Title: The Life Cycle of Plants: Alternation of Generations | SparkNotes
Headings: The Life Cycle of Plants
The Life Cycle of Plants
Bryophyte Generations
Tracheophyte Generations

Content: The way in which the alternation of generations occurs in plants depends on the type of plant. In bryophytes (mosses and liverworts), the dominant generation is haploid, so that the gametophyte comprises what we think of as the main plant. The opposite is true for tracheophytes (vascular plants), in which the diploid generation is dominant and the sporophyte comprises the main plant. Bryophyte Generations
Bryophytes are nonvascularized plants that are still dependent on a moist environment for survival (see Plant Classification, Bryophytes . Like all plants, the bryophyte life cycle goes through both haploid (gametophyte) and diploid (sporophyte) stages. The gametophyte comprises the main plant (the green moss or liverwort), while the diploid sporophyte is much smaller and is attached to the gametophyte. The haploid stage, in which a multicellular haploid gametophyte develops from a spore and produces haploid gametes, is the dominant stage in the bryophyte life cycle. The mature gametophyte produces both male and female gametes, which join to form a diploid zygote. The zygote develops into the diploid sporophyte, which extends from the gametophyte and produces haploid spores through meiosis. Once the spores germinate, they produce new gametophyte plants and the cycle continues.