Gymnosperm

Gymnosperms are plants that produce naked seeds. We say they are naked because the seeds are not surrounded by an ovary. When seeds are enclosed by an ovary, which we generally refer to as fruit, the plant is classified as an angiosperm.

Various gymnosperms (Public Domain)

Angio- or gymno-?

There are several differences between angiosperm and gymnosperm:

• Angiosperms, or flowering plants, produce flowers and fruits, whereas gymnosperms do not.
• Angiosperms have a trachea-like structure in the xylem, called a vessel element. Gymnosperms do not have that structure. 
• Angiosperms and gymnosperm are both vascular plants. They have xylem, which are used to help water rise up into the plant from the roots. They have phloem which allow sugar produced via photosynthesis to flow down throughout the plant. The walls of a gymnosperm’s phloem, however, is riddled with holes. This sieve element allows nutrients to move to neighboring cells.

Another difference between angiosperm and gymnosperm is the idea of softwood versus hardwood. Those terms don’t exclusively refer to the density of the wood. It actually points out that they are two entirely different types of plants. Hardwoods are angiosperms, while softwoods are gymnosperms.

Types of gymnosperm

Gymnosperm seeds, unlike angiosperm, develop on top of leaves or scales. Those scales often turn into cones. There are four existing types of gymnosperm:

• conifers - cypresses and pines
• cycads - Sago palm
• Ginkgo
• gnetophytes

Nutty gymnosperms

You may have heard of pine nuts and gingko nuts, but neither one is actually a nut. True nuts are hard-shelled, inedible pods that hold both the fruit and the seed of a plant. The pod, or shell, of a nut is made from the ovary wall, which hardens over time. Hazelnuts, chestnuts, and acorns are true nuts. So are kola nuts.

A nut is not a nut when it is a fruit seed. Pine nuts and ginkgo nuts are not true nuts.

While most of the plants in your garden are probably angiosperms, you just might have a gymnosperm or two in the mix!