Vascular plants are a group of plants that have specialized tissues for transporting water, nutrients, and food throughout their structure. These tissues, known as xylem and phloem, allow vascular plants to grow larger and thrive in various environments. Examples of vascular plants include trees, shrubs, and ferns. Unlike non-vascular plants, such as mosses, vascular plants can efficiently move resources, which supports their complex structures and diverse forms. They are essential to ecosystems, providing habitats and food for many organisms, and play a crucial role in the Earth's carbon cycle.