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Ragweed pith
Primary pit fields
Primary pit fields
Wall, face view
Nucleate cells
Compact parenchyma
Sclerenchyma
Intercellular spaces
Leaf, xs
Chlorenchyma
Shoot tip, ls
Apical meristem
Vascular cambium
Secretory duct
Resin canal
Clusia duct
Root cortex
Leaf aerenchyma
Air chambers
Air chambers
Aerenchyma, Acorus
Stellate cells
Epidermis
Endodermis
Phloem, ls
Phloem, xs
Transfer cells
Bean cotyledon
Acorn, starch
Potato starch
Ice plant cell
Tannin cell
Small cells

Fig. 3.1-5. Transverse section of rhizome of blue cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides in the barberry family) These parenchyma cells are somewhat unusual in that many of them in the section have nuclei. Most living parenchyma cells do have nuclei, of course, but usually the cells are so large compared to the small size of the nuclei that a thin slice of tissue rarely catches many nuclei – the nuclei of most cells are cut away so the cells appear to be nonnucleate. The large number of nuclei here is due to the cells being somewhat small for parenchyma cells, and the section is rather thick (the section is so thick that the nucleus in the upper right hand corner is out of the plane of focus – in a very thin section, it would have been cut away). These cells have abundant gray contents but are not as full as they appear – again, because the section is thick, we are seeing some contents along the front or back wall in most cells. Each cell does have a large central vacuole, but because the vacuoles are colorless, they do not stand out visibly compared to the gray cytoplasm that lies either in front of or behind them.