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xylem
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Images & Videos
xylem tissue xylem tracheids root xylem Illustration of a tree trunk cross-section with labeled features including outer and inner bark, sapwood, heartwood, pith, and growth rings, plus radial, tangential, and transverse surfaces. xylem; Scots pine stem cross section A labeled diagram of a typical root cross section shows layers from the outside inward: root hairs, epidermis, cortex, endodermis, pericycle, and a central cylinder containing primary xylem and primary phloem. Diagram showing a tree trunk cross-section with labeled layers: bark, cork, phloem, cambium, xylem, sapwood, and heartwood. Insets A and B illustrate an enlarged xylem vessel for upward water movement and a mature sieve element for downward sugar transport in angiosperms. Diagram showing various fern leaf types, including simple, once-divided, falsely dichotomous, and palmate leaves, examples of leaf venation patterns, and cross-sections of petioles illustrating internal vascular arrangements. Diagram comparing xylem and phloem cells, showing labeled illustrations of a vessel member, tracheids, and fiber for xylem on the left, and a sieve element, companion cell, sieve plate, sieve areas, and fiber for phloem on the right.

xylem: References & Edit History

Article Contributors

Primary Contributors

  • Melissa Petruzzello
    Melissa Petruzzello (she/her) is Assistant Managing Editor and covers plants, algae, fungi, insects, spiders, renewable energy and environmental engineering. She also handles certain topics in Christianity, notably Protestant history and churches. 
  • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
    Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

Other Encyclopedia Britannica Contributors

Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Modified link of Web site: Biology LibreTexts - Transport of Water and Solutes in Plants - Movement of Water and Minerals in the Xylem. Nov 07, 2026
Add new Web site: Frontiers - Frontiers in Plant Science - The xylem as battleground for plant hosts and vascular wilt pathogens. Mar 01, 2025
Add new Web site: The University of Utah - School of Biological Sciences - Sperry Lab - Functional and ecological xylem anatomy (PDF). Dec 31, 2024
Add new Web site: University of Mosul - Xylem. Oct 01, 2024
Add new Web site: Mustansiriyah University - Xylem. Aug 09, 2024
Add new Web site: Georgia Tech Biological Sciences - Organismal Biology - Water Transport in Plants: Xylem. Jun 14, 2024
Add new Web site: University of California, Davis - McElrone USDA-ARS Plant Physiology Lab - Functional Status of Xylem Through Time. Mar 14, 2024
Add new Web site: The University of Utah - School of Life Sciences - Sperry Lab - Evolution of Water Transport and Xylem Structure. Jan 19, 2024
Add new Web site: The University of Utah - School of Life Sciences - Sperry Lab - Evolution of Water Transport and Xylem Structure. Jan 19, 2024
Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - Biomechanical Model of the Xylem Vessels in Vascular Plants. Nov 23, 2023
Add new Web site: Biology LibreTexts - Transport of Water and Solutes in Plants - Movement of Water and Minerals in the Xylem. Oct 21, 2022
Add new Web site: Khan Academy - Xylem and transpiration. Feb 18, 2022
Corrected display issue. Feb 11, 2020
Add new Web site: Professional Development Service for Teachers - Vascular Tissue in Plants - Xylem. Oct 17, 2016
Media added. Aug 17, 2016
Add new Web site: University of Kentucky - Xylem. Oct 29, 2015
Added a description of tracheids and vessel members. Jan 13, 2015
Added image of cross section of a root. Aug 19, 2010
Added new Web site: Biology4kids - Xylem and Phloem. Apr 09, 2008
Added new Web site: British Broadcasting Corporation - Plant Transport System. Apr 08, 2008
Article added to new online database. Jul 20, 1998
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