Nutrient mobilization

The potato is an underground stem. The "eyes" that form on potatoes occur at the nodes. New growths are extensions of the stem that form when potatoes are exposed to light, or when hormonal signals initiate growth. The growth of these extensions is enabled by the breakdown of starch, which is stored in the potato, and its transformation into cellulose and other compounds that are used in cell growth.

You can cut a potato into pieces and each piece will sprout a new clonal body. This is the way many potato crops (and others, like bananas and pineapples) are grown.

Translocation (movement) of nutrients is common in potatoes and in many other plant species. Often, it is associated with transformative processes such as the change from one kind of tissue to another. Here storage tissue is being transformed into elongating tissue.

The potato performs many tasks, for example storage and sprouting. How can we design our built environments to accommodate a variety of functions?

 

 

 

Please join me in my blog “Botany Without Borders: Where Design Meets Science”

 

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