From an early age we are taught that plants make food from sunlight. It is explained that plants have roots in the soil, which take up all the minerals and water they need. Later, we learn the critical role of the green pigment chlorophyll. Many textbooks lump all plants together when they cover photoautotrophs – self-feeding organisms that use light as their source of energy.
But some plants do not obey these rules. Some, like us, are chemoheterotrophs – relying on chemical reactions to provide their source of energy. Some lack roots. Some lack the ability to make chlorophyll. This is why a few informed textbook authors add the word ‘green’ to plants when considering energy transfer.
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