Roots anchor the plant in one of two ways or, sometimes, by a combination of the two. The first is to occupy a large volume of shallow soil around the plant’s base with a fibrous (or diffuse) root system, one consisting of many thin, profusely branched roots. Because these grow relatively close to the soil surface, they effectively control soil erosion; grasses are especially well suited for such a purpose. Fibrous roots capture water as it begins to percolate into the ground, drawing their mineral supplies from the surface soil before the nutrients are leached to lower levels.
