Bryophytes Characteristics of lower plants Bryophytes Mosses, liverworts, and hornworts comprise the division Bryophyta or bryophytes. They possess a waxy cuticle and gametangia where the gametes develop. The zygote develops into the sporophyte within the protection of the archegonium.
Bryophytes thus prefer moist and shaded habitats where a thin film of water is available.
Water is distributed through the plant body by diffusion, capillary action, and cytoplasmic streaming, all of which are slow. Mosses Moss gametophytes have leaves which are arranged in a radially symmetrical form around a stem. They grow together in a mat which helps each individual stand up and helps retain water. The base of the plant is elongated cells call rhizoids, and the top of the plant has organs which resemble leaves and stems. Although lacking vascular tissue these are not true leaves or stems, the same names are used to refer to the organs.