They translocate water and nutrients to the above ground parts. In many perennial and biennial species, they are also sites for food storage. This food reserve is used to keep the plant alive through the winter, to resume growth in the spring or after cutting or grazing. Grasses have a fibrous root system. These roots are adventitious, arising from the lowest nodes of the stems.
Legumes have a tap root system.
Legumes roots may also have root nodules, which are the sites for nitrogen fixation. B. Stems 1. Function of Stems. They support the leaves, flowers and fruits. They translocate water and nutrients through the xylem from the roots to other plant parts, and translocate carbohydrates through the phloem from the leaves to the roots and other sites of growth.