15 Major Difference between Primary and Secondary Meristem with Table

What is the difference between primary and secondary meristem?

Plants experience growth in the shoot and root region. These regions tend to contain meristem tissues. They contain active dividing cells whose main function is to produce new cells.

The core difference between primary and secondary meristem is that the primary meristem is derived from the promeristem while the secondary meristem is derived from permanent tissues.

Difference between Primary and Secondary Meristem

What Is a Primary Meristem?

Primary meristem occurs at the beginning and it is derived from embryonic cells. It is responsible for giving rise to primary tissues that promote primary growth.

The cells present in the primary meristem are responsible for facilitating growth in length since they are isodiametric.

What Is a Secondary Meristem?

Secondary meristem occurs later in the life of the plant and it is derived from permanent tissues.it is responsible for giving rise to secondary tissues that enhance secondary growth.

Secondary meristem help to foster thickness since it has elongated cells. The cells tend to have several vacuoles.

Comparison Chart: Primary Meristem Vs Secondary Meristem

Basic Terms	Primary Meristem	Secondary Meristem
Meaning	Refers to meristem responsible for primary growth	Refers to meristem responsible for secondary growth
Origin	Embryonic tissues	Permanent tissues
Formation	Occur at the beginning	Occur later in the life of the plant
Morphology of Cells	Cells tend to be isodiametric	Cells have either elongated, barrel-shaped or rectangular-shaped
Vacuoles	Lack vacuoles	Have several vacuoles
Occurrence	Occur in the apical region	Occur in the lateral region
Role	It is responsible for primary growth	It is responsible for secondary growth
Type of Growth	Longitudinal growth which increases the length	Lateral growth which increases the width
Tissue type	Primary tissues	Secondary tissues
Example	Protoderm, procambium, and ground meristem	Vascular cambium and cork cambium

Core Differences between Primary and Secondary Meristem In Point Form

Primary meristem support primary growth while secondary meristem support secondary growth
Primary meristem originate from embryonic tissues while secondary growth originates from permanent tissue
Primary meristem occurs at the beginning while secondary meristem later in the life of the plant
The cells of primary meristem are isodiametric while those of secondary meristem are either elongated, barrel-shaped, or rectangular-shaped.
Primary meristem tend to lack vacuoles while secondary meristem have several vacuoles
Primary meristem occurs in the apical region while secondary meristem occurs in the lateral region of the plant
Primary meristem causes primary growth which increases plant length while secondary meristem cause secondary growth which increases plant width
Primary meristem have primary tissues while secondary meristem have permanent tissues
Primary meristem enhance longitudinal growth while secondary meristem enhance the lateral type of growth
Examples of primary meristem are protoderm, procambium, and ground meristem while examples of secondary meristem are vascular cambium and cork cambium.

Similarities between Primary and Secondary Meristem

Both experience active dividing cells
Both are parenchymatous cells
Both contain a prominent nucleus with granular cytoplasm
Both are metabolically active
Both are undifferentiated cells
Both cells are closely packed without intracellular spaces

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Comparison Video

Summary

The primary meristem is found in the apex region where primary growth is essential while secondary meristem is found in the lateral region where secondary growth tends to happen.