Clumps slowly spread by creeping rhizomes to form thick ground covers. These are evergreen perennial herbs with stems growing erect or decumbent and creeping. The underground parts consist of a slowly creeping rhizome with adventitious roots. Stephen King described Fear as "a classic tale of creeping, surreal menace and horror". Most species are herbaceous perennials but a few are erect or creeping shrubs. It has been bred as a GMO creeping bent grass. The plants vary from annual and creeping herbs to shrubs. Whitetop is a perennial herb that reproduces by seeds and by horizontal creeping roots. Velvet bent grass requires similar upkeep and maintenance to creeping bent. It is a perennial, tuberous plant with annually produced creeping stems. This grass also takes longer to establish than creeping bent. The film is set in post-independence India, where industrialisation is slowly creeping in. The scaly rhizomes are generally creeping in nature. American Lotus spreads via creeping rhizomes and seeds. In addition to roots, monocots develop runners and rhizomes, which are creeping shoots.