rootableadj.
/ˈruːtəbl/, U.S. /ˈrudəb(ə)l/, /ˈrʊdəb(ə)l/ Of a plant: that is able to take root; that can be rooted. Also: designating an area of ground in which a plant can take root.
ΚΠ
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Enracinable, rootable, fit to take root.
1881 in D. Morris Ann. Rep. Public Gardens & Plantations 1880 (Jamaica) 4 The flower bed..serves well the additional purpose of producing healthy rootable cuttings.
1903 Plant World Mar. 69 In the greenhouse, where the heat can be regulated, almost anything ‘rootable’ can be made to strike root.
1987 K. Rushforth Tree Planting & Managem. (1990) ii. 33 Material from the upper layers is redeposited lower down as a solid iron pan, which can prevent roots penetrating to the potentially rootable zones beneath.
1999 I. S. Harry & T. A. Thorpe in R. D. Hall Plant Cell Culture Protocols xv. 150 Shoots should be rootable, and plantlets should survive transfer to ex vitro conditions.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1611