Question

Ginger is an underground stem. It is distinguished from root because

• A. It lacks chlorophyll
• B. It stores food
• C. It has nodes and internodes
• D. It has xylem and vessels

Answer 1

The correct option is C It has nodes and internodes

Underground stems are modified plant structures that derive from stem tissue but exist under the soil surface. They function as storage tissues for food and nutrients, propagation of new clones and perennation (survival from one growing season to the next). Plants have two axes of growth, which can be best seen from seed germination and growth. Seedlings develop two structures or axes of growth, one that develops upward out of the soil, called as stems and structures that develop downward which are called as roots. The roots are modified to have root hairs and branch indiscriminately with cells that take in water and nutrients, while the stems are modified to move water and nutrients to and from the leaves and flowers. Stems have nodes with buds where leaves and flowers arise at specific locations, while roots do not. Plants use underground stems to multiply their numbers by asexual reproduction and to survive from one year to the next, usually over a period of dormancy. Ginger is an underground stem and not root because it has nodes and internodes and not because it lacks chlorophyll, it stores food and had vessels and xylem. Thus, the correct answer is option C.