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NEETBiologyMorphology of Flowering PlantsClass 11

How do weak-stemmed climbers like peas and grapevines manage to grow upward?

Their stems can't stand on their own, so parts are modified into tendrils — slender, sensitive structures that coil around any support they touch (a response called thigmotropism).

Their stems can't stand on their own, so parts are modified into tendrils — slender, sensitive structures that coil around any support they touch (a response called thigmotropism). By gripping fences, twigs or trellises, the climber is held up and its leaves reach sunlight without investing in a thick woody trunk. Depending on the plant, the tendril is a modified stem or leaf.

Key point

Tendrils are modified organs that coil around supports, holding up weak-stemmed climbers.

Common mistake

thinking climbers have strong self-supporting stems.

Memory tip

weak stem → tendrils grip a support to climb toward light.

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