FOODS IN PLANTS 45 
though it does not seed until the next summer after it is 
planted ; and the cotton plant, the lima bean, the tomato, and 
the castor bean are instances of plants which with us are culti- 
vated as annuals, but which in warm climates live several vears, 
the castor bean growing into a large, almost tree-like shrub. 
Plants which live for more than one year usually have food 
stored in their roots. ie 
Sh, La 
ee TY. 
Fig. 50. Clustered, fleshy roots of the dahlia, with much stored 
plant food, in early spring 
st, remains of last year’s stem; sh, young shoots beginning to sprout from upper 
ends of roots. One fourth natural size 
Such biennials as beets, carrots, and parsnips store up much food 
in the root 1 during the first summer’s growth, and form a large 
tuft, or rosette, of leaves, but do not develop much stem above- 
ground. During the second summer the stored food is consumed 
in the production of leafy stems bearing flowers and fruit, and in 
the autumn the root appears quite withered and nearly dry. 
Herbaceous perennials, like the dahlia (fig. 30) and the 
common rhubarb, store food in the root during the summer 
1 The underground part of the carrot and the parsnip is part stem and 
part root, 
