Rhizome (redirected from Rizome)

rhizome (rī`zōm) or rootstock, fleshy, creeping underground stem by means of which certain plants propagate themselves. Buds that form at the joints produce new shoots. Thus if a rhizome is cut by a cultivating tool it does not die, as would a root, but becomes several plants instead of one, which explains why such weeds as Canada thistle and crabgrass are so hard to eradicate. Ginger, the common iris, trillium, and Solomon's-seal all have rhizomes. True arrowroot is starch from the rhizome of a West Indian plant. See perennial.

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rhizome

Horizontal underground plant stem capable of producing the upward shoot and downward root systems of a new plant. This capability allows vegetative (asexual) propagation and enables plants to survive an annual unfavourable season underground. In some plants (e.g., water lilies, many ferns, and forest herbs), the rhizome is the only stem of the plant. In such cases, only the leaves and flowers are readily visible.

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rhizome

a thick horizontal underground stem of plants such as the mint and iris whose buds develop new roots and shoots

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rhizome [′rī‚zōm]

(botany)

An underground horizontal stem, often thickened and tuber-shaped, and possessing buds, nodes, and scalelike leaves.

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Rhizome 

the underground stem of perennial herbs differing from a root by the presence of small scaly or filmy leaves (that leave scars after dropping off), by the lack of a root cap at the end of the growing part, and, anatomically, by the presence of parenchyma.

Buds form in the nodes or sinuses of the leaves of the rhizome that annually produce new underground shoots and secondary roots. These utilize the nutrients stored in the rhizome. New shoots also form after the death of the aboveground part of the plant as a result of unfavorable conditions (for example, drought) or of crushing or eating by animals. In some plants (orchard grass, timothy), the rhizomes are short and the shoots that form on them above ground grow in a thick bunch. In others (reeds or couch grass), the rhizomes are long, grow rapidly, and branch. After the old parts of the rhizome die off, the underground shoots that have formed on it individuate (that is, vegetative reproduction occurs). The rhizomes in some plants are greatly thickened, tubes forming on them (usually at the ends) that contain primarily carbohydrates. Some rhizomes contain medicinal substances (as in the medicinal valerian), dyes (as in elecampane), or tannins (as in willow grass). Plants with long rhizomes are used to fix sandy soils.