Tubers are plant parts that are enlarged to form storage containers that the plants use to hold nutrients that allow them to feed their offspring or to survive through the winter. There are two basic types of tubers: root tubers and stem tubers. Common examples of tubers include potatoes, cassava, and dahlias.
Many people think root vegetables include all edible parts of a plant that grow underground. If this was true, peanuts would be considered a root vegetable! Some vegetables are classified as root vegetables but are entirely different parts of the plant. Some plants produce what are called tubers. What is a tuber, and what are tubers in plants? Tubers are rich in starch, which is a form of carbohydrate produced by plants. Many vegetables, and even flowers like dahlias, have tubers. This lesson will discuss what tubers are and the various plants that produce them. It will also discuss the differences in types of formation, as well as ways in which they are used by both the plant and by humans.
List of Tubers
Many tuber plants produce tubers. Some tuber plants are known as annuals, and die out completely during the winter. These types of tuber plants use the tubers as food storage for the next generation which will grow during the next season. Other tuber plants are called perennials and live through the winter underground. Both annuals and perennial tuber plants use the spring, summer, and early fall to gather and store as much energy as they can. They, and all plants, in fact, make their own energy in a process called photosynthesis. This is where the plant uses sunlight and carbon dioxide to produce sugar or starch. Tuber plants store excess starch in the tuber of the plant to sustain either themselves or their offspring through the winter and into the first few weeks of spring until they can grow leaves necessary to start photosynthesizing again.
Tubers grow underground, no matter if they are stem tubers or root tubers. An example of a tuber plant is the potato. In potato plants, the stem organ is enlarged to form potatoes, which are the fleshy tuber filled with starch. When a potato is cut, sometimes the liquid starch will end up on the knife, making the pieces of the cut potato stick to it. This is the sugar made by the plant that is stored as energy in the tuber. An example of a root tuber is the sweet potato. Often mistaken for a yam, the sweet potato in the morning glory family has roots that swell with stored starch.