metaxylem
/ˌmɛtəˈzaɪləm/
noun
- The part of the xylem (water-conducting tissue) in a plant that develops after the plant has finished growing in length, typically having wider vessels than the earlier-formed protoxylem.
- In the stem of a sunflower, metaxylem forms after the plant stops elongating.
- The metaxylem vessels are larger and more efficient at transporting water than those of the protoxylem.
- Botany students examined cross-sections to identify the metaxylem under the microscope.