plant morphology investigates organismal structures across various Levels of Organization—organismic, systemic, tissue, cellular, and ultrastructural—using contemporary Research Methods. Alongside conventional experimental techniques, it employs biotechnological methods involving isolated Tissues, Cells, and protoplasts. The isolated tissue technique was pioneered by F. White, P. Nobécourt, and R. Gautheret in the 1940s.

Plant morphology has ancient roots. Depictions of various plant species have survived to this day on artifacts in Egypt, China, India, and other countries. Writings of ancient Greek natural philosophers and poets contain early observations on PLANTS AND THEIR morphology, touching upon both reproductive and vegetative organs. For instance, the works of Aristotle and his pupil Theophrastus utilize terms such as "leaf," "stem," "root," "flower," and "bud," while also describing Methods of Plant propagation. Consequently, Aristotle may be considered the founder of plant morphology.

A wealth of information regarding vegetative and generative plant organs can also be found in the works of the ancient Roman scholars Galen and Dioscorides, who grouped medicinal plants into families.

A major catalyst for the study of plant morphology was the establishment of botanical gardens and the creation of herbals, which made it possible to conduct systematic observations on plant development and diversity.

The founder of theoretical plant morphology is the philosopher J.W. Goethe, who formulated The Theory of metamorphosis in 1790 and coined the term "morphology" in 1817.

Until the late 18th century, plant morphology remained largely a descriptive science. Following the publication of C. Linnaeus's Philosophia Botanica (1751), a period of widespread application began, playing a crucial role in shaping the discipline. The Swedish scientist was the first to introduce Latin into botanical terminology to designate plant organs (e.g., root - radix, stem - caulis, bud - gemma, stamen - stamen, pistil - pistillum, fruit - fructus, seed - semen).

Charles Darwin's works had a profound impact on The Development of plant morphology, effectively putting an end to the dogma of the immutability of plant forms.

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, two main comparative-morphological concepts regarding the body structure of vascular plants evolved: the phytomistic theories and The Doctrine of the three principal organs—root, stem, and leaf. W. Hofmeister's establishment of homologies among the reproductive organs of Water/56.html">LOWER SPORE PLANTS and gymnosperms (1851) marked the dawn of evolutionary plant morphology, which was further advanced by numerous 19th- and 20th-century botanists, including Russian scholars such as I.M. Gorozhankin, A.M. Beketov, and N.G. Kholodny. Addressing the origins of vegetative organs in higher plants using paleobotanical data led to the formulation of the telome theory (W. Zimmermann, 1930, 1965). Other significant contributions to evolutionary plant morphology include the stelar theory of vascular plant bundle evolution, the euanthian theory, and the pseudanthian theory of flower origin.

Ontogenetic and experimental plant morphology developed in close connection with evolutionary morphology. Major contributions to this field were made by A.M. Beketov (who identified patterns in The structure of vegetative organs in 1858), M.P. Krekker (who formulated the theory of cyclic Aging and rejuvenation of plants in 1940), and others.

The founders of ecological plant morphology are considered to be E. Warming (1902–1916) and C. Raunkiær (1905–1907), who focused on the study of PLANT LIFE FORMS (biomorphs).

A substantial contribution to comparative plant morphology was made by W. Troll and his school (1935–1969). The problems of morphological evolution in flowering plants were further addressed by A.L. Takhtajan (1940–1980) and G.L. Stebbins (1967, 1974).

The subject of study in plant morphology encompasses the plant Organism, its vegetative and Generative organs, morphological and anatomical traits arising throughout individual and phylogenetic development, as well as those shaped by environmental factors and human economic activity.