When is a plant/tree dead?

Question

Is a plant/tree dead as soon as you remove it from it's roots, or is it still considered living for some time, until it dries out? What constitutes "life" in a plant/tree? Roots, photosynthesis, etc?

Answer 1

Here's a condensed answer.

It's dead when all processes of life cease. That includes photosynthesis, cell respiration, reproduction, and growth.

When it's uprooted it's still alive for awhile. The plant eventually dehydrates and/or starves like an animal would were we removed from our food and water sources.

Answer 2

When you remove or pull a plant from the ground or soil, it is 100% possibility that the plant will die. Uprooting will impede absorption of water and minerals necessary for the metabolism of the plant especially photosynthesis . The main source of water and nutrients for plants is the soil. Water is a major reactant for photosynthesis and minerals are major catalysts for many enzymatic processes. Although not immediately the plant will die, a plant may live for a short time due to reserved food materials or water inside the plants body. As soon as these resources within the plant are all already used, the plant will no longer live. The cell will shrink, (no more water). Drying of leaves is the major sign. Since the leaves is no longer functional, photosynthesis will not occur, no more food for the plant.

Answer 3

The plant/tree considered dead when the roots are uprooted in the soil, because as plants removed the metabolic processes happened in the plants/trees. The capacity of the soil to absorb waters and minerals was removed that can caused of dead. This component(waters and minerals) are important in metabolic processes of plants. When roots are removed the water that absorbed in the soil was being lack, even the stored water within the plants are used it wilts because of other metabolic processes happen in the plants or trees. Each parts have an important role for making food, respire, anchorage, transpires and transpiration. Plant/tree was constitute life when metabolic process was well functions. Also considered that when we removed the roots we triggers the capacity to absorb those minerals and waters coming from the soil which may results of drying and wilting of plants/tree.

Answer 4

I have seen several trees, of different genus, be dang near completely uprooted, just a little left attached to the ground, and they still lived. As a matter of fact, I just got through cutting up a tree for firewood that had fallen flat down to the ground two years ago, and just died only a month ago this summer. AND, as I got down past the middle of the tree, I found that some of the branches at the bottom of the tree, were still showing green leaves where the other ones had turned a dark brown and shriveled up from dying. AND, one of those "branches" was becoming a tree of it's own, growing up 15 feet from the trunk of the "dead" tree. So, I quit cutting the tree about ten feet from the "new" tree. I'd love to see how long it continues to grow, and if it dies, I have another tree to cut up for even more firewood. I also have seen a cedar tree fall completely over and become almost totally uprooted, so I began to cut it up for firewood a couple of years ago. Then, after only about 6 feet of cutting from the "top" of the fallen tree, I quit, for whatever reasons I can't remember today, and today, as we pass the tree as we go down our LONNNNNGGGGGGGGGG driveway, I can still see that fallen tree alongside our driveway, alive as ever. So, to me, a tree ain't dead till it's DEAADDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!! All the way down. And we make ABSOLUTELY SURE it's dead, or not worth having as a tree growing along the ground. God Bless you.

Answer 5

When the cells that it is made of are not alive anymore (plant will have no green on it)