Left illustration shows a cross section of a woody stem undergoing primary growth. At the core of the stem is pith. Toward the outside are egg-shaped vascular bundles. Xylem is located toward the inside of the vascular bundle, and phloem is in the middle. Sclerenchyma cap the outside of the bundle. Right illustration shows a cross section of a woody stem undergoing secondary growth. As in primary growth, the core of the stem is pith. Outside the pith is a ring of secondary xylem. Rounded bundles of primary xylem tissue project from this ring into the pith. Outside the secondary xylem is a ring of secondary phloem tissue. The vascular cambium separates the xylem from the phloem. Outside the secondary phloem is the cortex layer. Bundles of primary phloem project outward from the secondary phloem into the cortex. A cork ring surrounds the cortex. The cork is separated from the cortex by a thin cork cambium. The bark of the tree extends from the vascular cambium to the epidermis.