[1] They function as storage tissues for food and nutrients, facilitate the propagation of new clones, and aid in perennation (survival from one growing season to the next).
[2] Types of underground stems include bulbs, corms, rhizomes, stolons, and tubers.
The roots are modified to have root hairs and branch indiscriminately with cells that take in water and nutrients, while the stems are modified to move water and nutrients to and from the leaves and flowers.
[8][9][10] Stems have nodes with buds where leaves and flowers arise at specific locations, while roots do not.
Plants use underground stems to multiply by asexual reproduction and to survive from one year to the next, usually through dormancy.