Re: Contractile roots

From: Roger Sieloff ISDH <sieloff at doe.state.in.us> on 1997.09.10 at 04:03:45(1210) On Tue, 9 Sep 1997, MJ Hatfield wrote: > Wilbert said "contractile roots. Just have a look at older > roots at the top of the tuber when you take one out." > Please enlighten me. I don't know what a contractile root looks like. > Thanks. > MJ Hatfield +More Here's my two scents: Last spring I harvested quite a few Arisaema seedlings that were generously donated to me as seeds by the A. study group. While wrenching the tender little things from their styrofoam nurseries, I noticed the roots were unusually wrinkled in appearance and as I tugged at them unmercifully a wierd phenomenon occured - the "skin" revealed itself to be as loosely bound to the underlying root as human arms are inside shirtsleeves, i.e., the sheath slid very easily along the entire length of the root, indicating a theoretical facility of drawing the developing tubers (corms?) deeper into the soil as they matured. Amorphophallus roots don't seem to be anything like this. I don't believe Arisaema tubers consume themselves after the leaf matures like Amorphophallus tubers seem to do. Therefore it seems plausable the Arisaemas might be pulling themselves down into the substrate as they mature while Amorphophallus appear to be simply bulldozing deeper and deeper cavities as each spring's tuber is consumed and the hollow space is refilled with a larger tuber. Maybe ... Theoretically yours, Roger L. Sieloff

Note: this is a very old post, so no reply function is available.