ROOTS:
STRUCTURE
& FUNCTION
Workbook 23.2
1. Comparing types of root systems
TYPE OF ROOT
DESCRIPTION
DICOTS OR
MONOCOTS?
EXAMPLES
TAPROOT
Long, thick primary
roots; grow deep in
soil
DICOTS
CARROTS,
BEETS,
DANDELIONS
FIBROUS
ROOTS
Equally sized branch
roots; grow
separately from
base of stem
MONOCOTS
GRASSES
Fill in the blank
2. A mature root has a large area of
_____________
tissue between its
GROUND
dermal and vascular tissues.
3. A root’s surface area for absorption of
water is increased by _____________
ROOT HAIRS
4. One function of the is the storage of
starch.
VASCULAR
5. The _____________cylinder,
made up
of xylem and phloem, is found at the
center of a root.
6. A root’s apical meristem can be found
just behind the ______________
ROOT CAP
ROOT CROSS SECTION
EPIDERMIS
ENDODERMIS
CORTEX
ROOT HAIRS
ZONE OF MATURATION
ZONE OF ELONGATION
PHLOEM
XYLEM
VASCULAR
CYLINDER
APICAL MERISTEM
ROOT CAP
Root Functions #8 -14
8. Name at least 2 functions, besides uptake of
water/nutrients
SUPPORT, ANCHOR IT IN GROUND, FOOD STORAGE
9. What is the role of active transport in the uptake of water
by plant roots?
ACTIVE TRANSPORT BRINGS NUTRIENTS FROM SOIL INTO
PLANT, INCREASING THE SOLUTE CONCENTRATION. THIS
ALLOWS WATER TO MOVE IN VIA OSMOSIS
10. Where in roots are active transport proteins located?
CELL MEMBRANES OF ROOT HAIRS, ROOT EPIDERMIS
11. What happens to water and dissolved minerals after they
move across the epidermis of a root?
THRU THE CORTEX, ACROSS ENDODERMIS, INTO VASCULAR
CYLINDER (XYLEM/PHLOEM)
12. Why is there a one-way passage of materials into the
vascular cylinder in plant roots?
WATER/MINERALS PASS THRU CASPARIAN STRIP AND BECOME
TRAPPED IN VASCULAR CYLINDER. GIVES PRESSURE WHICH
ALLOWS MATERIALS TO TRAVEL UPWARD
13. How do water and nutrients cross the endodermis that
surrounds the vascular cylinder?
OSMOSIS AND ACTIVE TRANSPORT BRING WATER/NUTRIENTS
THROUGH THE CELLS (NOT AROUND THE CELLS)
Root Functions & Big Idea
14. What is root pressure?
FORCE THAT CAUSES WATER/NUTRIENTS TO MOVE
UPWARD TOWARDS THE STEM
15. People often give potted houseplants more fertilizer
than needed. As a result, plants begin to wilt and
eventually die instead of getting healthier and larger.
What could be the reason?
Roots will take in too much, bursting the cell
membranes.