View source for Biology:Vascular plant

{{Short description|Phylum of plants with xylem and phloem}}
{{Automatic taxobox
|name=Vascular plants
|image=
|image_caption=Common lady-fern, a non-seed-bearing plant
|image2=Young lemon basil plant (Ocimum × africanum).jpg
|image2_caption=[[Biology:Lemon basil|Lemon basil]], a [[Biology:Spermatophyte|seed-bearing]] plant
|fossil_range={{fossil range|425|0|[[Earth:Silurian|Silurian]]–Present, 425–0 [[Megaannum|Ma]]|ref=<ref name="Edwards1980">{{cite journal |author=D. Edwards |year=1980 |title=Records of ''Cooksonia''-type sporangia from late Wenlock strata in Ireland |journal=Nature |volume=287 |pages=41–42 |doi=10.1038/287041a0 |last2=Feehan |first2=J. |issue=5777|bibcode=1980Natur.287...41E |s2cid=7958927 }}</ref><ref name="Parfrey2011">{{cite Q|Q24614721}}</ref>}}
|display_parents=2
|taxon=Tracheophytes/Plantae
|subdivision_ranks='''Divisions'''<br /><small>† Extinct</small>
|subdivision=* Non-seed-bearing plants
** †''[[Biology:Cooksonia|Cooksonia]]''
** †[[Biology:Rhyniophyte|Rhyniophyta]]
** †[[Biology:Zosterophyll|Zosterophyll]]ophyta
** [[Biology:Lycopodiopsida|Lycopodiophyta]]
** †Trimerophytophyta
** [[Biology:Fern|Polypodiophyta]]
** †Progymnospermophyta
* Superdivision Spermatophyta
** †[[Biology:Pteridospermatophyta|Pteridospermatophyta]]
** [[Biology:Pinophyta|Pinophyta]]
** [[Biology:Cycadophyta|Cycadophyta]]
** [[Biology:Ginkgophyta|Ginkgophyta]]
** [[Biology:Gnetophyta|Gnetophyta]]
** [[Biology:Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]] (angiosperms)
** †[[Biology:Bennettitales|Bennettitales]]
}}

'''Vascular plants''' ({{etymology|la|{{wikt-lang|la|vasculum}}|duct}}), or collectively the phylum '''Tracheophyta''' ({{IPAc-en|t|r|ə|ˈ|k|iː|.|ə|f|aɪ|t|ə}};<ref>{{Cite web |title=vascular plant {{!}} Definition, Characteristics, Taxonomy, Examples, & Facts |url=https://www.britannica.com/plant/tracheophyte |access-date=2022-03-22 |website=Britannica  }}</ref><ref name="ScienceDirect">{{Cite web |title=Tracheophyta – an overview |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/tracheophyta#:~:text=The%20vascular%20plants,%20or%20Tracheophyta,(excluding%20many%20fossil%20groups). |access-date=2022-03-22 |website=ScienceDirect Topics}}</ref> {{etymology|grc|''{{wikt-lang|grc|τραχεῖα ἀρτηρία}}'' ({{grc-transl|τραχεῖα ἀρτηρία}})|windpipe||''{{wikt-lang|grc|φυτά}}'' ({{grc-transl|φυτά}})|plants}}),<ref name="ScienceDirect" /> form a large group of [[Biology:Embryophyte|land plants]] ({{circa|300,000}} accepted known species)<ref name="Christenhusz-Byng2016">{{cite journal |last1=Christenhusz |first1=M. J. M. |last2=Byng |first2=J. W. |year=2016 |title=The number of known plants species in the world and its annual increase |journal=Phytotaxa |volume=261 |pages=201–217 |url=http://biotaxa.org/Phytotaxa/article/download/phytotaxa.261.3.1/20598 |doi=10.11646/phytotaxa.261.3.1 |issue=3 |doi-access=free}}</ref> that have [[Biology:Lignin|lignified]] tissues (the [[Biology:Xylem|xylem]]) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They also have a specialized non-lignified [[Biology:Tissue|tissue]] (the [[Biology:Phloem|phloem]]) to conduct products of [[Earth:Photosynthesis|photosynthesis]]. Vascular plants include the clubmosses, [[Biology:Equisetum|horsetails]], [[Biology:Fern|fern]]s, [[Biology:Gymnosperm|gymnosperm]]s (including [[Biology:Conifer|conifer]]s), and angiosperms ([[Biology:Flowering plant|flowering plant]]s). Scientific names for the group include Tracheophyta,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Abercrombie |first1=Michael |last2=Hickman |first2=C. J. |last3=Johnson |first3=M. L. |date=1966 |title=A Dictionary of Biology |publisher=Penguin Books}}</ref><ref name="cav"/>{{rp|251}} Tracheobionta<ref name="itistrach">{{cite web |url=https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=564824|title=ITIS Standard Report Page: Tracheobionta|access-date=September 20, 2013}}</ref> and [[Biology:Equisetopsida sensu lato|Equisetopsida ''sensu lato'']]. Some early land plants (the [[Biology:Rhyniophyte|rhyniophyte]]s) had less developed vascular tissue; the term '''eutracheophyte''' has been used for all other vascular plants, including all living ones.

Historically, vascular plants were known as "'''higher plants'''", as it was believed that they were further [[Biology:Evolution|evolved]] than other plants due to being more complex organisms. However, this is an antiquated remnant of the obsolete [[Great chain of being|scala naturae]], and the term is generally considered to be unscientific.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vascular Plants: Definition, Classification, Characteristics & Examples |url=https://sciencing.com/vascular-plants-13719225.html |access-date=2022-03-22 |website=Sciencing }}</ref>

==Characteristics==
Botanists define vascular plants by three primary characteristics:
# Vascular plants have [[Biology:Vascular tissue|vascular tissue]]s which distribute resources through the plant. Two kinds of vascular tissue occur in plants: [[Biology:Xylem|xylem]] and [[Biology:Phloem|phloem]]. Phloem and xylem are closely associated with one another and are typically located immediately adjacent to each other in the plant. The combination of one xylem and one phloem strand adjacent to each other is known as a [[Biology:Vascular bundle|vascular bundle]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://basicbiology.net/plants/physiology/xylem-phloem |title=Xylem and Phloem |website=Basic Biology |date=26 August 2020}}</ref> The [[Biology:Evolution|evolution]] of vascular tissue in plants allowed them to evolve to larger sizes than [[Biology:Non-vascular plant|non-vascular plant]]s, which lack these specialized conducting tissues and are thereby restricted to relatively small sizes.
# In vascular plants, the principal [[Biology:Alternation of generations|generation or phase]] is the ''[[Biology:Sporophyte|sporophyte]]'', which produces [[Biology:Spore|spore]]s and is diploid (having two sets of chromosomes per cell). (By contrast, the principal generation phase in non-vascular plants is the ''[[Biology:Gametophyte|gametophyte]]'', which produces [[Biology:Germ cell|gametes]] and is [[Biology:Haploid|haploid]] - with one set of chromosomes per cell.)
# Vascular plants have true roots, leaves, and stems, even if some groups have secondarily lost one or more of these traits.

Cavalier-Smith (1998) treated the Tracheophyta as a [[Biology:Phylum|phylum]] or botanical division encompassing two of these characteristics defined by the Latin phrase "facies diploida xylem et phloem instructa" (diploid phase with xylem and phloem).<ref name="cav"/>{{rp|251}}

One possible mechanism for the presumed evolution from emphasis on haploid generation to emphasis on diploid generation is the greater efficiency in spore dispersal with more complex diploid structures. Elaboration of the spore stalk enabled the production of more spores and the development of the ability to release them higher and to broadcast them farther. Such developments may include more photosynthetic area for the spore-bearing structure, the ability to grow independent roots, woody structure for support, and more branching.{{citation needed|reason=several points in this paragraph are conjectural and need WP:RS|date=February 2016}}

==Phylogeny==
A proposed phylogeny of the vascular plants after Kenrick and Crane 1997<ref name=KenrickCrane>{{cite book|last1=Kenrick |first1=Paul |first2=Peter R. |last2=Crane |date=1997 |title=The Origin and Early Diversification of Land Plants: A Cladistic Study |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press |isbn=1-56098-730-8}}</ref> is as follows, with modification to the gymnosperms from Christenhusz ''et al.'' (2011a),<ref name="Christenhusz_2011a">{{cite journal |last1=Christenhusz |first1=Maarten J. M. |last2=Reveal |first2=James L. |last3=Farjon |first3=Aljos |last4=Gardner |first4=Martin F. |last5=Mill |first5=R.R. |last6=Chase |first6=Mark W. |year=2011 |title=A new classification and linear sequence of extant gymnosperms |url=http://www.mapress.com/phytotaxa/content/2011/f/pt00019p070.pdf |journal=Phytotaxa |volume=19 |pages=55–70 |doi=10.11646/phytotaxa.19.1.3 |s2cid=86797396 }}</ref> Pteridophyta from Smith ''et al.''<ref name="Smith_2006">{{cite journal |last1=Smith |first1=Alan R. |last2=Pryer |first2=Kathleen M. |last3=Schuettpelz |first3=E. |last4=Korall |first4=P. |last5=Schneider |first5=H. |last6=Wolf |first6=Paul G. |year=2006 |title=A classification for extant ferns |url=http://www.pryerlab.net/publication/fichier749.pdf |journal=Taxon |volume=55 |issue=3 |pages=705–731 |doi=10.2307/25065646 |jstor=25065646 }}</ref> and lycophytes and ferns by Christenhusz ''et al.'' (2011b) <ref name="Christenhusz_2011b">{{cite journal |last1=Christenhusz |first1=Maarten J. M. |last2=Zhang|first2=Xian-Chun |last3=Schneider |first3=Harald |year=2011 |title=A linear sequence of extant families and genera of lycophytes and ferns |url=http://www.mapress.com/phytotaxa/content/2011/f/pt00019p054.pdf |journal=Phytotaxa |volume=19 |pages=7–54 |doi=10.11646/phytotaxa.19.1.2 }}</ref> The cladogram distinguishes the [[Biology:Rhyniophyte|rhyniophyte]]s from the "true" tracheophytes, the eutracheophytes.<ref name=KenrickCrane/>

{{Barlabel|size=17|at1=3.5|bar1=green|style=font-size:75%;line-height:75%|label1=Gymnosperms|cladogram={{clade
|label1=[[Biology:Polysporangiophyte|Polysporangiates]]
 |1={{clade
  |1={{clade
   |label1='''Tracheophyta'''
   |1={{clade
    |label1=Eutracheophytes
    |1={{clade
     |label1=Euphyllophytina
     |1={{clade
      |label1=Lignophytes
       |1={{cladex
       |label1='''[[Biology:Spermatophyte|Spermatophyte]]s'''
       |1={{cladex
        |1=†[[Biology:Pteridospermatophyta|Pteridospermatophyta]] (seed ferns)
        |2=[[Biology:Cycadophyta|Cycadophyta]] (cycads)|barbegin2=green
        |3=[[Biology:Pinophyta|Pinophyta]] (conifers)|bar3=green
        |4=[[Biology:Ginkgophyta|Ginkgophyta]] (ginkgo)|bar4=green
        |5=[[Biology:Gnetophyta|Gnetophyta]]|barend5=green
        |6=[[Biology:Magnoliophyta|Magnoliophyta]] (flowering plants)
        }}
       |2=†Progymnospermophyta
       }}
      |label2='''[[Biology:Fern|Pteridophyta]]'''
      |2={{clade
       |1={{clade
        |1=[[Biology:Pteridopsida|Pteridopsida]] (true ferns)
        |2=[[Biology:Marattiopsida|Marattiopsida]]
        |3=[[Biology:Equisetopsida|Equisetopsida]] (horsetails)
        |4=[[Biology:Psilotopsida|Psilotopsida]] (whisk ferns & adders'-tongues)
        |5=†[[Biology:Cladoxylopsida|Cladoxylopsida]]
        }}
       }}
      }}
     |label2=Lycophytina
     |2={{clade
      |1='''[[Biology:Lycopodiophyta|Lycopodiophyta]]'''
      |2=†Zosterophyllophyta
      }}
     }}
    |2=†Rhyniophyta
   }}
  }}
 |2=†''[[Biology:Aglaophyton|Aglaophyton]]''
 |3=†[[Biology:Horneophytopsida|Horneophytopsida]]
 }}
}}
}}

This phylogeny is supported by several molecular studies.<ref name="Smith_2006"/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pryer |first1=K. M. |last2=Schneider |first2=H. |year=2001 |title=Horsetails and ferns are a monophyletic group and the closest living relatives to seed plants |journal=Nature |volume=409 |issue=6820|pages=618–22 |doi=10.1038/35054555 |pmid=11214320 |last3=Smith |first3=A. R. |last4=Cranfill |first4=R. |last5=Wolf |first5=P. G. |last6=Hunt |first6=J. S. |last7=Sipes |first7=S. D. |bibcode=2001Natur.409..618S |s2cid=4367248 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pryer |first1=K. M. |last2=Schuettpelz |first2=E. |last3=Wolf |first3=P. G. |last4=Schneider |first4=H. |last5=Smith |first5=A. R. |last6=Cranfill |first6=R. |year=2004 |title=Phylogeny and evolution of ferns (monilophytes) with a focus on the early leptosporangiate divergences |journal=American Journal of Botany |volume=91 |issue=10|pages=1582–1598 |doi=10.3732/ajb.91.10.1582|pmid=21652310 }}</ref> Other researchers state that taking fossils into account leads to different conclusions, for example that the ferns (Pteridophyta) are not monophyletic.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rothwell |first1=G. W. |last2=Nixon |first2=K. C. |year=2006 |title=How Does the Inclusion of Fossil Data Change Our Conclusions about the Phylogenetic History of Euphyllophytes? |journal=International Journal of Plant Sciences |volume=167 |issue=3 |pages=737–749 |doi=10.1086/503298 |s2cid=86172890 |name-list-style=amp }}</ref>

Hao and Xue presented an alternative phylogeny in 2013 for pre-[[Biology:Euphyllophyte|euphyllophyte]] plants.<ref name=HaoXue13>{{Citation |last1=Hao |first1=Shougang |last2=Xue |first2=Jinzhuang |date=2013 |title=The early Devonian Posongchong flora of Yunnan: a contribution to an understanding of the evolution and early diversification of vascular plants |location=Beijing |publisher=Science Press |isbn=978-7-03-036616-0 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269875285 |access-date=2019-10-25 |pages=366 }}</ref>
{{Barlabel|size=27
|at1=5|label1=Rhyniopsids|bar1=#b88
|at2=8|label2=Renalioids|bar2=#aca
|cladogram=
{{clade|style=font-size:80%;line-height:80%
|label1=[[Biology:Polysporangiophyte|Polysporangiophyte]]s
|1={{clade
  |1=†[[Biology:Horneophytopsida|Horneophytaceae]] [[File:Horneophyton.svg|30px]]
  |label2=Tracheophytes
  |2={{clade
    |1=†[[Biology:Cooksonia|Cooksonia]]ceae
    |2={{clade
      |1=†''[[Biology:Aglaophyton|Aglaophyton]]''
      |2={{cladex
        |1=†Rhyniopsida [[File:Rhynia sp. - MUSE (cropped).jpg|50px]] |barbegin1=#b88
        |2={{cladex
          |1=†''[[Biology:Catenalis|Catenalis]]''|barend1=#b88
          |2={{cladex
            |1=†''[[Biology:Aberlemnia|Aberlemnia]]''|barbegin1=#aca
            |2={{cladex
              |1=†[[Biology:Hsua|Hsua]]ceae|bar1=#aca
              |2={{cladex
                |1=†[[Biology:Renalia|Renalia]]ceae [[File:Renalia reconstruction.jpg|40px]] |barend1=#aca
                |label2=Eutracheophytes
                |2={{clade
                  |1={{clade
                    |1=†''[[Biology:Adoketophyton|Adoketophyton]]''
                    |2=†?[[Biology:Barinophytopsida|Barinophytopsida]]
                    |3=†[[Biology:Zosterophyllopsida|Zosterophyllopsida]]
                     }}
                  |2={{clade
                    |label1=Microphylls
                    |1={{clade
                      |1=†''[[Biology:Hicklingia|Hicklingia]]''
                      |2={{clade
                        |1=†''[[Biology:Gumuia|Gumuia]]''
                        |2={{clade
                          |1=†''Nothia''
                          |2={{clade
                            |1=†''Zosterophyllum deciduum''
                            |2=[[Biology:Lycopodiopsida|Lycopodiopsida]] [[File:2021-03 Amsterdam Island - lycopodium clavatum 10.jpg|40px]]
                             }}
                           }}
                         }}
                       }}
                    |2={{clade
                      |1=†''[[Biology:Yunia|Yunia]]''
                      |label2=[[Biology:Euphyllophyte|Euphyllophyte]]s
                      |2={{clade
                        |1=†''[[Biology:Eophyllophyton|Eophyllophyton]]''
                        |2={{clade
                          |1=†[[Biology:Trimerophytopsida|Trimerophytopsida]]
                          |label2=Megaphylls
                          |2={{clade
                            |label1=Moniliformopses
                            |1={{clade
                              |1=†''[[Biology:Ibyka|Ibyka]]''
                              |2={{clade
                                |1=†''Pauthecophyton''
                                |2={{clade
                                  |1=†[[Biology:Cladoxylopsida|Cladoxylopsida]]
                                  |2=[[Biology:Polypodiopsida|Polypodiopsida]] [[File:Polypodium vulgare Paprotka zwyczajna 2020-06-29 03.jpg|40px]]
                                   }}
                                 }}
                               }}
                            |label2=Radiatopses
                            |2={{clade
                              |1=†''[[Biology:Celatheca|Celatheca]]''
                              |2={{clade
                                |1=†''[[Biology:Pertica|Pertica]]''
                                |label2=Lignophytes
                                |2={{clade
                                  |1=†[[Biology:Progymnosperm|Progymnosperm]]s<br />(paraphyletic)
                                  |2=[[Biology:Spermatophyte|Spermatophyte]]s [[File:PinusSylvestris.jpg|30px]]
                                   }}
                                 }}
                               }}
                             }}
                           }}
                         }}
                       }}
                     }}
                   }}
                 }}
               }}
             }}
           }}
         }}
       }}
     }}
   }}
}}
}}

==Nutrient distribution==

[[File:ficusxylem.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|[[Biology:Xylem|Xylem]] elements in the shoot of a fig tree (''Ficus&nbsp;alba''), crushed in hydrochloric acid ]]

Water and [[Earth:Nutrient|nutrient]]s in the form of inorganic solutes are drawn up from the soil by the roots and transported throughout the plant by the [[Biology:Xylem|xylem]]. Organic compounds such as [[Chemistry:Sucrose|sucrose]] produced by [[Earth:Photosynthesis|photosynthesis]] in leaves are distributed by the [[Biology:Phloem|phloem]] [[Biology:Sieve tube element|sieve-tube elements]].

The '''xylem''' consists of [[Biology:Vessel element|vessels]] in [[Biology:Flowering plant|flowering plant]]s and of [[Biology:Tracheid|tracheid]]s in other vascular plants. Xylem cells are dead hard-walled hollow cells arranged to form files of tubes that function in the transport of water. A tracheid cell-wall usually contains the polymer [[Biology:Lignin|lignin]].

The '''phloem''', on the other hand, consists of living cells called sieve-tube members. Between the sieve-tube members are sieve plates, which have pores to allow molecules to pass through. Sieve-tube members lack such organs as [[Biology:Cell nucleus|nuclei]] or [[Biology:Ribosome|ribosome]]s, but cells next to them, the [[Biology:Phloem#companion cells|companion cells]], function to keep the sieve-tube members alive.

===Transpiration===

The most abundant [[Chemistry:Chemical compound|compound]] in all plants, as in all cellular organisms, is [[Chemistry:Water|water]], which has an important structural role and a vital role in plant metabolism. [[Earth:Transpiration|Transpiration]] is the main process of water movement within plant tissues. Plants constantly transpire water through their stomata to the atmosphere and replace that water with soil moisture taken up by their roots. The movement of [[Chemistry:Water|water]] out of the leaf stomata sets up a transpiration pull or tension in the water-column in the xylem vessels or tracheids. The pull is the result of water [[Physics:Surface tension|surface tension]] within the cell walls of the mesophyll cells, from the surfaces of which evaporation takes place when the stomata are open. [[Chemistry:Hydrogen bond|Hydrogen bond]]s exist between water [[Physics:Molecule|molecule]]s, causing them to line up; as the molecules at the top of the plant evaporate, each pulls the next one up to replace it, which in turn pulls on the next one in line. The draw of water upwards may be entirely passive and can be assisted by the movement of water into the roots via [[Physics:Osmosis|osmosis]]. Consequently, transpiration requires the plant to expend very little energy on water movement. Transpiration assists the plant in absorbing nutrients from the soil as soluble salts. Transpiration plays an important role in the absorption of nutrients from the soil as soluble salts are transported along with the water from the soil to the leaves. Plants can adjust their transpiration rate to optimize the balance between water loss and nutrient absorption.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Raven |first1=J. A. |last2=Edwards |first2=D. |date=2001-03-01 |title=Roots: evolutionary origins and biogeochemical significance |url=https://academic.oup.com/jxb/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/jexbot/52.suppl_1.381 |journal=Journal of Experimental Botany |language=en |volume=52 |issue=suppl 1 |pages=381–401 |doi=10.1093/jexbot/52.suppl_1.381 |pmid=11326045 |issn=0022-0957|doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Absorption===

Living root cells passively absorb water in the absence of transpiration pull via [[Physics:Osmosis|osmosis]] creating root pressure. It is possible for there to be no [[Earth:Evapotranspiration|evapotranspiration]] and therefore no pull of water towards the shoots and leaves. This is usually due to high temperatures, high [[Physics:Humidity|humidity]], darkness or drought.{{Citation needed|date=July 2018}}

===Conduction===

Xylem is the water-conducting tissue, and secondary xylem provides the raw material for the forest products industry.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Zhao |first1=Chengsong |last2=Craig |first2=Johanna C. |last3=Petzold |first3=H. Earl |last4=Dickerman |first4=Allan W. |last5=Beers |first5=Eric P. |date=2005-06-01 |title=The Xylem and Phloem Transcriptomes from Secondary Tissues of the Arabidopsis Root-Hypocotyl |journal=Plant Physiology |language=en |volume=138 |issue=2 |pages=803–818 |doi=10.1104/pp.105.060202 |issn=1532-2548 |pmc=1150398 |pmid=15923329}}</ref>Xylem and [[Biology:Phloem|phloem]] tissues each play a part in the conduction processes within plants. Sugars are conducted throughout the plant in the phloem; water and other nutrients through the xylem. Conduction occurs from a source to a sink for each separate nutrient. Sugars are produced in the leaves (a source) by [[Earth:Photosynthesis|photosynthesis]] and transported to the growing shoots and roots (sinks) for use in growth, [[Biology:Cellular respiration|cellular respiration]] or storage. Minerals are absorbed in the roots (a source) and transported to the shoots to allow [[Biology:Cell division|cell division]] and growth.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Taiz |first1              =Lincoln |last2=Zeiger |first2              =Eduardo |author-link2        =Eliezer (Eduardo) Zeiger |chapter             =5, 6, 10
 |title=Plant Physiology |edition             =3 |location            =Sunderland, Massachusetts
 |publisher           =Sinauer Associates |publication-date    =2002
 |page = |isbn = }}
</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Doyle |first=James A. |title=Phylogeny of Vascular Plants |date=1998 |url=https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.29.1.567 |journal=Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics |language=en |volume=29 |issue=1 |pages=567–599 |doi=10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.29.1.567 |issn=0066-4162}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Heijmans |first1=Monique M. P. D. |last2=Arp |first2=Wim J. |last3=Berendse |first3=Frank |date=October 2001 |title=Effects of elevated CO 2 and vascular plants on evapotranspiration in bog vegetation: EVAPOTRANSPIRATION IN BOG VEGETATION |url=http://doi.wiley.com/10.1046/j.1354-1013.2001.00440.x |journal=Global Change Biology |language=en |volume=7 |issue=7 |pages=817–827 |doi=10.1046/j.1354-1013.2001.00440.x|s2cid=83932608 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Biology:Fern ally|Fern allies]]
* [[Biology:Bryophyte|Bryophyte]]s
* [[Biology:Non-vascular plant|Non-vascular plant]]
* [[Biology:Pteridophyte|Pteridophyte]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==

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* {{cite journal |last1=Cantino |first1=Philip D. |last2=Doyle |first2=James A. |last3=Graham |first3=Sean W. |last4=Judd |first4=Walter S. |last5=Olmstead |first5=Richard G. |last6=Soltis |first6=Douglas E. |author-link6=Douglas Soltis |last7=Soltis |first7=Pamela S. |author-link7=Pamela Soltis |last8=Donoghue |first8=Michael J. |author-link8=Michael Donoghue |title=Towards a Phylogenetic Nomenclature of Tracheophyta |journal=Taxon |date=1 August 2007 |volume=56 |issue=3 |pages=822 |doi=10.2307/25065865 |jstor=25065865 |ref=none}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Kenrick |first1=P. |title=The relationships of vascular plants |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |date=29 June 2000 |volume=355 |issue=1398 |pages=847–855 |doi=10.1098/rstb.2000.0619 |pmc=1692788 |pmid=10905613 |ref=none}}
* {{cite book |last1=Pryer |first1=Kathleen M. |last2=Schneider |first2=Harald |last3=Magallon |first3=Susana |title=The radiation of vascular plants |pages=138–153 |url=http://pryerlab.biology.duke.edu/uploads/media_items/pryer-et-al-tol-2004.original.pdf |ref=none}}, in {{harvtxt |Cracraft |Donoghue |2004}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* [https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/68161/higher-plants-or-vascular-plants "Higher plants" or "vascular plants"?]

{{Plant classification}}
{{Botany}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q27133}}

[[Category:Plants]]

{{Sourceattribution|Vascular plant}}