Differences+between+Monocot+and+Dicot+Plants

Monocot vs Dicot **Number of cotyledons** -- The number of cotyledons found in the embryo is the actual basis for distinguishing the two classes of angiosperms, and is the source of the names Monocotyledonae ("one cotyledon") and Dicotyledonae ("two cotyledons"). The **cotyledons** are the "seed leaves" produced by the embryo. They serve to absorb nutrients packaged in the seed, until the seedling is able to produce its first true leaves and begin photosynthesis.
 * **Difference** || **Monocot** || **Dicot** ||
 * **Name** || Monocotyledon || Dicotyledon ||
 * **Seeds** || Embryo with single cotyledon || Embryo with two cotyledons ||
 * **Pollen** || Pollen with single furrow or pore || Pollen with three furrows or pores ||
 * **Flower Parts** || Flower parts in multiples of three || Flower parts in multiples of four or five ||
 * **Leaf Veins** || Major leaf veins parallel || Major leaf veins reticulated/netted ||
 * **Stem** || Stem vascular bundles scattered || Stem vascular bundles in a ring ||
 * **Roots** || Roots are adventitious (roots longer, deeper/tap-like, and less branchy) || Roots develop from radicle (roots are more branchy and spread out) ||
 * **Growth** || Secondary growth absent || Secondary growth often present ||
 * || [[image:webkit-fake-url://3BA27623-DA2D-43BC-A9E9-5D15C47C1CA3/image.tiff]] || [[image:http://c1.wikicdn.com/i/editor/insert_table.gif width="1"]] [[image:webkit-fake-url://79C985D6-32D2-4BBD-A354-420A5C487D9E/image.tiff]] ||

**Pollen structure** -- The first angiosperms had pollen with a single furrow or pore through the outer layer (**monosulcate**). This feature is retained in the monocots, but most dicots are descended from a plant which developed three furrows or pores in its pollen (**triporate**).

**Number of flower parts** -- If you count the number of petals, stamens, or other floral parts, you will find that monocot flowers tend to have a number of parts that is divisible by three, usually three or six. Dicot flowers on the other hand, tend to have parts in multiples of four or five (four, five, ten, etc.). This character is not always reliable, however, and is not easy to use in some flowers with reduced or numerous parts.

**Leaf veins** -- In monocots, there are usually a number of major leaf veins which run parallel the length of the leaf; in dicots, there are usually numerous auxillary veins which reticulate between the major ones. As with the number of floral parts, this character is not always reliable, as there are many monocots with reticulate venation, notably the aroids and Dioscoreales.

**Stem vascular arrangement** -- Vascular tissue occurs in long strands called **vascular bundles**. These bundles are arranged within the stem of dicots to form a cylinder, appearing as a ring of spots when you cut across the stem. In monocots, these bundles appear scattered through the stem, with more of the bundles located toward the stem periphery than in the center. This arrangement is unique to monocots and some of their closest relatives among the dicots.

**Root development** -- In most dicots (and in most seed plants) the root develops from the lower end of the embryo, from a region known as the **radicle**. The radicle gives rise to an **apical meristem** which continues to produce root tissue for much of the plant's life. By contrast, the radicle aborts in monocots, and new roots arise **adventitiously** from nodes in the stem. These roots may be called prop roots when they are clustered near the bottom of the stem.

**Secondary growth** -- Most seed plants increase their diameter through secondary growth, producing wood and bark. Monocots (and some dicots) have lost this ability, and so do not produce wood. Some monocots can produce a substitute however, as in the palms and agaves.



Teo Yi Yun (28) & Jessica Yip (31)