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I have searched the internet far and wide for information on these plants. Google and Teoma search engines have brought up little but kids learning centers and grower sites. Is there any sites that contain cold hard data and facts on these plants? Even if it's just for Cucurbita Maxima plants. Or should I be looking for books instead? Well my main question is are AGs any of the above type plants? I'm sure someone would know. Thank you very much for the help!

10/13/2005 4:54:56 PM

Connecticut

Kyle- Here are the three types quickly explained...

CAM plants are desert plants, and are found in areas that will not freeze. Basically to reduce water loss the plants open their stomata at night to take in CO2 and store it as malic acid to be used during the day.

C4 pathway is used by plants in climates with less extremes and separated the C4 pathway and the Calvin cycle

C3 pathway the most common carbon fixation pathway. The plant relies solely on the Calvin cycle to fix carbon and is adapted to cold environments.

Source of information:
Graham, Linda E. Et al. (2006). Plant Biology second edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall

10/13/2005 6:35:22 PM

Phoenix, AZ

Deeyam,

That is some knowledge right there! Please don't tell me you learned that just by reading Matt. If you did, you scare me!

10/14/2005 12:41:59 AM

[email protected]

AGs are C3 plants.

Let me throw some plain English on this thread in a way folks might understand. I'll use turf & ornamentals as the "for instance" since it's every day common & what I do for a living. LOL

C4 - Warm season monocots like Palm Trees, St. Augustine & Bermuda grass that grow in places like Florida. They handle drought & heat very well.

C3 - Cool Season plants like Kentucky Bluegrass & Cucurbits. These wilt in heat & drought.

CAM - Cactus

I also found this on the web:

Textbook: Air Pollution, People and Plants by Krupa

Chapter 5: Air Pollution and Global Climate Change

Vegetation Responses:

I. There are three types of terrestrial plants: C3, C4 and CAM (Crassulacean Acid Metabolism)

C3 plants: Plants that use rubisco (Ribulosebiphosphate carboxylase) to make a three-carbon compound as the first stable product of carbon fixation. These plants may lose up to 50% of their recently fixed carbon through photorespiration. More than 95% of earth's plant species can be characterized as C3 plants.

continued

10/14/2005 5:54:06 AM

[email protected]

C4 plants: Plants that use PEP (phosphoenol pyruvate) carboxylase during initial carbon fixation to make a four-carbon compound that is subsequently transferred to specialized cells where carbon dioxide is internally released and refixed using rubisco. This phenomenon greatly reduces carbon loss by photorespiration, and in many cases, it completely inhibits it. Less than 1% of earth's plant species can be characterized as C4 plants.

CAM plants: Plants that close their stomata during the day to reduce water loss and open them at night for carbon uptake. PEP carboxylase nocturnally fixes carbon into a four-carbon compound that is accumulated within vacuoles. During the day, this compound internally releases carbon dioxide, which is then re-fixed using rubisco. This phenomenon also effectively inhibits carbon loss by photorespiration. Only about 3 to 4% of earth's plant species can be characterized as CAM plants. Examples include – Cacti, Pineapple.

http://www.plpa.agri.umn.edu/~sagark/exams.html

10/14/2005 5:54:35 AM

Appalachian Mtns.

bam!

10/14/2005 6:53:43 AM

YES! Thank you very much Tremor! That was very helpful! You answered my question and even more, haha! Thanks again!

10/14/2005 10:43:05 AM