Food is extremely important for all living organisms. As we all know that some of the components of food are carbohydrates, fats, proteins including vitamins as well as minerals. These are the 5 components of food that we define as nutrients. These nutrients are important for all living beings including plants, animals as well as humans. Food is required by all living organisms. Food can be synthesized by all the plants. But this is not possible for animals as well as human beings. Instead, they are dependent on plants or animals, from pants they get the regular food that they eat. For example – pulses, lentils, millets, roots or shoots of some plants are eaten as food by the people. The plant provides all the essential nutrients are needed for human survival except the ones that we gain from animal sources such as meat, chicken including eggs as well as salmon, and many more.
The mode of nutrition that plant takes –
Only plants are the organisms that can make their own food using things such as – carbon – dioxide including water as well as minerals. In their surroundings, the raw material is already present.  Different organisms build their bodies by the nutrients. The nutrients help the plants to build, regrow and heal the damaged parts of their body and provide energy to make the process of life. The mode of making food by an organism is known as nutrition. The mode by which the organism takes in nutrition by making the food themselves from a few substances is called the autotrophic mode of nutrition (auto refers to the word self and trophy means nourishment). This is the reason, by plants are called as autotrophs. The animals including human beings as well as a few more organism depend on other sources of food are known as heterotrophs (where hetero means other)
The process by which the plants make their food – photosynthesis
Leaves are known as the food factories of the plant. This is the reason, why it is necessary for the raw material to reach the leaf. The minerals that are present in the soil are absorbed by the roots and then transported to the leaf to make out the process of photosynthesis. The carbon – dioxide present in the air is consumed by the small pores present in the leaf. These pores are known as stomata. The vessels that look like pipes in the leaves form the work of transportation of water as well as minerals from the soil to the leaves. They form a path continuously from the roots system to the shoot system. They are known as vessels. The green pigment that is present in the leaves is known as chlorophyll. They are needed to capture the energy of sunlight. The sun energy is important as it is used to prepare food from carbon – dioxide, and water as the preparation is done under the presence, this process is known as photosynthesis (where the word photo refers to light and synthesis means to mix or combined. Now we know that chlorophyll is needed to make the process of photosynthesis. Now we know that the sun is the ultimate source of energy.
Not only in leaves but in other green plants also photosynthesis takes place. There are spines or thorns in a few plants in the desert. The thorny plants store water in their leaves but not in their roots. Life would not have been possible on earth without the process of photosynthesis. During the process of photosynthesis, chlorophyll contains the cells. Leaves in the presence of sunlight, using carbon – dioxide, and water as well as minerals to synthesize carbohydrates. While the process of photosynthesis the plants release oxygen that is mandatory for us to breathe. At night, the plants take in oxygen and release carbon – dioxide that is harmful to us. And this is so because we are told not to be seated under a plant or a tree at night.
The occurrence of Photosynthesis indicates the starch that is present in the leaves. Starch is also a kind of carbohydrate. You might have seen some kind of slimy and patchy structures that are present in stagnant water bodies or water that is dirty as well as sometimes it grows in muddy holes filled with water. This kind of green organism is known as algae. Algae also contain chlorophyll that makes its color green. As they are green in color they can make out the process of photosynthesis. Some plants are also insectivorous. As they eat or depend on insects such as bugs or bees or pests. They are consumed by the plant as their source of food. Some examples of insectivorous plants can be venus fly trap, as well as the pitcher plant.
The green plants are called autotrophs as they can easily synthesis their own food. The food that is synthesized by the plants is known as nutrition.
