Understanding Shape and Residual Stress Dynamics in Rod-Like Plant Organs

Residual stresses are common in rod-like plant organs such as roots and shoots. Such stresses can emerge from structural in-compatibilities, which arise from the juxtaposition of layers of tissue with different intrinsic lengths. Although growth of individual plant cells is driven by mechanical stresses, the impact and role of tissue-scale internal residual stresses on shape dynamics at the organ scale remain poorly understood. Here, we introduce a novel theoretical framework in which the organ, described as a set of connected, concentric morphoelastic cylindrical shells representing distinct tissues, grows axially in response to its local elastic strain. This approach allows to formulate analytical expressions relating tissue-level differences in elasticity and intrinsic growth to macroscopic characteristics such as organ axial growth rates, bending motions, and residual stress profiles. To demonstrate the framework, we analyze a minimal two-layer model representing the epidermis and inner tissues, and use it to explore the “epidermal growth control” hypothesis, which posits that the epidermis regulates expansion by mechanically limiting inner tissue elongation. Our analysis also reveals a form of mechanical memory and accounts for observed phenomena such as autotropism.