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Cork cambium is a tissue found in woody plants as part of the periderm.
Cork cambium is one of the plant's meristems - the series of tissues consisting of embryonic (incompletely differentiated) cells from which the plant grows. It is one of the many layers of bark, between the cork and primary phloem. The function of cork cambium is to produce the cork, a tough protective material.
Synonyms for cork cambium are bark cambium, pericambium or phellogen. Phellogen is defined as the meristematic cell layer responsible for the development of the periderm. Cells that grow inwards from the phellogen are termed phelloderm, and cells that develops outwards are termed phellem (note similarity with vascular cambium). The periderm thus consist of three different layers;
- phelloderm,
- phellogen (cork cambium) and
- phellem.
Growth and development of cork cambium is very variable between diffent species, and also highly dependent on age, growth conditions etc. as can be observed from the different surfaces of bark; smooth, fissured, tesselated, scaly, flaking off etc.
See also
References
- Junikka, L. (1994) Macroscopic bark terminology. IAWA Journal 15(1): 3-45
- Trockenbrodt, M. (1990) Survey and discussion of the terminology used in bark anatomy. IAWA Bulletin, New Series 11: 141-166.
"Cork cambium"