Rhizome: An underground, usually horizontal stem, such as that of ginger.*
Irises grow from horizontal rhizomes that look much like pieces of ginger. Though they look a lot like ginger, don’t eat them – they’re poisonous!
*Pell, S.K., Angell, B. (2016). A botanist’s vocabulary: 1300 terms explained and illustrated. Portland: Timber Press.
