The role of the velamen is to absorb moisture from the ambient atmosphere, and, may be, to protect from cold or heat. |
Over watering turns the velamen brown and mushy and the roots lose their ability to absorb water. |
While dry, the velamen may provide a barrier to water loss via transpiration from the wet, internal cells of the root. |
Those attached to other plants often are vinelike and have a spongy root covering called the velamen that absorbs water from the surrounding air. |
In some orchids, the velamen includes spongy and fibrous bodies near the passage cells, called tilosomes. |
They provide their nutrients via photosynthesis, they have pseidobulbes used as water cistern and aerial roots in form of ribbon named velamen. |