Definition

1. Noun:
   • A horizontal stem that grows along the ground surface: A stolon is a specialized plant stem that grows horizontally at or just below the soil surface. It produces new, genetically identical plants (clones) from buds located at its nodes or, most characteristically, at its tip.

Usage

• Noun:
  • The primary function of a stolon is vegetative reproduction, allowing a plant to spread and colonize an area.
  • Gardeners often control plants that spread aggressively via stolons.

Examples

• Noun:
  • Strawberry plants propagate by sending out long, thin stolons called runners.
  • The grass spread quickly across the lawn through its underground stolons.
  • A new plantlet will form at the tip of the stolon once it roots in the soil.

Advanced Usage

• In Botany: The term stolon is precisely used to distinguish this type of horizontal stem from others like rhizomes (which are typically thicker and grow underground) or offsets.
• "Stoloniferous" (adj): Describing a plant that produces or spreads by stolons.
  • Bermuda grass is a stoloniferous species that can be difficult to contain.

Variants and Related Words

• Runner: A common synonym for a type of above-ground stolon, especially in plants like strawberries.
• Rhizome: A related but distinct type of horizontal stem, usually thicker and growing below ground (e.g., ginger, iris).
• Offset: A short, thick stolon that produces a new plant very close to the parent.

Synonyms

• Runner (for above-ground types)
• Creeping stem

Different Meanings

• In some contexts, particularly in zoology (e.g., certain colonial invertebrates like corals), stolon can refer to a horizontal connecting structure between polyps. However, the primary and most common usage is in botany.

Noun

1. a horizontal branch from the base of plant that produces new plants from buds at its tips