Table 1.

Curvature and elongation of roots transplanted to vermiculite at various water potentials

Location	Mean curvature (°)	Elongation rate (µm s–1)	n
Wet	2·4 ± 3·7 a	0·36 ± 0·02 a	17
60 mm	24·8 ± 5·8 b	0·37 ± 0·02 a	20
80 mm	15·0 ± 7·3 b	0·30 ± 0·02 b	14
Dry	5·0 ± 3·7 a	0·25 ± 0·01 b	18

Seedlings were transplanted to four different locations in vermiculite and grown for 2 d.

Wet and Dry, seedlings transplanted to wet and dry vermiculite with no detectable water potential gradient around them; 60 mm and 80 mm, seedlings transplanted to dry vermiculite at these distances from the boundary between the wet and dry vermiculite; curvature, the angle between the root axis and the direction of elongation of the root tip, positive and negative values indicating elongation toward the wet and dry vermiculite, respectively.

Values given are means ± standard errors with the number of seedlings tested (n); same following letters indicate no significant difference (P = 0·05, ANOVA).