Tree roots have multiple essential functions for their growth and survival. Acquiring nutrients and water from the soil, storing food and anchoring the plant in a substratum are what keep plants alive. In addition, root traits adapt themselves to physical limitation: they grow longer and thinner in dry soils in order to seek faraway water and they stay shorter in compact soils. Thanks to these powers, roots are an important pillar in tree survival strategy.
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Source: Phys.org