Root quality is vital to plant growth and survival in the landscape and the garden. All too often, gardeners fail to appreciate the significance of these underground plant parts. Roots have a number of critical roles in keeping all plants alive, summer annuals or massive oaks. When it comes to plant quality, the quality above ground is a direct reflection of root system quality.
Roots anchor a plant in the ground and hold it against the wind or frost heaving in the winter.
Roots grow downward into the soil for a certain distance, then spread outward from the trunk or stem of the plant. Many plants have very shallow root systems, but they can be quite extensive and far-reaching from the plant. Some years ago an experiment was conducted with a single rye plant growing in a large container of soil. At the end of the growing season, the soil was carefully washed away and the roots were measured. The rye plant had more than 278 miles of roots.