rootstock

[root-stok, roo t-]

See more synonyms for rootstock on Thesaurus.com

noun

Horticulture. a root and its associated growth buds, used as a stock in plant propagation.
Botany. a rhizome.

Origin of rootstock

First recorded in 1930–35; root¹ + stock

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for rootstock

Historical Examples

The rootstock, which has a bitter and very acrid taste, is poisonous.
Ginseng and Other Medicinal Plants
A. R. (Arthur Robert) Harding
Internally the rootstock is whitish and of a spongy texture.
Ginseng and Other Medicinal Plants
A. R. (Arthur Robert) Harding
Description of Rootstock — The rootstock and roots are employed in medicine.
Ginseng and Other Medicinal Plants
A. R. (Arthur Robert) Harding
Of course, there are all gradations between a tuber and a rootstock.
The Elements of Botany
Asa Gray
Rootstock, root-like trunks or portions of stems on or under ground, 42.
The Elements of Botany
Asa Gray

British Dictionary definitions for rootstock

rootstock

noun

another name for rhizome
another name for stock (def. 7)
biology a basic structure from which offshoots have developed

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

rootstock in Science