Root Pressure?

Question

a. Distributes food to the plant

b. causes endodermis

c. helps push water up the xylem in the plant

d. forces water thru the phloem

Answer 1

Letter C is the best answer of those available.  However, root pressure is limited in the height of the water column it can lift.  The majority of force to move water through the xylem is transpiration through the stomata in the leaves of the plant.  The combination of transpiration, cohesiveness of the water molecules, and high sugar content of the leaves, water will be moved rapidly to the top of the plant.  In careful measurements, it has been shown that the xylem cells are actually under negative pressure rather than positive pressure that root pressure would create.