Page 6 - Chapter 14 Reproduction

Cultivation of onion bulb

1. Sow one bulb in the soil and water it daily. Buds present in the scale
leaves form stem through which branches emerge out.

2. Record your observations.

B - Corm of Colocasia • During the growing
season, the plant
A corm is a short swollen vertically growing uses the food stored
underground stem. It stores food and survives the in the fleshy stem,
winter, giving rise to a new plant from the terminal and at the end of the
bud. On the surface of the stem there are a number of season, the leaves
loose sheeting scale leaves which arise from the provide food for
nodes. Adventitious roots keep the corm adhered to producing a new
the soil. One or more buds lie at the axil of each leaf. corm on top of the
Some of these buds grow into daughter conns while old one.
the terminal bud gives rise to aerial shoot.

Node

Scale leaf

Corm

Fig 14.4: Corm of Colocasia

1. Take a corm of Colocasia and examine its external parts.
2. Cut the corm in half vertically and examine its internal parts by using a

hand lens.
3. Record your observations.

Cultivation of Corm of Colocasia
1. Sow a corm having at least one bud in the soil and water it daily. After a

few days it will produce many conns.
2. Record your observations.