Contractile Roots

From: Sue Zunino <SNALICE at aol.com> on 1997.09.09 at 13:51:50(1196) Could this be what happens? The bulb puts out contractile roots as stablizers, the plant grows, the bulb wastes away, the weight of the plant causes it to settle into the wasted bulb's hole, the plant dies then rebuilds it's new bulb at a deeper level where the next contractile root growth anchors it, and the process begins all over again. So do the roots actually PULL it down, or does it simply settle and restablize? In the case of konjak and titanum, there is a lot of weight to be born by the bulb. I'm trying to visualize how roots can pull. Bill Lanchaster at Humboldt State University has a konjak growing in his compost pile. He mentioned that he tried to dig it up once, but gave up. He says it PULLS itself further down each year. It must be 4' to 5' below the BOTTOM of the compost pile where it began. That's 10 to 15 years of droppage

From: Dana Scholle <dana at homecom.com> on 1997.09.09 at 20:50:27(1199) I' certainly not an expert, but what comes to mind would be that the contractile roots keep the tuber in place and stabilize the petiole, then as the season wears on, the tuber replenishes ans increases in weight. Then when the plant begins to wither, so do the roots, which then loose the ability to hold up the tuber and it would then collapse down into the space below it. Just a guess? I noticed the other day that my smallish Konjac is now putting out a secondary something. I am assuming it could only be a leaf. I thought Konjac was known for having only one petiole per season. I have a rapidly growing Bulbifer (thanks to Mr. Martyn :) ) which is in the process of putting up it's fourth and fifth leaves (at the same time, no less!!) But the Konjac is a little puzzling. It's one of the black stem varieties from Plant Delights. Has anyone else ever had this kind of thing happen? +More At 08:50 AM 9/9/97 -0500, you wrote: >Could this be what happens? > >The bulb puts out contractile roots as stablizers, the plant grows, the bulb >wastes away, the weight of the plant causes it to settle into the wasted >bulb's hole, the plant dies then rebuilds it's new bulb at a deeper level >where the next contractile root growth anchors it, and the process begins all >over again. So do the roots actually PULL it down, or does it simply settle >and restablize? In the case of konjak and titanum, there is a lot of weight >to be born by the bulb. I'm trying to visualize how roots can pull. > >Bill Lanchaster at Humboldt State University has a konjak growing in his >compost pile. He mentioned that he tried to dig it up once, but gave up. He >says it PULLS itself further down each year. It must be 4' to 5' below the >BOTTOM of the compost pile where it began. That's 10 to 15 years of droppage > > >

From: hermine <hermine at endangeredspecies.com> on 1997.09.09 at 21:10:54(1203) At 08:51 AM 9/9/97 -0500, Sue Zunino wrote: >Could this be what happens? > >The bulb puts out contractile roots as stablizers, the plant grows, the bulb >wastes away, the weight of the plant causes it to settle into the wasted >bulb's hole, the plant dies then rebuilds it's new bulb at a deeper level >where the next contractile root growth anchors it, and the process begins all >over again. +More Well, shoot me if i am wrong, but the only truly contraile tissue in plants (as in it contracts like animal muscle), has been found in certain strangler figs. they start out as epiphytes, put down aerial roots into the ground and them PULL until the host tree is a bent, humpy misshapen and dead mess. Last i head this action was being studied in some wonderment. Many plants with some weight sink into the earth. Cycads do. Now, it is the habit of some Haworthias to grow not as above ground rosettes, but as level-with the-surface plants, and one must repot them on a regular basis. on the other had, whenever i do cosmetic repotting there is the dead old main stem and dead roots, rather as if that part of the plant was deciduous. it is hollow. conceivably the weight of the plant causes it to sink ito that void. hermine

From: "Carlo A. Balistrieri" <cabalist at facstaff.wisc.edu> on 1997.09.10 at 16:32:36(1213) >I noticed the other day that my smallish Konjac is now putting out a >secondary something. I am assuming it could only be a leaf. I thought >Konjac was known for having only one petiole per season. Not necessarily so. I have a tuber sitting in a tray with three equally sized growths coming at the same time. Carlo +More Carlo A. Balistrieri, J.D. Email: CABalist@facstaff.wisc.edu P.O. Box 327 Ashippun, WI 53003-0327 U.S.A. Voice: 414.569.1902 Telefax: same number, please call ahead.

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