Aerial Root
/AIR-ee-ul ROOT/🔬 Anatomy● Basic
An aerial root develops above ground and is exposed to the air rather than buried in soil. Climbers and epiphytes rely on them most: orchids anchor themselves high in the rainforest canopy, and ivy climbs by pressing short clinging roots against a wall. Others do structural work, as when a banyan drops roots that thicken into extra trunks. On a houseplant they are normal and healthy rather than a fault.
Example
“Cutting the aerial roots from a climbing houseplant removes the grip it relies on to hold a moss pole.”