That "grafting" (the divide between the top of the plant and the bottom) is a symbolic representation used in a number of contexts (outside the VMS).
Most often in older manuscripts, it means that the plant has a bole, a strong tough root-stem as you might find on a stiff shrub or small tree. Sometimes it means the plant can grow from cuttings—the cuttings can be planted and new growth will sprout. Sometimes it refers to the part of the plant that shows above the ground (or other substrate like mud or water) and the part that shows below.
Whether the changes in the text and the symbolic representation are linked is another matter, of course, but it helps to understand the possible symbolic intent of the way it's drawn in order to work out ideas about whether differences in the text are coincidence, or related to the content and the manner of representing the plant.
Most often in older manuscripts, it means that the plant has a bole, a strong tough root-stem as you might find on a stiff shrub or small tree. Sometimes it means the plant can grow from cuttings—the cuttings can be planted and new growth will sprout. Sometimes it refers to the part of the plant that shows above the ground (or other substrate like mud or water) and the part that shows below.
Whether the changes in the text and the symbolic representation are linked is another matter, of course, but it helps to understand the possible symbolic intent of the way it's drawn in order to work out ideas about whether differences in the text are coincidence, or related to the content and the manner of representing the plant.