Assertion : Water and mineral uptake by root hairs from the soil occurs through apoplast until it reaches endodermis. Reason : Casparian strips in endodermis are suberized.

Step-by-step solution

The apoplast is the system of adjacent cell walls which is continuous through the plant. As water evaporates from the mesophyll cell walls into the intercellular air spaces, tension develops in the continuous stream of water in the apoplast, and water is drawn through the walls in a mass flow by the cohesion of water molecules. When water moving through spaces in the cell wall reaches the endodermis, it's progress is stopped by a waterproof substance called suberin which is deposited in cell walls in the form of ba