Stolon facts for kids
A stolon is a special kind of plant stem. It grows sideways, either along the surface of the ground or just underneath it. Think of it like a plant's way of spreading out!
When a stolon grows along the ground, it's often called a runner. A good example is a strawberry plant. If the stolon grows underground, it's called a rhizome. You might have seen rhizomes if you've ever looked at ginger, turmeric, or even some types of ferns.
Plants that use stolons or rhizomes to grow are called stoloniferous. This is a clever way for plants to make copies of themselves.
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How Stolons Help Plants Grow
Stolons are a fantastic way for plants to reproduce without needing seeds. This is called asexual reproduction. As the stolon grows, it has special spots called nodes. At these nodes, new roots grow down into the soil, and new stems grow up.
Making New Plants
Each new plant that grows from a stolon is exactly like the parent plant. It's like a perfect copy or a clone. This means all these new plants have the same genetic information as the original plant. This is a very efficient way for a plant to spread quickly and take over an area.
Examples of Stolon Plants
Many common plants use stolons or rhizomes to spread.
- Strawberries use runners that grow above ground.
- Spider plants (a popular houseplant) also produce runners with small new plants at their ends.
- Grasses often use stolons to spread across lawns.
- Bamboo uses strong rhizomes to spread underground, which is why it can be hard to control!
- Mint is another plant that spreads very well using underground rhizomes.
Images for kids
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Common Silverweed (Argentina anserina) showing its red stolons.
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These stolons from a Crocosmia plant are stems that grew from buds on its underground corm.
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The Cnidarian fish parasite Polypodium hydriforme has a stolon stage where many tiny creatures are connected.
See also
In Spanish: Estolón para niños
