Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Primary and Secondary Growth in Roots and Shoots

Primary and Secondary Growth in Roots and Shoots

Vascular plants, which account for over 90% of the Earth’s vegetation, all undergo primary growth—which lengthens roots and shoots. Many land plants, notably woody plants, also undergo secondary growth—which thickens roots and shoots.

Responses to Gravity and Touch

Responses to Gravity and Touch

Gravitropism: Plant Responses to Gravity

Basic Plant Anatomy: Roots, Stems, and Leaves

Basic Plant Anatomy: Roots, Stems, and Leaves

The primary organs of vascular plants are roots, stems, and leaves, but these structures can be highly variable, adapted for the specific needs and environment of different plant species.

Morphogenesis

Morphogenesis

Plant morphogenesis—the development of a plant’s form and structure—involves several overlapping developmental processes, including growth and cell differentiation. Precursor cells differentiate into specific cell types, which are organized into the tissues and organ systems that make up the functional plant.

Meristems and Plant Growth

Meristems and Plant Growth

Plants grow throughout their lives; this is called indeterminate growth, and it distinguishes plants from most animals. Although certain parts of plants stop growing (e.g., leaves and flowers), others grow continuously—like roots and stems.

Water and Mineral Acquisition

Water and Mineral Acquisition

Specialized tissues in plant roots have evolved to capture water, minerals, and some ions from the soil. Roots exhibit a variety of branching patterns that facilitate this process. The outermost root cells have specialized structures called root hairs that increase the root surface, thus increasing soil contact. Water can passively cross into roots, as the concentration of water in the soil is higher than that of the root tissue. Minerals, in contrast, are actively transported into root cells.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

A PLETHORA3/7 transcription factor shapes cucumber shoot architecture.

The New phytologist·2026

Same author

Plant development: from sessile to fertile.

Development (Cambridge, England)·2025

Same author

Rational design of induced regeneration via somatic embryogenesis in the absence of exogenous phytohormones.

The Plant cell·2025

Same author

PLETHORAs shape Arabidopsis phyllotaxis through modulation of patterning robustness and accelerated inflorescence development.

The New phytologist·2025

Same author

The <i>Medicago truncatula</i> lncRNA <i>ENOD40</i> is a mediator of <i>microRNA169</i>-controlled <i>NF-YA</i> activity in nodule initiation.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2025

Same author

Two deeply conserved non-coding sequences control PLETHORA1/2 expression and coordinate embryo and root development.

Plant communications·2025

Same journal

Correction to: Beyond a plant hormone: ethylene receptors and signaling in microbes.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

Same journal

Single-Cell Atlases as Meta-Analytic Compasses for Developmental Biology: A Case Study Using the Arabidopsis Root.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

Same journal

A sugar flow model predicts cell dynamics, weight and quality of tomato at varying sink-source ratios and temperatures.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

Same journal

Crosstalks between plant proteostasis and chromatin remodeling machineries.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

Same journal

Novel Imaging Approaches for Visualising Root-Mycorrhizal Fungal Interactions.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

Same journal

The ga3ox1b mutation reveals the crosstalk between gibberellin and other phytohormones in controlling the growth and development of female flowers in Cucurbita pepo.

Journal of experimental botany·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 25, 2026

A Simple Protocol for Mapping the Plant Root System Architecture Traits

A Simple Protocol for Mapping the Plant Root System Architecture Traits

Published on: February 10, 2023

Root patterning: it takes two to tangle

Ben Scheres¹, Marta Laskowski²

¹Plant Developmental Biology, Wageningen University Research, Building 107 (Radix), Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands ben.scheres@wur.nl.

Journal of Experimental Botany

|February 26, 2016

Summary

No abstract available in PubMed .

Keywords:

Arabidopsis bending hypothesis lateral root initiation oscillation hypothesis pattern formation root architecture waving growth

More Related Videos

Biomimetic Replication of Root Surface Microstructure using Alteration of Soft Lithography

Biomimetic Replication of Root Surface Microstructure using Alteration of Soft Lithography

Published on: August 5, 2020

Multipronged Phenotyping Approaches to Characterize Sugarcane Root Systems

Multipronged Phenotyping Approaches to Characterize Sugarcane Root Systems

Published on: August 17, 2022

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 25, 2026

A Simple Protocol for Mapping the Plant Root System Architecture Traits

A Simple Protocol for Mapping the Plant Root System Architecture Traits

Published on: February 10, 2023

Biomimetic Replication of Root Surface Microstructure using Alteration of Soft Lithography

Biomimetic Replication of Root Surface Microstructure using Alteration of Soft Lithography

Published on: August 5, 2020

Multipronged Phenotyping Approaches to Characterize Sugarcane Root Systems

Multipronged Phenotyping Approaches to Characterize Sugarcane Root Systems

Published on: August 17, 2022