Tag: Bulb

Garlic (Allium sativum), a common kitchen staple, is botanically classified as a bulb, a type of modified underground stem, not a fruit or a seed. This fact often comes as a surprise to many, highlighting the difference between a plant's scientific classification and its culinary use as a vegetable or herb.

Despite growing underground, an onion is not a root; it is a bulb, which is a modified underground stem designed for food storage. This distinction is key for understanding plant morphology, even though many mistakenly label it as a root vegetable.

Botanically, the edible part of a garlic plant is not a root but a bulb, which is a type of modified underground stem. While it grows underground and is often mistaken for a root vegetable, its structure and function are fundamentally different from a true root.

Over 80% of a corm's dry weight is composed of carbohydrates, not protein. Despite common confusion, a corm is botanically a swollen, underground stem that functions as a storage organ, predominantly for starch. This means that a corm is not a protein, and understanding its true composition is key to understanding plant biology and proper nutritional classification.