- root
- The underground part of a plant that serves to anchor it and supplies it with nourishment.
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- root cutting
- A cutting taken from the root of a parent plant for the purpose of propagation.
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- root knot
- A disease of the roots characterized by a swelling and caused by nematodes.
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- root pruning
- 1. Pruning to stimulate the growth of new roots within a parameter in preparation for transplanting. 2. Trimming and/or scoring the outer layer of roots of a plant that has become root bound. 3. The act of removing a portion of a plant's roots to keep top growth in check.
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- root zone
- The area immediately surrounding the roots and from which a plant takes moisture and nourishment.
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- rootball (alt. root ball)
- The root stock and surrounding soil together; in nurseries and during transport, these are held together by burlap or other wrapping.
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- rootbound (alt. root bound)
- The condition of a houseplant or outdoor container plant which has outgrown its container, with the roots filling every niche of the container. Eventually, the roots will themselves strangle the plant by constricting the flow of nutrients. A hook or blade is required to cut through and separate the tangled matted outer roots when removed from the pot and before placing in the new container.
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- rootlet
- A small, secondary root.
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- rootstock (syn. rhizome, syn. understock)
- 1. A rhizome. 2. The root system and lower portion of a woody plant to which a graft of a more desirable plant is attached.
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- rootworm
- The larvae of a beetle of the genus Diabrotica that feed on the roots of various plants, particularly corn.
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- adventitious root (syn. stem root)
- A root that arises from a stem, rather than from the primary root.
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- aerating root
- A root structure that rises above ground, usually above water, to allow the plant to absorb air.
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- aerial roots
- 1. Roots borne wholly above ground, as the attachments of vine forms of Toxicodendron radicans which penetrate tree bark. 2. Rooting shoots of epiphytes.
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- anchor root
- A large root serving mainly to hold a plant in place in the soil.
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- bare-root
- Describes a plant that is prepared for transporting by removing all the soil around its roots.
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- club root
- A fungus that causes knobby roots in stocks, wallflowers, and other members of the cabbage family.
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- conical root
- A taproot.
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- contractile roots
- Roots that can shorten themselves much like a worm does, drawing the plant down deeper into the soil. They usually have a wrinkled surface for expanding and contracting.
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- fasciculated root
- A fibrous root where some of the branches are thickened.
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- feeder root
- One of the numerous small roots of a plant, through which moisture and nutrients are absorbed from the soil.
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- fibrous root
- A root that has no prominent central axis and that branches in all directions.
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- fusiform root
- A taproot which tapers at the top as well as the bottom, like a white radish.
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- girdling root
- A root that has become wrapped around the trunk of the plant which inhibits the uptake of nutrients; usually occurring in plants grown in containers.
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- napiform root
- A taproot which is broader than it is long, like a turnip.
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- rhizome (syn. rootstock, syn. understock, adj. rhizomatous)
- Any prostrate or subterranean stem, usually rooting at the nodes and becoming erect at the apex.
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- scion rooting
- Covering a low graft with soil so that the plant develops roots directly from both the rootstock and the scion.
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- stilt-roots
- Adventitious support roots.
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- taproot (alt. tap root)
- The main root of a plant, having a single, dominant axis and often surviving the functions of structural support and food storage.
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- tuberiferous root
- A root which forms rounded knobs to store food, such as the white potato.
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- understock (syn. rhizome, syn. rootstock)
- The stock or root plant onto which a shoot has been grafted to produce a new plant in bud-grafting, especially in cases of double-worked trees.
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