Roots are an important part of plants, but they usually grow underground without being seen. Although the root hidden in the soil does not appear in public, it works diligently all the time and silently contributes to the plant.
Some people compare roots to plants 'mouths reaching out to the soil. This is indeed the case. If you pull out a grass and shake off the soil you bring out, you will see a clump of "beard" at the base of the grass, which is the root of the grass. Looking at the naked eye, a grass plant has dozens or even hundreds of roots. So, does this mean that it has dozens or even hundreds of mouths that reach out to the soil? If you think this way, you would be very wrong! The "mouths" of plants that are really responsible for absorbing water and mineral nutrients are invisible to the naked eye because they are too small and can only be clearly seen under a microscope. There are countless fine hairs on the top of each root. Botanists call them root hairs. The number of root hairs reaches an alarming level. For example, on a 1 square millimeter of pea root surface area, there are more than 200 root hairs, while an apple root with the same surface area has more than 300 root hairs, and even more than 400 corn roots! So many root hairs are like countless miniature mouths that constantly absorb water and minerals from the soil and provide them with the growth needs of the plant.
The roots of plants not only have absorption functions like mouths, but also have supporting functions like feet. We know that one of the important roles of human feet is to support the body, and the roots of plants also have a supporting function and become the foundation for ensuring the stability of the plant body. It can be imagined that every plant has many thick and thin roots. After entering the soil, it is like countless claws firmly grasping the soil underground, laying a solid foundation. Only with the support and fixation of the roots can the plant's body stand upright. Moreover, the taller the tree, the stronger the roots tend to be, the deeper they penetrate into the soil, and the greater their stability.