Abstract
Abstract The past 20 years has seen the re-emergence of the study of root anchorage. The research has combined theory from composite materials and foundations technology with experimental observations and mechanical testing. This has shown that the mechanical role of roots is restricted to the basal root system, but that it nevertheless greatly influences both the size and shape of root systems. Procumbent and climbing plants, which must resist being uprooted vertically, are most efficiently anchored by a fibrous root system. In contrast, self-supporting plants require rigid elements in their anchorage systems to prevent them toppling. Small herbaceous dicots tend to possess tap root systems, larger herbaceous dicots and trees possess plate systems, and monocots possess coronal or prop root systems. The mechanics of anchorage of each system has been determined in a range of species, methods used including direct observations of the motions of roots systems, and measurements of the torque required and of surface strains around the root system as plants were pulled over. Serial destruction of elements of the anchorage system allowed the relative importance of the various components of anchorage to be estimated. The new understanding of anchorage has thrown light on various aspects of root biology, such as their distribution of strength, lack of prestress, and their sensitivity to mechanical stimulation. It has also helped point the way towards the development of more stable cereal crops and forestry trees. It is hoped that future work on the effect of soil properties and on the modelling of anchorage could help explain other observations. why, for instance, trees develop different root systems in different soil types; and why trees replace tap root systems with plate systems as they grow.
Published Version
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