Meristematic Tissues
Meristematic tissues are composed of immature or undifferentiated cells without intercellular spaces. The cells may be rounded, oval or polygonal; always living and thin-walled. Each cell has abundant cytoplasm and a prominent nucleus in it. Vacuoles may be small or absent.
Types of Meristematic Tissues
- Apical Meristem
- Intercalary Meristem
- Lateral Meristem
Apical Meristem
- Root tip and shoot tip
- Growth in length of plants and their branches
Intercalary Meristem
- At the bases of leaves or at the bases of internodes
- Internodal growth, in monocots growth of leaf lamina in grasses
Lateral Meristem
- Cambium between xylem and phloem and cork; cambium in the cortex of dicot plants
- Growth in thickness of the plant body (secondary growth)
