Two types of root systems are commonly distinguished, fibrous roots and taproots.
Natural ecosystems are complex, and dominated by perennials, a dense mat of fibrous roots that exists in the soil year-round, tightly holding soil and water.
The primary root, which is replaced by secondary, fibrous roots after germination, is covered by the coleorhiza (root sheath).
The root system consists not of a taproot, as in many dicotyledons, but of fine, fibrous roots.
The shallow fibrous roots form a massive root system, and the plant is resistant to both drought and waterlogging.
Rich, piquant remoulade salads, usually made from celeriac, are in season when the ground ices over and the only vegetables available are fibrous roots.
The lower trunk was almost entirely composed of fibrous roots; stems continued higher up scattered among the roots, becoming free but compressed together throughout the upper trunk.
A majority of sedges have the morphological appearance of grasslike herbaceous perennials with fibrous roots, triangular stems, and three-ranked, linear leaves.
A few species of Sisyrinchium (family Iridaceae) are true annuals, though, with fleshy or fibrous roots, and some have become weedy in many parts of the world.
Principally, most plants with fibrous roots will perform well if given good, loam-based compost and adequate pots: geraniums, lamiums, even astrantias will live happily in containers, and an occasional organic liquid feed will keep them performing for months.
New leaves develop before fibrous roots, so wait for two or three weeks after they emerge before potting on into individual pots, checking that a new root system has developed.
