Which root shape describes a spindle-shaped radish root?

Which root shape describes a spindle-shaped radish root?

• A. Conical
• B. Napiform
• C. Fibrous
• D. Fusiform

Answer: (D)

Fusiform describes a spindle-shaped root: thick in the middle and tapering toward both ends. In radish, the main storage root expands in the middle, giving that bulging, symmetrical form with tapering tips as it sits in the soil. This shape efficiently stores nutrients while remaining anchored. It differs from a conical root, which narrows to a point along one end (like a carrot), from napiform, which is bulb-like with a large bulb and a narrow neck, and from a fibrous system, which consists of many thin roots rather than a single thick storage root.

Fusiform describes a spindle-shaped root: thick in the middle and tapering toward both ends. In radish, the main storage root expands in the middle, giving that bulging, symmetrical form with tapering tips as it sits in the soil. This shape efficiently stores nutrients while remaining anchored. It differs from a conical root, which narrows to a point along one end (like a carrot), from napiform, which is bulb-like with a large bulb and a narrow neck, and from a fibrous system, which consists of many thin roots rather than a single thick storage root.