Transport across plant roots

Abstract

The plant root is a complex system that has evolved under the constraints of a number of functions. It is a pressure-probe that can penetrate the soil; it is a scavenger of nutrients that may be either tightly bound to soil particles or in low concentrations in the soil solution; it is an absorber of water from the soil. The tip of the root contains the region of dividing cells from which the root is formed, and is pushed through the soil by the extension of these cells some 10–20 times as they develop and differentiate.