Question

Why is it not possible to demonstrate respiration in green plants?

Answer 1

Respiration involves the utilization of reserved organic substances within the organisms to produce energy in order to carry out biological processes. Respiration occurs in all living organisms. But it can be either aerobic or anaerobic, depending on the presence or absence of oxygen respectively.

Complete answer:
Apart from photosynthesis that synthesize reserve food materials, respiration also occurs In green plants. While photosynthesis uses up carbon dioxide and releases oxygen, respiration utilizes oxygen and releases carbon dioxide. Thus the gases released by the plants during each process can be utilized again by the plants during the other process. Thus it is hard or not possible to demonstrate the process of respiration in green plants, since both these processes take place simultaneously in green plants. Respiration is the process that takes place round the clock in plants, while photosynthesis takes place only during the presence of sunlight, thus respiration during night can be a bit more evident than respiration during day time.

Note:
There are multiple differences between photosynthesis and respiration. Photosynthesis takes place within the cell organelles known as chloroplasts, whereas respiration takes place within the mitochondria. Photosynthesis uses up energy in the form of ATP to produce the starch molecules, while respiration produces ATP molecules, which can be utilized for the biological processes. Respiration occurs in all the living organisms, whereas photosynthesis is particular to only green plants that possess chloroplasts. Apart from aerobic respiration, anaerobic respiration occurs in lower animals such as single celled yeast. The end products for this process are different from that of aerobic respiration.