Bark vs. Stem — What's the Difference?
By Fiza Rafique & Maham Liaqat — Updated on April 2, 2024
Bark is the protective outer layer of a tree's stem, while the stem is the main structural support, conducting water and nutrients.
Difference Between Bark and Stem
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
Bark serves as a protective outer covering for the stem of a tree, shielding it from damage and disease, whereas the stem, including both trunk and branches in trees, functions as the main support system for the plant, facilitating the transport of water, nutrients, and photosynthates throughout the organism.
While bark is comprised of several layers including the outermost periderm and the inner phloem, contributing to its protective and nutrient-transport roles, the stem encompasses the entire central structure of a tree or plant, including both woody and soft tissues, and is responsible for growth and structural integrity.
Bark's development is a continuous process of replacing outer layers as they age and get damaged, providing a durable barrier against external threats. In contrast, the stem grows in length and girth through the activities of the apical and lateral meristems, respectively, adapting over time to support the plant's increasing size and weight.
The bark's texture, thickness, and composition vary widely among different species, reflecting adaptations to their environments, such as fire resistance or water conservation. Meanwhile, the stem's structure, including its arrangement of vascular tissues, differs across plant types (e.g., monocots vs. dicots), influencing its flexibility, strength, and efficiency in resource transport.
Bark can also serve secondary functions, such as storage of carbohydrates and synthesis of secondary metabolites beneficial for defense. On the other hand, the stem's role extends beyond support and transport, also including storage in some plants and, in cases of modified stems like tubers, reproduction.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
The outer protective layer of a tree's stem.
The main structural support of a plant, conducting water and nutrients.
Function
Protection against physical damage and disease; nutrient transport.
Support, nutrient and water transport; growth.
Composition
Outer periderm, inner phloem.
Vascular tissues (xylem and phloem), meristems.
Growth
Replaces outer layers as they age.
Grows in length and girth through meristem activity.
Variability
Texture and thickness vary by species.
Structure varies between plant types (e.g., monocots vs. dicots).
Additional Roles
May store carbohydrates; synthesis of defense compounds.
Can include storage and, in modified forms, reproduction.
Compare with Definitions
Bark
Provides protection and participates in nutrient transport.
Tree bark can be thick to protect against harsh weather.
Stem
The main body of a plant, supporting leaves, flowers, and fruits.
The stem of a sunflower can grow to be several feet tall.
Bark
The outer covering of the stem and roots of woody plants.
The bark of the birch tree is distinctively white and peels easily.
Stem
Contains the vascular system for transporting water and nutrients.
Water is drawn up from the roots to the leaves through the stem's xylem.
Bark
Serves as a habitat and food source for various organisms.
Bark beetles bore into tree bark, living between the bark and wood.
Stem
Can be woody in trees and shrubs or soft in herbaceous plants.
Woody stems provide structural strength to trees, supporting large canopies.
Bark
Can vary greatly in texture and appearance among species.
Some trees have smooth bark, while others are rough and fissured.
Stem
Growth occurs at the tips and sometimes along the sides.
Apical dominance in stems leads to upward growth and branching patterns.
Bark
Often harvested for commercial uses, such as mulch or cork.
Cork is harvested from the bark of the cork oak tree without harming the tree.
Stem
May be modified for storage (tubers), support (tendrils), or photosynthesis (cacti).
Potato plants store nutrients in underground stems called tubers.
Bark
The harsh sound uttered by a dog.
Stem
The main ascending part of a plant; a stalk or trunk.
Bark
A sound, such as a cough, that is similar to a dog's bark.
Stem
A slender stalk supporting or connecting another plant part, such as a leaf or flower.
Bark
The tough outer covering of the woody stems and roots of trees, shrubs, and other woody plants. It includes all tissues outside the vascular cambium.
Stem
A banana stalk bearing several bunches of bananas.
Bark
A specific kind of bark used for a special purpose, as in tanning or medicine.
Stem
The tube of a tobacco pipe.
Bark
A sailing ship with from three to five masts, all of them square-rigged except the after mast, which is fore-and-aft rigged.
Stem
The slender upright support of a wineglass or goblet.
Bark
A small vessel that is propelled by oars or sails.
Stem
The small projecting shaft with an expanded crown by which a watch is wound.
Bark
To utter a bark.
Stem
The rounded rod in the center of certain locks about which the key fits and is turned.
Bark
To make a sound similar to a bark
"The birds bark softly, sounding almost like young pups" (Charleston SC News and Courier).
Stem
The shaft of a feather or hair.
Bark
To speak sharply; snap
"a spot where you can just drop in ... without anyone's barking at you for failing to plan ahead" (Andy Birsh).
Stem
The upright stroke of a typeface or letter.
Bark
To work as a barker, as at a carnival.
Stem
(Music) The vertical line extending from the head of a note.
Bark
To utter in a loud, harsh voice
The quarterback barked out the signals.
Stem
The main line of descent of a family.
Bark
To remove bark from (a tree or log).
Stem
(Linguistics) The main part of a word to which affixes are added.
Bark
To rub off the skin of; abrade
Barked my shin on the car door.
Stem
(Nautical) The curved upright beam at the fore of a vessel into which the hull timbers are scarfed to form the prow.
Bark
To tan or dye (leather or fabric) by steeping in an infusion of bark.
Stem
The tubular glass structure mounting the filament or electrodes in an incandescent bulb or vacuum tube.
Bark
To treat (a patient) using a medicinal bark infusion.
Stem
To have or take origin or descent
Her success stems mostly from hard work.
Bark
(intransitive) To make a short, loud, explosive noise with the vocal organs (said of animals, especially dogs).
The neighbour's dog is always barking.
The seal barked as the zookeeper threw fish into its enclosure.
Stem
To remove the stem of
Stemmed the apples.
Bark
(intransitive) To make a clamor; to make importunate outcries.
Stem
To provide with a stem
Wine glasses that are stemmed.
Bark
(transitive) To speak sharply.
The sergeant barked an order.
Stem
To make headway against (a tide or current, for example).
Bark
To strip the bark from; to peel.
Stem
To stop or stanch (a flow)
Stemmed the bleeding.
Bark
To abrade or rub off any outer covering from.
To bark one’s heel
Stem
To restrain or stop
Wanted to stem the growth of government.
Bark
To girdle.
Stem
To plug or tamp (a blast hole, for example).
Bark
To cover or inclose with bark, or as with bark.
Bark the roof of a hut
Stem
(Sports) To turn (a ski, usually the uphill ski) by moving the heel outward.
Bark
The short, loud, explosive sound uttered by a dog, a fox, and some other animals.
Stem
To stem a ski or both skis, as in making a turn.
Bark
(figuratively) An abrupt loud vocal utterance.
Stem
The stock of a family; a race or generation of progenitors.
Bark
The exterior covering of the trunk and branches of a tree.
Stem
A branch of a family.
Bark
(medicine) Peruvian bark or Jesuit's bark, the bark of the cinchona from which quinine is produced.
Stem
An advanced or leading position; the lookout.
Bark
Hard candy made in flat sheets, for instance out of chocolate, peanut butter, toffee or peppermint.
Stem
(botany) The above-ground stalk (technically axis) of a vascular plant, and certain anatomically similar, below-ground organs such as rhizomes, bulbs, tubers, and corms.
Bark
The crust formed on barbecued meat that has had a rub applied to it.
Stem
A slender supporting member of an individual part of a plant such as a flower or a leaf; also, by analogy, the shaft of a feather.
The stem of an apple or a cherry
Bark
The envelopment or outer covering of anything.
Stem
A narrow part on certain man-made objects, such as a wine glass, a tobacco pipe, a spoon.
Bark
(obsolete) A small sailing vessel, e.g. a pinnace or a fishing smack; a rowing boat or barge.
Stem
(linguistics) The main part of an uninflected word to which affixes may be added to form inflections of the word. A stem often has a more fundamental root. Systematic conjugations and declensions derive from their stems.
Bark
(poetic) A sailing vessel or boat of any kind.
Stem
(slang) A person's leg.
Bark
(watercraft) A vessel, typically with three (or more) masts, with the foremasts (or fore- and mainmasts) square-rigged, and mizzenmast schooner-rigged.
Stem
(slang) The penis.
Bark
To strip the bark from; to peel.
Stem
(typography) A vertical stroke of a letter.
Bark
To abrade or rub off any outer covering from; as to bark one's heel.
Stem
(music) A vertical stroke marking the length of a note in written music.
Bark
To cover or inclose with bark, or as with bark; as, to bark the roof of a hut.
Stem
(music) A premixed portion of a track for use in audio mastering and remixing.
Bark
To make a short, loud, explosive noise with the vocal organs; - said of some animals, but especially of dogs.
Stem
(nautical) The vertical or nearly vertical forward extension of the keel, to which the forward ends of the planks or strakes are attached.
Bark
To make a clamor; to make importunate outcries.
They bark, and say the Scripture maketh heretics.
Where there is the barking of the belly, there no other commands will be heard, much less obeyed.
Stem
(cycling) A component on a bicycle that connects the handlebars to the bicycle fork.
Bark
The short, loud, explosive sound uttered by a dog; a similar sound made by some other animals.
Stem
(anatomy) A part of an anatomic structure considered without its possible branches or ramifications.
Bark
Formerly, any small sailing vessel, as a pinnace, fishing smack, etc.; also, a rowing boat; a barge. Now applied poetically to a sailing vessel or boat of any kind.
Stem
(slang) A crack pipe; or the long, hollow portion of a similar pipe (i.e. meth pipe) resembling a crack pipe.
Bark
A three-masted vessel, having her foremast and mainmast square-rigged, and her mizzenmast schooner-rigged.
Stem
A winder on a clock, watch, or similar mechanism.
Bark
Tough protective covering of the woody stems and roots of trees and other woody plants
Stem
Alternative form of STEM
Bark
A noise resembling the bark of a dog
Stem
A lesbian, chiefly African-American, exhibiting both stud and femme traits.
Bark
A sailing ship with 3 (or more) masts
Stem
To remove the stem from.
To stem cherries; to stem tobacco leaves
Bark
The sound made by a dog
Stem
To be caused or derived; to originate.
The current crisis stems from the short-sighted politics of the previous government.
Bark
Speak in an unfriendly tone;
She barked into the dictaphone
Stem
To descend in a family line.
Bark
Cover with bark
Stem
To direct the stem (of a ship) against; to make headway against.
Bark
Remove the bark of a tree
Stem
(obsolete) To hit with the stem of a ship; to ram.
Bark
Make barking sounds;
The dogs barked at the stranger
Stem
To ram (clay, etc.) into a blasting hole.
Bark
Tan (a skin) with bark tannins
Stem
(skiing) To move the feet apart and point the tips of the skis inward in order to slow down the speed or to facilitate a turn.
Stem
To gleam.
His head bald, that shone as any glass, . . . [And] stemed as a furnace of a leed [caldron].
Stem
To remove the stem or stems from; as, to stem cherries; to remove the stem and its appendages (ribs and veins) from; as, to stem tobacco leaves.
Stem
To ram, as clay, into a blasting hole.
Stem
To oppose or cut with, or as with, the stem of a vessel; to resist, or make progress against; to stop or check the flow of, as a current.
[They] stem the flood with their erected breasts.
Stemmed the wild torrent of a barbarous age.
Stem
To move forward against an obstacle, as a vessel against a current.
Stemming nightly toward the pole.
Stem
A gleam of light; flame.
Stem
The principal body of a tree, shrub, or plant, of any kind; the main stock; the part which supports the branches or the head or top.
After they are shot up thirty feet in length, they spread a very large top, having no bough nor twig in the trunk or the stem.
The lowering spring, with lavish rain,Beats down the slender stem and breaded grain.
Stem
A little branch which connects a fruit, flower, or leaf with a main branch; a peduncle, pedicel, or petiole; as, the stem of an apple or a cherry.
Stem
The stock of a family; a race or generation of progenitors.
While I do pray, learn here thy stemAnd true descent.
Stem
A branch of a family.
This is a stemOf that victorious stock.
Stem
A curved piece of timber to which the two sides of a ship are united at the fore end. The lower end of it is scarfed to the keel, and the bowsprit rests upon its upper end. Hence, the forward part of a vessel; the bow.
Stem
Fig.: An advanced or leading position; the lookout.
Wolsey sat at the stem more than twenty years.
Stem
Anything resembling a stem or stalk; as, the stem of a tobacco pipe; the stem of a watch case, or that part to which the ring, by which it is suspended, is attached.
Stem
That part of a plant which bears leaves, or rudiments of leaves, whether rising above ground or wholly subterranean.
Stem
The entire central axis of a feather.
Stem
The short perpendicular line added to the body of a note; the tail of a crotchet, quaver, semiquaver, etc.
Stem
The part of an inflected word which remains unchanged (except by euphonic variations) throughout a given inflection; theme; base.
Stem
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed;
Thematic vowels are part of the stem
Stem
A slender or elongated structure that supports a plant or fungus or a plant part or plant organ
Stem
Cylinder forming a long narrow part of something
Stem
The tube of a tobacco pipe
Stem
Front part of a vessel or aircraft;
He pointed the bow of the boat toward the finish line
Stem
A turn made in skiing; the back of one ski is forced outward and the other ski is brought parallel to it
Stem
Grow out of, have roots in, originate in;
The increase in the national debt stems from the last war
Stem
Cause to point inward;
Stem your skis
Stem
Remove the stem from;
For automatic natural language processing, the words must be stemmed
Common Curiosities
Can bark be used for anything besides protection?
Yes, bark can serve additional functions such as carbohydrate storage and the synthesis of defense compounds. It's also harvested for commercial uses like mulch and cork.
Do all plants have bark?
Not all plants have bark in the way woody plants do. Bark specifically refers to the outer covering of the stems and roots of woody plants.
What is the difference between the stem's xylem and phloem?
The xylem transports water and minerals from the roots upwards to the rest of the plant, while the phloem distributes sugars and other nutrients produced through photosynthesis.
Can the stem of a plant perform photosynthesis?
Yes, in some plants, especially those with modified stems like cacti, the stem can perform photosynthesis in addition to its other functions.
Is the stem considered part of the tree's root system?
The stem is not part of the root system; it is the central structure connecting the root system to the leaves, flowers, and fruits.
What is the main purpose of bark on a tree?
The main purpose of bark is to protect the tree from physical damage, disease, and pests, and assist in nutrient transport.
How does the stem support a plant?
The stem provides structural support, allowing the plant to stand upright and bear the weight of its leaves, flowers, and fruits.
What are some examples of stem modifications?
Examples include tubers for storage (potatoes), tendrils for support (peas), and cacti stems modified for photosynthesis.
How does stem growth occur?
Stem growth occurs through the activity of meristems, which are regions of undifferentiated cells that can divide and differentiate into various tissue types, allowing the stem to lengthen and sometimes thicken.
What role do stems play in the plant's reproductive process?
Stems play a crucial role by supporting flowers and fruits, facilitating the plant's reproductive process through the display of flowers and the development and dispersal of seeds.
How does bark contribute to a tree's health?
Bark contributes to a tree's health by offering protection against environmental stresses and predators, and it plays a role in the tree's nutrient transport system.
How does the bark's appearance change with the tree's age?
As a tree ages, its bark can become thicker and develop patterns such as ridges or furrows, reflecting the tree's growth and environmental adaptations.
Why do some trees have thick bark?
Some trees have thick bark as an adaptation to protect against fire, extreme temperatures, or physical damage.
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Written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Co-written by
Maham Liaqat
