Question

what is cork in protective tissues

Answer 1

Cells of cork are dead and compactly arranged without intercellular spaces. They also have a chemical called suberin in their walls that makes them impervious to gases and water thus they provide strong mechanical strength to plants.

Answer 2

Cork is a several layered thick tissue present on the outer side of the secondary meristem.
Its cells are dead and compactly arranged without intercellular spaces.
They have a deposition of a chemical called suberin in their walls which makes them impervious to gases and water.
This structural characteristic helps the cork tissue to protect and prevent itself from infection and mechanical injury.
It also prevents desiccation under adverse environmental conditions by preventing loss of water from the plant body.