Question:

Identify the incorrect statement.

Updated On: Nov 14, 2025

Heart wood does not conduct water but gives mechanical support
Sapwood is involved in conduction of water and minerals from root to leaf
Sapwood is the innermost secondary xylem and is lighter in colour
Due to deposition of tannins, resins, oils etc., heart wood is dark in colour

Show Solution

Verified By Collegedunia

The Correct Option is C

Solution and Explanation

To determine the incorrect statement related to sapwood and heartwood, let's understand these terms in the context of tree anatomy:

Heartwood: Heartwood is the central, thicker part of a tree trunk. It is older, non-living wood that no longer participates in the conduction of water; its primary function is to provide structural support. Its dark color is due to the deposition of tannins, oils, resins, and other substances that help resist decay. Thus, the statement "Heart wood does not conduct water but gives mechanical support" is correct.
Sapwood: Sapwood is the outer, younger, living part of the wood that actively conducts water and minerals from the roots to the rest of the tree. It is typically lighter in color compared to heartwood. It lies outside the heartwood and is positioned nearer to the bark.

Now, let's evaluate the given options:

The option stating "Heart wood does not conduct water but gives mechanical support" is correct because heartwood provides mechanical support but does not conduct water.
The option "Sapwood is involved in conduction of water and minerals from root to leaf" is also correct as sapwood is actively involved in transporting water and nutrients.
The option "Sapwood is the innermost secondary xylem and is lighter in colour" is incorrect. Sapwood is not the innermost but the outermost part of the secondary xylem. It is correct that sapwood is lighter in color.
The statement "Due to deposition of tannins, resins, oils etc., heart wood is dark in colour" is correct since these substances are what give heartwood its darker coloration.

Therefore, the statement "Sapwood is the innermost secondary xylem and is lighter in colour" is the incorrect one as it inaccurately describes the position of sapwood.

Was this answer helpful?

Top NEET Biology Questions

	Column I		Column II
1.	Calotropis	p.	Invertebrates
2.	Pisaster	q.	Distasteful
3.	Monarch butterfly	r.	Cryptically colored
4.	Frogs	s.	Cardioglycoside

Match Column I and Column I

Column I		Column II
1	Narrowly utilitarian argument	p	Conserving biodiversity for major ecosystem services
2	Broadly utilitarian argument	q	Every species has an intrinsic value and moral duty to pass our biological legacy in good order to future generation.
3	Ethical argument	r	Receiving benefits like food, medicine & industrial products.

View Solution

View More Questions

Concepts Used:

Anatomy of Dicotyledonous and Monocotyledonous Plants

Dicot Root:

Dicot plants have the taproot system.
The outermost layer is called the epidermis. The epidermal cells sometimes project out which appear as the root hairs.
The epidermis is followed by the multi-layered cortex, loosely made of the parenchyma cells with intercellular spaces.
The inner layer of the cortex is called endodermis, which is tightly packed by the barrel shaped-cells.
Endodermis is followed by pericycle, which are a few layers of thick-walled parenchyma cells.
In dicots, the central pith is not distinct.
There are two to four xylem and phloem.
The xylem and phloem are remarked by a layer of parenchymatous cells known as conjunctive tissue.

Monocot Root:

Monocot roots do not show much difference in the anatomy from that of the dicot roots.

Monocot plants possess an adventitious root system.
As in the dicots, the epidermis forms the outermost layer, followed by cortex, pericycle, endodermis, vascular bundles (xylem and phloem) and pith (random order).
Pith is conspicuous and large.
The number of xylem in a monocot is six or more.
Secondary growth is not seen in the monocot plants.