Plant Tissues - Meristematic and Permanent MCQs

Q1. A gardener notices her bean seedling getting taller every morning even though no new branches appear; which kind of tissue is responsible for this continuous increase in height?

• A.Cork
• B.Sclerenchyma
• C.Permanent tissue
• D.Meristematic tissue

Answer: D. Meristematic tissue

Growth in height comes from cells that keep dividing. Only meristematic tissue divides actively, so it is responsible for the seedling getting taller.

Q2. Under the microscope a student sees a patch of tiny, tightly packed cells with thin walls, dense cytoplasm and large nuclei but almost no vacuole; what is this patch most likely to be?

• A.A meristem
• B.Mature parenchyma
• C.Sclerenchyma fibres
• D.Cork tissue

Answer: A. A meristem

Small isodiametric cells with thin walls, dense cytoplasm, prominent nuclei and scanty vacuoles are the textbook features of dividing meristematic cells.

Q3. While trimming a hedge a worker keeps cutting the growing tips, yet the bushes refuse to grow much taller afterwards; removing which tissue explains this stunted upward growth?

• A.The cork cambium
• B.The phloem
• C.The apical meristem at the shoot tips
• D.The lateral meristem

Answer: C. The apical meristem at the shoot tips

Increase in length is driven by the apical meristem located at shoot and root tips. Repeatedly cutting the tips removes this tissue, so the plant cannot grow taller.