rhizome

Rhizome, in botany, refers to a type of modified subterranean stem that grows horizontally beneath the soil surface. Unlike roots, rhizomes are stem tissue with nodes and internodes, capable of producing roots from the lower surface at each node and shoots from the upper surface. They store starch and other nutrients and can persist year after year as perennating structures. Rhizomes enable plants to spread laterally and to survive environmental disturbance by resprouting from underground joints. They may be thickened and fleshy, as in some monocots, or slender in many herbaceous perennials.

Reproduction and cultivation: Many plants propagate vegetatively via rhizomes. New shoots arise from the nodes, and roots may form along the rhizome, enabling rapid clonal expansion. In horticulture, rhizomes are often divided to multiply plants, and damaged or dormant portions can regrow. Common examples include ginger (Zingiber officinale), iris varieties, canna, and many grasses and bamboo species. Some rhizomes lie below the ground, while others are just under the surface; the term rhizome is sometimes contrasted with stolons, which are above-ground runners. Rhizomes function primarily in storage and underground propagation rather than surface spread.

Beyond botany, the word rhizome is used in philosophy to describe a model of knowledge and social organization that resists centralized structure, emphasizing connectivity and multiplicity. The philosophical use is metaphorical, while the botanical term derives from Greek rhizos meaning root.