For gardening, agriculture or in general something that has to do with plants, it is necessary to know its parts, their functions and how to optimize irrigation and the conditions of the plant so that it can be in optimal conditions.
Today I come to talk about the different parts that make up the root of a plant. Knowing what the parts of the root are can help us when planting plants, watering them, maintaining them, knowing the type of soil that suits them best, etc. Do you want to know more about the parts of the root?
Index
- 1 Characteristics of the roots
- 2 Function of the roots
- 3 parts of the root
Root Characteristics
Before knowing the different parts that make up the roots, it would be good if we knew the functions and characteristics that they carry out during the life of the plant. The first thing is to know the characteristics that the roots have.
Well, the root is born from the radicle of the embryo and lacks stems, leaves or branches. The length and color of the roots are variable and depend on the type of plant. The root is the organ that the plant has that makes its subjection possible and is necessary if it wants to absorb mineral salts and water from the soil and transport them to the rest of the plant. It serves as a reserve organ to accumulate substances and nutrients that will later be assimilated.
Most of the roots are underground and acquire nutrients from the soil. But there are also aquatic and even aerial roots. Many of the roots are useful and serve as food, such as beets, carrots and cassava; others serve as medicine, such as ginger; and others are used in industry, such as turmeric.
root function
The roots fulfill different functions in the plant depending on the type it is. However, these are the most common functions:
- It fulfills the function of absorption. This is the best known function and it is about absorbing the water and the mineral substances that are dissolved in it through the absorbent hairs that they have.
- Another function is to fix the plant to the ground to keep it secure and in good condition. This is not true when it comes to aerial roots or the roots of floating aquatic plants.
- They fulfill a driving function. That is to say, the root is the one that conducts the absorbed water to the rest of the plant for its nourishment and correct functioning. In addition, it also conducts the minerals it gets from the soil.
- It functions as a food reserve organ. Not only is it capable of absorbing nutrients from the soil and conducting them throughout the plant, but it is also capable of reserving nutritional substances for when the plant needs nutrients and the medium is short of them.
root parts
Once we have seen the characteristics and the function that the root fulfills, we are going to see what parts they have:
- Neck: The roots have a neck that is located at the level of the soil surface and is the one that communicates the root with the stem.
- Branching zone: In this area that is located in the neck and the piliferous zone (area where the absorbent hairs are located) is where the roots branch out and form other secondary roots to increase the area of absorption of nutrients, water and minerals .
- Piliferous zone: In this zone are the hairs responsible for the absorption of minerals, water and nutrients. It has a conical shape, with the lower hairs shorter than the upper ones.
- Cell division zone: It is the zone that is included between the piliferous zone and the cap. It is in this zone that root growth takes place.
- Cap : It is the rigid cap that protects the tip of the root when it is introduced into the interior of the earth.
With this information you can know which parts have the roots and the function of the same for the plants.
