Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Taproot
open-in-new
<p>A taproot is a large, central, and dominant <a href="/facts/Root/Hk7ucczM">root</a> from which other roots sprout laterally. Typically a taproot is somewhat straight and very thick, is tapering in shape, and grows directly downward. In some plants, such as the <a href="/facts/Carrot/8UM7xqzo">carrot</a>, the taproot is a <a href="/facts/Storage_organ/FTXfMqAt">storage organ</a> so well developed that it has been cultivated as a vegetable. </p><p>The taproot system contrasts with the adventitious- or <a href="/facts/Fibrous-root_system/zgVuzIpG">fibrous-root system</a> of plants with many branched roots, but many plants that grow a taproot during <a href="/facts/Germination/BdNz4TyV">germination</a> go on to develop branching root structures, although some that rely on the main root for storage may retain the dominant taproot for centuries—for example, <i><a href="/facts/Welwitschia/7wh1bCul">Welwitschia</a></i>. </p>