 Structural axis of a vascular plant |
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant, the other being the root. It supports leaves, flowers and fruits, transports water and dissolved substances between the roots and the shoots in the xylem and phloem, engages in photosynthesis, stores nutrients, and produces new living tissue.1 The stem can also be called the culm, halm, haulm, stalk, or thyrsus. The woody stem of a tree is known as a trunk.
This article is about the stem part of a plant. For the use of stem node in phylogenetics and cladistics, see Phylogenetic nomenclature.
