Glossary
GLOSSARY
abaxial: facing away from the axis.
aberrant: departing from the normal.
abortive: imperfectly developed.
acaulescent: lacking a distinct stem.
accrescent: enlarging towards maturity, as of calyx after flowering.
accumbent: lying closely face to face, as of cotyledons so placed with edges towards the radicle; see p. 174.
acerose: narrow, with a sharp stiff point.
achene: a small dry indehiscent one-seeded fr. with thin pericarp. Fig. 6, 7.
acicula, acicle: a needle-shaped process; hence acicular. Fig. 9.
actinomorphic: with the parts radially symmetrical.
acuminate: tapering to a fine point, the sides ± concave. Fig. 39.
acute: sharply pointed. Fig. 39.
adaxial: facing towards the axis.
adnate: united to an organ of a different kind, as sepals to petals.
adventitious: arising irregularly or in an unusual position, as roots from stems.
aestivation: the arrangement of perianth parts in the bud; see contorted, imbricate, valvate.
ala: a wing; pl. alae; used in special sense for lateral petals in Papilionaceae; hence alate, winged.
alternate: placed singly along an axis, not in opp. pairs.
alveolate: deeply closely pitted.
amplexicaul: clasping the stem. Fig. 36.
anadromic: with the first vein or pinnule of a pinna on the side towards the apex.
anastomosing: joining up to form loops or a network; hence anastomosis, a loop in a network, us. of veins; pl. anastomoses.
anatropous: of an ovule bent over against its funicle so that the micropyle is close to, and the chalaza is remote from, the placenta.
ancipital: 2-edged, used especially of flattened stems.
androecium: the stamens as a whole.
androgynophore: a stalk bearing androecium and gynoecium above the attachment of the perianth.
androgynous: with ♂ and ♀ in same infl.
andromonoecious: with ♂ and perfect fls on the same plant.
anemophilous: wind-pollinated.
anisophyllous: with lvs, us. the members of one pair, differing in shape or size.
annual: completing its life-cycle within one year.
annular: ring-shaped.
annulus: a ring; particularly the complete or incomplete ring of thick-walled cells in a fern sporangium forming part of the dehiscence mechanism.
anterior: on the side away from the axis and so appearing in front.
anther: the pollen-bearing part of a stamen.
anthesis: the act of flowering; the stage when pollen is shed.
apetalous: without petals.
apex: the tip or free end of an organ or part.
aphyllous: leafless.
apicula, apiculus: a short slender ± flexible point; hence apiculate. Fig. 39.
apocarpous: with separate carpels.
apomixis: the production of viable seed without fertilization; hence apomictic, apomict.
apposite: side by side.
appressed: closely and flatly pressed against a surface.
approximate: close together.
arborescent: approaching the size and habit of a tree.
arcuate: curved or arched, ± strongly.
areole: a small delimited area, as the space between anastomosing veins; hence areolate.
aril: an appendage to a seed, us. an outgrowth from the funicle, often pulpy; hence arillate. Fig. 5.
aristate: with a stiff awn or seta.
armature: covering or occurrence of spines, hooks, or prickles; hence armed.
articulate: jointed; with nodes or joints where parts may separate.
ascending: directed upwards at a rather narrow angle.
asperous: rough to the touch; hence asperities, asperulous.
attenuate: gradually tapering. Fig. 39.
auricle: an ear-shaped appendage or lobe; hence auricled, auriculate. Fig. 39.
autotrophic: having independent nutrition, i.e. neither parasitic nor saprophytic.
awn: a stiff or bristle-like projection often from the tip or back of an organ; hence awned.
axil: the upper angle between two dissimilar parts; hence axillary, occurring in the axil.
axile: of the axis; especially of placentae attached to the axis of a several-loculed ovary.
axis: the main stem or central longitudinal support; pl. axes.
baccate: of fruit, berry-like, with pulpy mesocarp.
barbate: bearded; having long weak hairs in tufts; dimin., barbellate.
barbed: provided with a sharp backwardly directed hook or bristle.
barren: infertile.
basifixed: attached by the base; us. of anthers.
bast fibres: the fibres of the phloem or inner bark.
beak: a prominent extension of an organ, e.g. of an achene. Fig. 6.
beard: a tuft or zone of hairs.
berry: a fleshy fr. containing several to many seeds but not a "stone".
bi-: a prefix meaning two, e.g. bilocular: with 2 cavities; bilabiate: with 2 lips.
bicornute: 2-horned.
biennial: living 2 years and flowering only in the second.
bifarious: arranged in 2 opp. rows.
bifid: divided into 2 parts.
bifurcate: forked into 2 segs.
binate: of a lf, almost or quite divided into 2 lflts.
bipinnate: twice pinnate.
biseriate: arranged in 2 rows.
bisexual: of fls, with both sexes functional.
bivalved: having 2 valves.
blade: the expanded part of a lf, petal, etc.
bloom: a white or glaucous powdery covering.
boss: a ± rounded protuberance.
bract: a modified, often much-reduced lf, especially the small or scale-like lvs of an infl.; dimin., bracteole; hence bracteate, bracteolate. Fig. 33, 35.
bristle: a stiff stout hair.
bulb: a thickened part made up of ± fleshy scales on a short axis; dimin., bulbil.
bullate: with the surface blistered or puckered.
bush: a shrub with close branches.
caducous: falling off at an early stage.
caespitose: growing in ± dense tufts.
callus: a hardened, us. thicker, part; hence callous, calloused.
calyculus: a calyx-like part, composed of bracts or bracteoles; hence calyculate.
calyx: the outer, us. greenish, whorl of floral parts, consisting of free or united sepals.
campanulate: bell-shaped.
campylotropous: of an ovule so curved that the axis lies ± at right angles to the funicle and parallel to the placenta.
canaliculate: longitudinally channelled or grooved.
canescent: with grey-white pubescence.
capillary: hair-like.
capitate: head-like; dimin. capitellate.
capitulum: a dense head-like infl. of ∞ us. sessile fls, as in most Compositae; pl. capitula.
capsule: a dry dehiscent fr. formed by the union of two or more carpels; hence capsular.
carina: a keel; used in special sense for the joined anterior petals in Papilionaceae; hence carinate, having a prominent sharp median projecting rib.
carpel: one unit of the female part of the fl., consisting of ovule-bearing ovary, receptive stigma, and often a stalk-like style between them.
carpidium: "cone-scale" in Gymnospermae; pl. carpidia. Fig. 4.
carpology: the study of fruits; hence carpological.
carpophore: a prolongation of the floral axis above the level of attachment of the perianth, either supporting the gynoecium or, as in Umbelliferae, carrying the pendulous ripe mericarps.
cartilaginous: firm and tough but flexible, like cartilage.
caryopsis: an achene developed from a superior ovary, with the thin ovary-wall united with the seed-coat, as in Gramineae.
catadromic: with the first vein or pinnule of a pinna on the side towards the base.
catkin: a spike or spike-like infl. us. with unisexual fls on a ± pendulous axis.
caudate: bearing a tail-like appendage.
caudex: a stem with subsidiary organs, used mainly of tree-fern stems; pl. caudices; dimin. caudicle, used mainly of sterile stalk-like part of pollinium of orchids.
cauliflorous: producing fls from the old wood.
cauline: belonging to the stem, especially its upper aerial part.
cell: a cavity completely bounded by walls.
cernuous: drooping.
chalaza: the basal part of the ovule where the nucellus joins the integuments; hence chalazal.
chartaceous: of thin papery texture.
choripetalous: having petals separate.
chorophyll: the green colouring matter within the cells of plants.
chromosomes: small deeply staining bodies found in all cell-nuclei, the number us. constant for any given sp.
ciliate: fringed with hairs along the margin; dimin. ciliolate.
cilium: a short eyelash-like hair; pl. cilia.
cinereous: light ashy grey.
-cipital: -headed, as in unicipital, multicipital, etc.
circinate: coiled, with the apex innermost, as in young fern fronds.
circumscissile: dehiscing as if cut circularly around, the top valve coming off like a lid, as in the capsule of Plantago.
cladode: a flattened stem with the functions of a lf.
clathrate: latticed or pierced with apertures.
clavate: club-shaped; thickened towards the apex; dimin. clavellate.
claw: the narrowed stalk-like base of a petal or sepal; hence clawed.
cleistogamic: of fls that remain closed and are self-fertilized.
coccus: one of the parts of a dry lobed fr., each part 1-seeded; pl. cocci.
coenosorus: a common or compound sorus formed by fusion of several sori.
column: body formed by the union of stamens, style and stigmas, or sts of staminal filaments only; especially in Orchidaceae and Stylidiaceae.
coma: a tuft of hairs, as in seeds of Epilobium; hence comose.
commissure: the face by which one carpel joins another, used especially in Umbelliferae; hence commissural.
composite: compound, used especially of fls grouped in compound heads, as in Compositae.
compound: composed of several ± similar parts, as opposed to simple. Compound lvs, Fig. 40.
compressed: flattened.
concolorous: of ± the same colour throughout.
conduplicate: folded together lengthwise, along the midrib, with the upper surface within; of cotyledons see p. 174.
cone: used as a general term for the hardened fructifications in Coniferae, as in Libocedrus.
confluent: blending or running together.
congeneric: belonging to one and the same genus.
conical: with the shape of a geometrical cone.
congested: crowded.
connate: joined together, especially of two similar parts united; hence connatures. Fig. 26-29, connate stipules; Fig. 37, connate lvs.
connective: the tissue connecting the two lobes of an anther.
connivent: converging together; us. of 2 or more organs with their bases separated and their apices approaching one another.
contorted: twisted; of perianth parts in bud, each part with one edge overlapping, the other overlapped.
convolute: rolled together, longitudinally.
cordate: heart-shaped, with the notch at the base. Fig. 39.
coriaceous: of somewhat leathery texture, tough.
corm: a short swollen underground stem, us. erect and invested by a few scales and lasting only one season; hence cormose.
corolla: the inner, us. showy, whorl of floral parts, consisting of free or united petals.
corolline: seated on or belonging to the corolla.
corona: a crown-like appendage projecting upwards or inwards from the corolla.
cortex: the outer layers of the stem.
corymb: a ± flat-topped raceme, the long-pedicelled outer fls opening first; hence corymbose.
costa: a rib, especially the midvein of a lf, when prominent; pl. costae; dimin. costule; hence costate.
cotyledon: seed-leaf, already present on the embryo in the seed.
crenate: with shallow rounded teeth, the sinus acute; dimin. crenulate. Fig. 40.
crisped: with the margins crumpled or thrown into close waves.
crown: the tissue at the junction of the root and the stem.
cruciate, cruciform: in the form of a cross.
crustaceous: hard and brittle.
cryptogams: general term to include all plant groups except the seed-plants.
cucullate: hood-shaped; hooded.
culm: the stem of grasses bearing lvs and infl.
cultigen: a plant known only in cultivation.
cultivar: "an assemblage of cultivated individuals which are distinguished by any characters . . . significant for the purposes of agriculture, forestry or horticulture, and which, when reproduced (sexually or asexually), retain their distinguishing features".
cuneate: wedge-shaped; gradually and evenly narrowed to base. Fig. 39.
cupule: a cup-like structure at the base of some frs; hence cupulate.
cusp: a sharp rigid point; hence cuspidate, with the apex abruptly narrowed to a cusp.
cuticle: the outermost, ± impermeable layer on epidermal cells.
cyathium: a cup-like structure, especially the perianth-like involucre which surrounds a group of fls in Euphorbia; hence cyathiform.
cymbiform: boat-shaped, especially of a lf with the edges inrolled, giving the appearance of a row-boat.
cyme: an infl. in which continued growth depends on the production of new lateral growing points; when these develop symmetrically the infl. tends to be broad and flattish with the oldest fls innermost; hence cymose.
deciduous: (a) falling at the end of one season; (b) losing its lvs in autumn.
declinate: bent or curved downwards.
decompound: divided into many subsidiary parts.
decumbent: lying along the ground with the tip ascending.
decurrent: running or extending down, especially of lvs where the base is prolonged down the axis and adnate to it as in Lobelia anceps.
decussate: of lvs or other organs that are opp. with successive pairs at right angles to each other so forming 4 rows, as lvs in Hebe spp.
definite: of a constant number, or of limited growth as a definite infl. where the axis ends in a fl.
deflexed: bent sharply downwards.
dehiscent: opening, us. regularly, to shed contents when ripe; hence dehiscence.
deltoid: broadly triangular. Fig. 38.
dendroid: resembling a tree in shape or mode of branching.
dentate: with sharp teeth perpendicular to the margin, the sinus ± open; dimin. denticulate. Fig. 40.
denticle: a minute tooth.
depauperate: reduced in size, as if starved.
depressed: flattened from above.
determinate: of an infl. in which the terminal fl. opens first and growth of the axis is arrested.
diadelphous: in 2 sets, as of stamens in Papilionaceae when 9 are united and 1 is free.
dichasium: a cyme in which the branches are opp. and ± equal in length; hence dichasial.
dichlamydeous: of fls with a perianth composed of distinct calyx and corolla.
dichotomous: forking into 2 equal branches.
dictyostelic: used of a stem structure characterized by a network of vascular or conducting strands.
didymous: twinned, the 2 parts similar and attached by a short length of their inner surface.
didynamous: with 4 stamens, one pair long, one pair short.
diffuse: of open or straggling growth.
digitate: spreading from a centre like the fingers of a hand.
dimidiate: appearing as if one half were wanting.
dimorphic: occurring in two forms.
dioecious: having ♂ and ♀ on different plants.
discoid: having only disk florets.
discolorous: of two different colours, used when the two surfaces of a leaf are unlike in colour.
disk: a flattened often ± fleshy development of the receptacle or of coalescent nectaries.
disk-florets: in Compositae, the inner florets of the capitulum as distinct from the surrounding ray-florets.
dissected: of laminae, cut into many parts.
distal: towards the free, as opposed to the attached or proximal, end of an organ.
distichous: arranged in two opp. rows so as to lie in one plane.
divaricate: spreading at a very wide angle; used especially of shrubs with stiff, often ± intertangled, stems, as some spp. of Coprosma.
divergent: spreading away from one another, us. at a rather wide angle.
domatia: small pits as on the abaxial surface of lvs of some spp. of Nothofagus and Coprosma, in the angle between a lateral vein and the midrib, and nearer the margin in Hebe townsonii.
dorsal: relating to the back.
dorsifixed: attached by the back, especially of anthers.
dorsiventral: with distinct upper and lower surfaces.
drupe: a "stone fruit", the seed enclosed in a bony covering (endocarp) which is surrounded by a ± fleshy layer (mesocarp); hence drupaceous.
drupelet: one small drupe of an aggregate fruit, as in Rubus.
e- or ex-: prefix meaning lacking, e.g. eglandular, exindusiate.
ebracteate: without bracts.
echinate: beset with prickles, as capsule of Entelea arborescens; dimin. echinulate.
ecostate: lacking ribs.
edentate: lacking teeth.
eglandular: lacking glands.
eligulate: lacking ligules.
ellipsoid: of a solid object, elliptic in section or outline.
elliptic: in the shape of an ellipse, rounded at both ends, widest at the middle. Fig. 38.
emarginate: with a shallow notch at the apex. Fig. 39.
endemic: native only to a particular country or region; here meaning occurring naturally only in the N.Z. Botanical Region or some part of it.
endocarp: the inner layer of the fruit wall, sts stony, lying next to the seed.
endosperm: the nutritive tissue outside the embryo in a seed.
ensiform: sword-shaped, ± rhomboid in cross section.
entire: with a continuous margin completely lacking teeth; hairs may be present.
epharmone: a form that is assumed in response to certain environmental conditions and that is stable only as long as those conditions obtain; hence epharmonic.
epicalyx: a calyx-like structure immediately below the true calyx.
epicorolline: inserted upon the corolla.
epigeal: above ground, especially of cotyledons.
epigynous: borne on the ovary; of a fl. in which stamens and perianth arise level with or above the top of the ovary which is adnate to the surrounding receptacle.
epimatium: in Podocarpaceae, a scale ± fused with the integument and partly or completely surrounding the ovule. Fig. 4.
epipetalous: borne on the petals or corolla.
epiphyte: a plant growing upon another but not organically connected with it; hence epiphytic.
equitant: folded over as if astride; of opp. lvs folded longitudinally and over-lapping in their lower parts.
erose: with an irregular margin as if gnawed; hence erosulate.
erubescent: inclined to be reddish.
-escent: suffix signifying "inclined to be" or "becoming".
eusporangiate: with each sporangium originating from a group of cells, its wall > 1 cell thick.
exarch: used of vascular bundles in which the first-formed elements of the wood lie at the outside of the primary strand.
excurrent: running out beyond the margin or apex, as the veins in some lvs.
exindusiate: without an indusium. Fig. 1.
exine: the outer coat of a pollen grain.
exotic: not native; foreign.
explanate: spread out flat.
exserted: projecting, as the stamens beyond the corolla; not included.
exstipulate: without stipules.
extrorse: directed outwards, used of anther dehiscence.
eye: a conspicuous spot, as the differently coloured centre of the corolla in spp. of Forstera and Utricularia.
falcate: sickle-shaped; strongly curved.
farinose: having a mealy appearance.
fascicle: a close cluster or bundle; hence fascicled, fasciculate.
fastigiate: with the branches ± erect and close to the axis.
fellfield: very open vegetation made up, for the most part, of very low-growing plants, mostly of high mountains; or the rather stony places where such vegetation grows.
ferruginous: rust-coloured.
fertile: producing seed, spores or pollen capable of germination.
fibrillose: finely fibrous.
filament: thread-like organ, especially the stalk of the stamen bearing the anther.
filiform: thread-like; very slender, but less so than capillary.
fimbriate: fringed; dimin. fimbrillate.
fistular: hollow and cylindrical; hence fistulate, fistulose.
flabellate, flabelliform: fan-shaped.
flaccid: limp, not rigid.
flagelliform: long and very slender, like a whip-lash.
flexible: easily bent but recovering.
flexuous: having a wavy or zigzag form.
floccose: clad in tufts of soft woolly hairs, us. easily removed.
floret: a small fl., used especially of the individual fls in a composite head or in a grass spikelet.
flushed: of wet ground where water flows but not in a definite channel.
foliaceous: leaflike.
-foliate: -leaved.
-foliolate: bearing leaflets.
foliose: bearing numerous or crowded lvs.
follicle: a dry dehiscent fr. formed from one carpel and dehiscing along one side; hence follicular.
fornicate: provided with small scales; in a particular sense of the corolla-tube in some spp. of Myosotis where the "scale" is an inpushing of the corolla.
foveate: pitted; dimin. foveolate.
free-central: of a placenta arising from the base of a unilocular ovary, but not reaching the apex.
frond: a leaf, used especially of ferns.
fruit: the ripened ovary containing the seeds; often used to include associated parts such as fleshy receptacle.
fruticose: shrubby.
fugaceous: falling very early, as some petals and sepals.
fulvous: tawny; dull yellow with a mixture of grey or brown.
funicle: the stalk of an ovule attaching it to the ovary wall or placenta.
funnelform: with the tube gradually widening upwards.
furcate: forked.
furfuraceous: scurfy; provided with soft scales.
furrowed: with ± parallel, us. longitudinal, grooves or channels.
fuscous: of a brownish or greyish brown colour.
fusiform: spindle-shaped; of a solid ± swollen in the middle and narrowed to both ends.
galea: a hooded portion of a perianth; hence galeate, helmet-shaped.
gametophyte: the body produced by the germinating spore and bearing sexual organs; in lycopods and ferns a small separate plant.
gamopetalous: with the petals united, at least at the base.
gamosepalous: with the sepals united, at least at the base.
geminate: twinned; arranged in pairs.
geniculate: with a knee-like bend.
gibbous: somewhat swollen on one side, us. near the base, forming a pouch or sac.
glabrescent: becoming glabrous.
glabrous: without hairs of any sort.
gladiate: sword-shaped.
gland: a secreting organ or part, the secretion oil, resin or other liquid; hence glandular, bearing glands or of the nature of a gland.
glaucous: of a distinctly bluish green colour, not necessarily due to a bloom; hence glaucescent, slightly glaucous or becoming so.
glochidium: a small barbed spine, as in the frs of Acaena; pl. glochidia; hence glochidiate.
glomerule: a very dense cluster; hence glomerulate.
glume: a small chaffy or membranous bract, especially at the base of a grass spikelet or subtending a sedge flower; hence glumaceous.
gradate: in steps; used of fern sori where the sporangia mature in regular succession from top to base of sorus.
granular: covered in small grain-like bodies; minutely mealy.
gynandrous: having the stamens adnate to the gynoecium as in orchids.
gynobasic: of a style appearing to be inserted at the base of an ovary.
gynodioecious: having ♀ and perfect fls on separate plants.
gynoecium: the female part of the fl. made up of one or more carpels.
gynomonoecious: having ♀ and perfect fls on the same plant.
gynophore: a stalk or stipe raising the base of the ovary above the level of attachment of the perianth.
habit: the general appearance of a plant.
habitat: the kind of place in which a plant grows.
halophyte: a plant growing within the influence of salt water; hence halophytic.
haptotype: a term sts used "where any doubt exists that the original author actually handled a certain specimen, even though it is labelled with the same data as quoted in his description".
hastate: shaped like an arrowhead, with the basal lobes pointed or narrow and spreading at a wide angle. Fig. 39.
haustoria: the absorbing organs of a parasite or hemiparasite.
hemiparasite: a plant attached to and deriving part of its nourishment from another living plant.
herb: any vascular plant which is not woody; hence herbaceous.
herbfield: vegetation, us. closed, distinguished by the abundance of various large herbs.
hermaphrodite: having both stamens and carpels.
hetero-: prefix meaning dissimilar.
heteroblastic: with 2 (or more) distinct kinds of shoot; used especially when the shoots of the older plant differ from those of younger stages, e.g. in Pittosporum turneri.
heterogamous: with 2 or more kinds of fls, e.g. of the heads of many Compositae where ray florets differ from disk florets.
heterosporous: with 2 kinds of spores, as in Isoetes.
heterostyly: the condition where the length of the style in relation to other floral parts is not the same in all plants of a species, e.g. spp. of Fuchsia; hence heterostylous.
hilum: the scar on the seed marking the place of attachment of its stalk.
hirsute: bearing coarse hairs.
hispid: bearing stiff ± bristle-like hairs; dimin. hispidulous.
hoary: clad in close whitish hairs.
holophyte: a plant with its growth maintained entirely by its own organs.
holotype: the one specimen or other element used by the author or designated by him as the nomenclatural type.
homochlamydeous: with the perianth parts similar.
homogamous: with one kind of floret only as of the heads of some Compositae.
homosporous: with spores of one kind only.
hyaline: thin and translucent.
hybrid: a plant whose parents differ sufficiently to be accorded distinct specific or infraspecific rank. Hybrids or putative hybrids between two spp. of the same genus are designated by a formula and, whenever it seems useful or necessary, by a name; the formula consists of the specific epithets of the two parents in alphabetical order connected by the multiplication sign; the name, which is subject to the same rules as names of spp., is distinguished by the multiplication sign before the epithet. e.g. Coprosma propinqua × robusta = Coprosma × cunninghamii.
hydathode: a water-pore or structure which exudes water.
hypanthium: a cup-like structure produced by the fusion of the bases of the floral envelopes and androecium, often referred to as a calyx-tube.
hypocotyl: the axis of the seedling between the cotyledons and the root.
hypogeal: below ground, especially of cotyledons.
hypogynous: borne below the ovary: of a fl. in which perianth and stamens arise below the ovary.
imbricate: overlapping, like roof-tiles; in buds, with the edges of organs overlapping, but not regularly.
immersed: ± embedded, as of sori of Hymenophyllaceae that are marginal or terminal on lobes but ± surrounded by lf-tissue.
imparipinnate: pinnate, with a single terminal pinna.
impressed: sunk below the level of the surface.
incertae sedis: of uncertain position.
incised: deeply sharply sts irregularly cut; hence incisure.
included: not protruding beyond the investing envelope.
incrassate: thickened.
incumbent: resting or leaning upon; of cotyledons lying face to face with the back of one against the radicle; see p. 174.
indehiscent: not opening to release its contents, except finally by decay.
indigenous: native to a particular area; not introduced; hence indigene.
indumentum: used as a general term for a covering of hairs of any form.
induplicate: with the edges folded or turned in.
indurated: hardened and toughened.
indusium: an outgrowth of tissue ± covering the sorus in some ferns; hence indusiate. Fig. 1, 2. Also used for a cup-shaped membrane (pollen-cup) in Goodeniaceae.
inferior: situated below another organ or part; an inferior ovary is surrounded by and fused with the receptacle and so is below the insertion of the perianth.
inflexed: turned sharply inwards.
inflorescence: a general term for a collection of flowering parts, or for the arrangement of the fls.
infructescence: a collection of fruiting parts, or the arrangement of the frs.
infundibuliform: funnelform.
inserted: attached to or growing upon; hence insertion, the place or mode of attachment.
insolated: exposed to the direct rays of the sun.
integument: a covering; used especially of the covering of the nucellus of an ovule. Fig. 4.
internode: the part of an axis between two nodes.
interpetiolar: between the petioles; often applied to the coalescent stipules of 2 opp. lvs as in Coprosma. Fig. 26-29.
interrupted: with broken continuity.
intravaginal: within the sheath.
introduced: of a species that is not native to the country but has been brought in by accident or design.
introgression: the modification of a sp. by acquisition of characters from another ± closely related taxon by a mechanism of crossing and back-crossing.
introrse: facing inwards or towards the axis; often applied to anthers that open towards the centre of a fl.
involucre: one or more whorls of bracts, often ± calyx-like, surrounding an aggregation of fls; hence involucral, involucrate; dimin. involucel, involucellate.
involute: rolled inwards or to the upper (adaxial) side.
irregular: of fls that are not radially symmetrical; used here of fls that are divisible into equal halves along one plane only.
iso-: prefix meaning equal.
isobilateral: with the two sides similar.
isomerous: with the numbers of parts equal, as when a fl. has an equal number of sepals, petals, and stamens.
isotype: a duplicate of the holotype.
jordanon: a true-breeding group of similar individuals plainly distinct from any other such group.
jugate: yoked together as a pair; used mainly of the pairs in a pinnate lf.
keel: a sharp central ridge, like the keel of a boat; used also of the united anterior petals of a papilionaceous fl.
labellum: a lip; in an orchid fl. a well-differentiated petal which, though truly posterior, us. comes to lie in front because of a twist in the ovary.
labiate: lipped; often applied to a calyx or corolla that is divided into two unequal parts.
lacerate: irregularly torn or cleft.
laciniate: deeply, us. irregularly, divided into very narrow pointed segs.
lacuna: a gap; used of space enclosed by but free from veins; hence lacunose.
lamina: a thin flat organ or part, especially the expanded portion or blade of a lf.; pl. laminae; hence laminate; dimin. lamella, lamellate.
lanate: clad in woolly hairs, these us. intertwined.
lanceolate: lance-shaped; of a lf several times longer than wide with greatest width about one third from base, tapering gradually to apex and more rapidly to base. Fig. 38.
latex: milky juice.
lax: loosely arranged or distantly placed.
leaflet: one element of a compound lf.
lectotype: a specimen or other element selected from the original material to serve as a nomenclatural type when the holotype was not designated at the time of publication or for so long as it is missing.
legume: a simple one-celled and 2-valved fr. us. dehiscing along 2 margins. Also used as a name for members of the Leguminosae.
lemma: the lower of the 2 bracts enclosing a grass floret.
lenticel: a corky spot on young bark functioning as a stoma, as in Hymenanthera; hence lenticellate.
lenticular: of the shape of a ± circular biconvex lens.
lepidote: clad in scurfy scales.
leptosporangiate: with each sporangium originating from a single superficial cell, its wall consisting of a single layer of cells.
liane: a woody climbing plant; hence lianoid.
ligule: a strap-shaped body, as the limb of the corolla in florets of many Compositae. Also the thin scarious appendage at the junction of lamina and sheath in most grasses, sts reduced to hairs. Hence ligulate.
limb: the expanded part of a petal or sepal.
line: as a measurement, 1/12 inch, = c. 2 mm.
linear: very narrow with parallel margins. Fig. 38.
lingulate: tongue-shaped.
linneon: a polymorphic group, us. united in floras under the designation of a single sp., consisting of 2 or more jordanons often linked by their hybrids and confused by epharmonic variation.
lip: one of the 2 parts of a bilabiate calyx or corolla. Also the labellum of an orchid fl.
lobe: a recognizable but not separated division of a lf or lf-part, especially when rounded; hence lobed, lobate; dimin. lobule, lobulate.
locule: a compartment or cavity of an organ, e.g. of ovary, fr., or anther.
loculicidal: opening into a loculus; of dehiscence by the splitting of the outer wall of each loculus.
lodicule: a partly swollen scale at the base of the ovary in grasses; us. 2, occ. 3, present.
lomentum: a legume or pod constricted between the seeds.
lophate: of pollen grains with polygonal lacunae enclosed by definite ridges.
lorate: strap- or thong-shaped.
lucid: with a shining surface.
lunate: with the shape of a crescent moon; dimin. lunulate.
lurid: dingy brown or yellow.
lyrate: pinnatifid or pinnatisect with the terminal lobe large and rounded, the lower lobes much smaller.
macrosporangium: a sporangium containing macrospores, the larger kind of spore in heterosporous plants.
maculate: spotted or blotched with another colour.
mammillate: with nipple- or teat-shaped projections.
massula: a rounded mass of hardened cytoplasmic foam containing one or more spores in Salviniales; pl. massulae.
median: belonging to the middle.
megasporangium: a sporangium containing megaspores, the larger kind of spore in heterosporous plants.
megasporophyll: a ± modified lflike structure bearing megasporangia; in Angiospermae the carpel.
membranous: thin and ± pliable.
mericarp: a half-fruit of a schizocarp, as in Umbelliferae. Fig. 16.
-merous: denoting parts and used mainly of floral organs, e.g. pentamerous (5-merous), having the sepals, petals, etc. in whorls of 5.
mesarch: used of vascular bundles in which the first-formed elements of the wood lie in the middle of the primary strand.
mesocarp: the middle layer of a pericarp.
micropyle: the minute opening in the integuments of the ovule through which the pollen-grain or -tube enters. Fig. 4.
microsporangium: a sporangium containing microspores, the smaller kind of spore in heterosporous plants.
microsporophyll: a ± modified lflike structure bearing microsporangia; in Angiospermae, the stamen.
midrib: the main central vein of a lf or similar organ.
mixed: used of fern sori where the sporangia do not mature in any regular succession from top to base of the sorus.
monadelphous: in one group as of stamens all united by their filaments into a tube or column.
moniliform: constricted at short intervals and so appearing like a string of beads.
monoblastic: with only one kind of shoot; contrasted with heteroblastic.
monochlamydeous: having only one series of perianth segs.
monoecious: having unisexual fls, ♂ and ♀ on the same plant.
monopodial: of a stem in which growth is continued from year to year by the same apical growing point.
monotypic: having only one representative, as a genus with only one sp.
mucro: a short sharp tip or excurrent midrib; hence mucronate, dimin. mucronulate. Fig. 39.
multicipital: with many heads, referring especially to the stock of a single root bearing many short branches.
multifarious: many-ranked.
multifid: cleft into many lobes or segs.
muricate: rough owing to many minute hard outgrowths; dimin. muriculate.
muticous: blunt, lacking a distinct process.
naked: of a part lacking bracts or appendages or of a fl. lacking a perianth.
napiform: turnip-shaped.
native: not known to have been introduced by human agency.
navicular: shaped like a row-boat.
nectary: a gland exuding the sweet fluid called nectar.
neotype: a specimen selected to serve as nomenclatural type for so long as all of the material on which the name of the taxon was based is missing.
nerve: a strand of conducting and us. strengthening tissue in a lf or similar structure.
neuter: of a fl. lacking sexual organs.
node: a place on a stem marked by the attachment of one or more lvs.
nodose: knotty or knobby; dimin. nodulose.
nodule: a small ± spherical swelling; hence nodular.
nomen nudum: a name published without an accompanying description.
nucellus: the inner tissue of an ovule, enclosing the embryo-sac and surrounded by the integuments.
nude: bare, without secondary parts or organs.
nut: an indehiscent 1-seeded fr. with hard woody wall; dimin. nutlet, sts applied to the hard seed-like divisions of a fr. as in Boraginaceae.
ob-: signifies inversion, e.g. obcordate and cordate. Fig. 39.
obdiplostemonous: with the stamens in two whorls, the outer opp. the petals, the inner opp. the sepals.
oblique: with the sides unequal. Fig. 39, Griselinia lucida lf-base.
oblong: longer than broad, with parallel margins and rounded ends. Fig. 38.
obovoid: of a solid body, as a seed, obovate in outline.
obsolete: not obvious, rudimentary, poorly developed; hence obsolescent.
obtuse: blunt. Fig. 39.
ocellate, oculate: having patches of colour ± resembling eyes.
ochraceous: ochre-coloured; dull yellow with tinge of red.
ochrea: a tubular sheath at the node formed by the fusion of two stipules round the stem as in Polygonaceae; pl. ochreae; hence ochreate.
operculum: a lid or cover, separating by ± circular line of division as in fr. of Plantago, Pomaderris.
opposite: of a pair of organs arising at the same level on opp. sides of the stem.
orbicular: rounded in outline, with length = width. Fig. 38.
orthotropous: of an ovule with its axis in a straight line with the funicle, the micropyle remote from the placenta.
osseous: bony.
oval: broadly elliptic, narrowing somewhat from the middle to rounded ends Fig. 38.
ovary: the part of the gynoecium that encloses the ovules.
ovate: egg-shaped, attached by the broad end. Fig. 38.
ovoid: of a solid body with an ovate outline.
ovule: the structure which contains the egg or female sex-cell and which, after fertilisation, develops into the seed.
pakihi: open or barren land; used especially of flat badly drained areas of the western part of South Id with a characteristic vegetation of shrubby and rush-like plants; see p. 776.
palate: a prominent part closing the throat of a personate corolla.
palea: a chaffy scale; (a) the upper of the 2 bracts enclosing a grass floret; (b) scales on the receptacle amongst the florets of many Compositae; (c) scales on various parts of ferns; hence paleate, paleaceous.
palmate: radiately lobed or divided; hence palmatifid, palmatisect. Fig. 40.
pandurate, panduriform: fiddle-shaped; ± obovate but with a "waist". Fig. 38.
panicle: an indeterminate branched infl. with the fls pedicellate; hence panicled, paniculate.
pantropical: throughout the tropics.
papilionaceous: butterfly-like; of a corolla with the parts in the form and arrangement of those in Carmichaelia.
papilla: minute pimple-like process; hence papillate, papillose.
pappus: a persistent calyx of special form crowning the achene in most Compositae; parts are us. ∞ simple or feathery hairs or bristles, or sts scales.
parasite: a plant attached to and deriving nourishment from another living plant; hence parasitic.
paratype: a specimen cited with the original description other than the holotype or. isotype(s).
parietal: pertaining to the wall; placentation is parietal when the ovules are borne on the walls of the ovary or on minute projections therefrom.
paripinnate: evenly pinnate, i.e. without a terminal lflt.
partite: deeply divided.
patent: spreading ± at right angles to the axis.
pauci-: prefix meaning few.
pectinate: divided in comb-like fashion, with the segs narrow and close-set.
pedicel: the stalk of an individual fl. in a compound infl.; hence pedicellate.
peduncle: the stalk of a solitary fl. or main stalk of a compound infl.; hence pedunculate.
pellicle: a thin skin-like covering.
peltate: shield-like, with the stalk attached well inside the margin. Fig. 1, 39.
penicillate: provided with a brush of hairs.
pentamerous: 5-merous, with organs or parts in fives.
perennial: with a life-span of > 2 years.
perfect: of fls with both male and female elements present and functional.
perfoliate: of a sessile lf or bract completely encircling the axis, so having the stem apparently passing through it.
perianth: the floral envelopes considered as a whole; used especially when the calyx and corolla are not well differentiated in form, or when either one is absent.
pericarp: the wall of the ripened ovary, i.e. of the fruit.
perigynous: surrounding the ovary; of a fl. in which perianth and stamens arise from the edge of a ± cup-shaped receptacle, surrounding but free from the ovary.
perisperm: food reserve in a seed, formed from the nucellus.
perispore: a membrane surrounding a spore.
personate: of a 2-lipped corolla . when the throat is almost closed by a palate, as in Mimulus.
perulate: bearing scales.
petal: a unit of the corolla, when completely free; hence petaloid, resembling a petal.
petiole: the stalk of a lf; hence petiolate.
petiolule: the stalk of a lflt; hence petiolulate.
phanerogams: general term to include all seed-plants (Spermatopsida).
phyllary: an individual bract of an involucre as in the capitulum of a member of the Compositae.
phylloclade: a ± flattened stem functioning as a lf.
phyllode: a widened petiole with the functions of a lf-blade.
phyllotaxy: the arrangement of lvs or floral envelopes on an axis.
piliferous: bearing hairs.
pilose: bearing soft shaggy hairs.
pinna: a division, especially a primary division, of a pinnate lf; dimin. pinnule.
pinnate: compound, with the parts arranged on either side of an axis, as in a feather; hence pinnatifid, pinnatisect. Fig. 40.
pistil: the gynoecium; hence pistillate, of fls with gynoecium but without functional stamens, ♀.
placenta: the place or part in an ovary where the ovules are attached.
placentation: the arrangement of the placentae within the ovary, e.g. axile, free-central, parietal.
plastic: influenced in form by the environment.
plicate: folded into pleats, us. lengthwise.
plumose: feather-like.
plumule: the primary shoot-bud of an embryo.
pollen: the microspores of a flowering plant or conifer.
pollination: the transference of the pollen to the receptive surface of the female organ.
pollinium: a coherent mass of pollen, as in fls of orchids.
polyadelphous: in many sets, as of stamens grouped in several bundles.
polygamous: bearing unisexual and bisexual fls on the same plant.
polygamo-dioecious: of a species that is mainly dioecious, but includes plants bearing a few fls of the opp. sex, or sts a few perfect fls.
polymorphic: of several forms; used mainly of spp. with several forms on different plants.
polypetalous: with a corolla of free petals.
polysepalous: with a calyx of free sepals.
poricidal: opening or dehiscing by pores.
posterior: on the side nearest the axis and so appearing at the back.
prickle: a small sharp outgrowth of superficial origin.
procumbent: lying ± flat along the ground but not rooting.
protandrous: with the anthers shedding pollen before the stigma is receptive in the same fl.
prothallus: a small body produced by the germinating spore and bearing sexual organs.
protogynous: with the stigma receptive before the pollen is shed in the same fl.
protostelic: used of a stem structure characterised by a solid central core of vascular tissue.
proximal: towards the attached, as opposed to the free or distal, end of an organ.
pruinose: bearing a waxy or powdery bloom on the surface.
pseudo-: prefix meaning false.
pubescent: clad in short soft hairs; dimin. puberulous, puberulent.
pulvinate: of cushion-like form; growing in dense cushions.
pulvinus: a cushion-like mass, used especially of the swelling at the base of some lvs or lflts.
punctate: with dot-like markings, frequently due to translucent or coloured glands; dimin. punctulate, punctulose.
pungent: (a) ending in a stiff sharp point; (b) acrid to the taste.
pustular: bearing minute blister-like processes.
pyrene: a seed with a bony endocarp, us. when there are several in a fleshy fr.
pyriform: pear-shaped.
quadrifarious: arranged in 4 close-set rows along an axis, as lvs in many spp. of Hebe.
raceme: an unbranched, ± elongate, indeterminate infl. with stalked fls, those at the base the oldest; hence racemose.
radiate: diverging from or arranged around a common centre, as the spokes of a wheel. Also, bearing ray florets, as in many Compositae.
radical: of lvs, arising from the stock or crown of a root, or from a rhizome.
radicant: rooting, us. applied to stems or lvs.
radicle: the primary root of an embryo.
ray: an outer ring of strap-like florets in the head of fls in Compositae. Also a pedicel forming part of an umbel.
ray-florets: in Compositae, the outer florets of the capitulum when these are ligulate and distinct from the inner or disk-florets.
receptacle: the ± expanded termination of the stalk on which the fl. or fl.-head is borne.
recurved: curved backwards.
reflexed: bent sharply backwards.
regular: symmetrical; of fls radially symmetrical = actinomorphic.
reniform: kidney-shaped.
repand: shallowly sinuate.
replum: a frame-like placenta from which the valves fall away in dehiscence, as in Carmichaelia. Fig. 15.
resupinate: twisted through 180°, as the fl. of many orchids.
reticulate: in the form of a network.
retrorse: bent backwards or downwards, us. abruptly, as some hairs in Myosotis. Fig. 32.
retuse: with the apex rounded with a small notch. Fig. 39.
reversion shoot: a branch on an adult plant, bearing lvs of juvenile form.
revolute: rolled outwards or to the lower (abaxial) side.
rhachis: the axis of an infl. or of a compound lf; pl. rhachides; dimin. rhachilla.
rhizome: an underground stem, us. spreading ± horizontally; hence rhizomatous.
rhomboid: ± "diamond"-shaped. Fig. 38.
rootstock: a short erect underground stem; see also stock.
rosette: a group of organs radiating from a centre; used especially where the lowest internodes of a stem are very short with numerous, ± overlapping lvs which may be ± appressed to the soil; hence rosulate.
rostellum: a small beak; used especially for a sterile process of the stigmatic area in orchids.
rostrate: beaked.
rotate: wheel-shaped; of a gamopetalous corolla with a flat circular limb at right angles to a very short or obsolescent tube as in some spp. of Solanum.
rugose: wrinkled; dimin. rugulose.
runcinate: pinnately and rather sharply lobed with the lobes directed backwards. Fig. 38.
runner: a slender ± prostrate or arching lateral stem rooting at the nodes.
rupestral: growing on rocks.
sac: a pouch-like structure; hence saccate.
sagittate: in the form of an arrowhead with the basal lobes at a narrow angle to the stalk. Fig. 39.
salverform: of a gamopetalous corolla with a ± long slender tube abruptly expanded into the flat limb. Fig. 30, Myosotis elderi.
saprophyte: a plant that obtains its food from dead organic matter; hence saprophytic.
sarmentose: producing long flexuous runners or stolons.
satiny: of an indumentum of fine silky hairs closely appressed to form a complete, very smooth and ± shining cover.
scabrid, scabrous: rough to the touch because of minute harsh projections; dimin. scabridulous, scaberulous.
scale: any small, ± lflike organ, often dry and membr.
scandent: climbing, us. without special climbing organs.
scape: a lfless ± elongate peduncle arising from the crown, with or without scales or bracts; hence scapiform, scapose, like a scape; scapigerous, bearing scapes.
scarious: very thin, dry and ± translucent.
schizocarp: a dry fr. which splits into 1-seeded portions or mericarps when ripe, as in Umbelliferae.
scorpioid: of a cymose infl., with the young axis coiled like the tail of a scorpion.
scree: loose, ± moving, stony debris.
scrobiculate: marked by minute depressions.
scurfy: with scale-like or bran-like particles.
scutate: shield-shaped.
secund: one-sided, with all the fls, lvs or other parts appearing to be arranged along one side of the axis.
seed: the reproductive body formed from a fertilised ovule.
segment: an individual free part of an organ.
semi-: prefix meaning half.
sepal: one separate part of a calyx of free members, especially when green and ± lflike; hence sepaloid.
septicidal: dividing along a septum; of dehiscence by the breaking apart of the fused carpel walls that form the septa between loculi.
septum: a partition or cross-wall; pl. septa; hence septate, divided by partitions.
sericeous: silky; clad in soft simple ± appressed hairs.
serotinous: produced late in the season.
serrate: sharply toothed, with the teeth pointing forward; hence serrature; dimin. serrulate. Fig. 40.
sessile: without a stalk.
seta: a fine bristle-like structure; hence setaceous, setose; dimin. setulose.
sheath: a ± tubular structure enclosing an organ or part, as the sheath of a grass lf.
shrub: a woody plant of not very large size, and lacking a distinct trunk.
silique (siliqua): a capsule, us. 2-celled, with 2 valves falling away from a frame (replum) bearing the seeds, characteristic of Cruciferae; dimin. silicle (silicula) used when length is not or little > 3 × width. Fig. 8.
silky: with a covering of very fine, ± appressed, lustrous hairs.
simple: not divided into several ± similar separate parts; contrasted with compound.
sinuate: with shallow broad waves to the margin but not undulate. Fig. 40.
sinuous: shallowly curved.
sinus: the recess between 2 lobes or segs; in Hebe lf-buds, the gap between the bases of the two lvs of a pair. Fig. 36.
siphonostelic: used of a stem structure characterized by a tubular vascular region surrounding a central pith.
sordid: of an impure or dirty white appearance, especially of the pappus-hairs of some Compositae.
sorus: a cluster of sporangia, as in most ferns; pl. sori. Fig. 1.
spadix: a spicate infl. with thick fleshy axis, us. subtended by a spathe.
spathe: a large bract ± enclosing an infl., often coloured when surrounding a spadix.
spathulate (spatulate): spoon-shaped. Fig. 38.
spike: an unbranched, ± elongate, indeterminate infl. with sessile fls, those at the base the oldest; hence spicate.
spine: a stout woody process with sharp point; hence spinose, spinous; dimin. spinulose.
sporangiophore: a stalk bearing a sporangium.
sporangium: a sac or other structure containing spores. Fig. 1.
spore: a simple, asexual, us. 1-celled reproductive body, as in ferns.
sporocarp: a thick-walled body containing sporangia, as in Pilularia.
sporophyll: a ± modified lflike structure bearing sporangia.
sporophyte: the plant which bears not sexual organs but asexual spores; in lycopods and ferns the ordinary plant.
spur: a sac or tubular part, often nectar-secreting, of a petal or sepal; hence spurred.
squama: a rather coarse scale: pl. squamae; hence squamose, squamulose.
squarrose: with spreading or projecting points.
stamen: a pollen-bearing organ, composed of an anther with pollen-sacs and its supporting stalk or filament; hence staminate, of fls with stamens but without functional carpels, ♂.
staminode: a barren stamen, us. lacking an anther, and sts petaloid.
standard: the us. broad upper or adaxial petal of a papilionaceous fl.
stellate: star-shaped.
sterile: not producing seed, spores or pollen capable of germination.
stigma: the part of the carpel that is receptive to pollen, us. found at or near the tip of the style; hence stigmatic.
stipes: a stalk; mainly used of the petiolar part of a fern lf; pl. stipites; hence stipitate.
stipule: one of a pair of scale-like or lflike appendages at the base of a petiole, sts ± adnate to the petiole, sts, as in Coprosma, connate with the stipule of the opp. lf; hence stipulate. Fig. 26-29.
stock: the tissue at the junction of the root and the stem, sts referred to as a crown or rootstock.
stolon: a stem, ± horizontal or arched or running along the ground, rooting and us. capable of forming a new plant at its tip; hence stoloniferous.
stoma: a pore in the epidermis, us. of distinctive shape, through which gases diffuse; pl. stomata (stomates).
stomium: the part of the sporangium-wall in ferns that ruptures during dehiscence.
stramineous: straw-coloured.
stria: a fine longitudinal line or minute ridge; pl. striae; hence striate.
strict: upright, straight, ± rigid.
strigose: with sharp, ± appressed hairs often ± swollen at the base; dimin. strigulose.
strobilus: a cone-like structure containing reproductive organs, as in lycopods and pines.
strophiole: an aril-like but hard appendage of a seed, at or near the micropyle; hence strophiolate.
style: the ± elongated part of the carpel between the ovary and the stigma; hence stylar.
stylopodium: the enlarged basal part of a style, as in some Umbelliferae.
sub-: prefix meaning somewhat, slightly, or not quite, e.g. subsessile.
suberose: corky in texture.
subshrub: a small plant with stems ± woody towards the base.
subtend: stand below, but us. close to, another organ, as a bract to its fl.
subulate: awl-shaped; tapering from a wider base to a sharp apex, ± circular in cross section.
sucker: a vegetative shoot of subterranean origin.
suffrutescent: slightly woody at base with herbaceous shoots.
sulcate: with longitudinal grooves, less pronounced than furrowed.
superior: situated above another part; a calyx is superior when it appears to spring from the top of the ovary; an ovary is superior when it is free from the receptacle, with the perianth and stamens inserted below or around it.
suture: a line or seam as formed at the junction of 2 margins; used especially of carpels where the dorsal suture represents the midrib, the ventral suture the fused margins bearing placenta and ovules.
sympetalous: with the petals united, at least at the base.
sympodium: an axis made up of the basal portions of several branches; the apex of each branch either dies or ends in an infl. while growth is continued by the activity of an axillary bud; hence sympodial.
synandrium: an androecium with the anthers coherent.
synangium: a concrescence of sporangia, as in Marattia. Fig. 1.
syncarpous: having the carpels united to one another.
syngenesious: with the anthers connate into a tube surrounding the style, as in the florets of the Compositae.
syntype: one of two or more specimens used by the author when no holotype was designated, or one of two or more specimens simultaneously designated as type.
taxon: a taxonomic group of any rank, e.g. family, genus, species, variety, etc.; pl. taxa.
tendril: a slender twining part of a climbing plant formed from the whole or part of a stem or lf.
tepal: an individual member of the perianth.
terete: circular in cross section, narrowly cylindrical or ± tapering.
terminal: borne at the end of a stem and limiting its growth.
ternate: arranged in or divided into threes, as the lvs of Melicope ternata; hence ternatifid, ternatisect.
testa: the outer coat of a seed.
tetra-: prefix meaning four.
tetrad: a group of four.
tetradynamous: with 6 stamens, 2 outer shorter than 4 inner, as in most Cruciferae.
tetramerous: 4-merous, with organs or parts in fours.
tetrapterous: 4-winged.
thallus: a plant body without differentiation into lf and stem, etc.; hence thalloid, thallose.
thorn: a branchlet modified into a short hard sharp process.
thyrse: a compact ± cone-shaped panicle.
tiller: a side shoot, as in grasses.
tomentum: a dense ± matted covering of soft ± appressed hairs; hence tomentose.
topotype: a specimen from the type locality.
torulose: cylindric or nearly so with constrictions or swellings at ± regular intervals, as pods of Notospartium torulosum.
trichome: any hair-like outgrowth of the epidermis.
trichotomous: 3-forked.
tricolpate: with 3 grooves, of pollen grains.
trifid: 3-cleft.
trifoliate: having 3 lvs; dimin. trifoliolate, with 3 lflts.
trifurcate: having 3 forks or branches.
trigonous: of a solid body triangular in section with the angles rounded.
trimerous: 3-merous, with organs or parts in threes.
trimorphic: occurring in 3 forms.
triquetrous: of a solid body triangular in section with angles sharp, faces ± concave.
truncate: appearing as though cut squarely across. Fig. 39.
tuber: a thickened, us. subterranean part of a stem or root, often asymmetrically swollen; hence tuberous.
tubercle: a small wart-like swelling; hence tuberculate.
tunic: a loose membrane investing a corm or bulb; hence tunicated.
turbinate: top-shaped.
type: a nomenclatural type is that constituent element of a taxon to which the name of the taxon is permanently attached.
type species: the species on which the genus is based.
type specimen: the single specimen to which the name of a species or of a taxon below the rank of species is permanently attached.
type variety: the variety including the type of the species.
umbel: an indeterminate infl., sts flat-topped, with pedicels arising from a common centre, and so often umbrella-shaped; dimin. umbellule, one part of a compound umbel; hence umbelliform, umbellate.
unarmed: devoid of spines, hooks or prickles.
uncinate: hooked at the tip, as the modified rhachilla of Uncinia.
undulate: waved in a plane at right angles to the surface. Fig. 40.
unilocular: having a single cavity.
uniseriate: arranged in a single row or series.
unisexual: of one sex only.
urceolate: hollow, swollen in lower part and contracted towards the mouth.
utricle: a thin loose cover enveloping some frs.
valvate: (a) of dehiscent frs, opening by valves; (b) of perianth segs in the bud, meeting by the edges without overlapping.
valve: a door-like, often separable part.
vascular: furnished with specialized conducting tissues.
vein: a strand of conducting and us. strengthening tissue in a lf or similar structure.
velutinous: velvety.
venation: the arrangement of the veins.
vernation: the arrangement of lvs in the bud stage.
vernicose: shining, as though varnished.
verrucose: marked with small wart-like excrescences.
versatile: of anthers attached to the filament at or near the middle and able to move freely.
verticillate: arranged in a circle or whorl about an axis.
vexillum: the us. broad upper or adaxial petal of a papilionaceous fl.
villous: clad in long soft hairs not matted together.
virgate: elongated, straight, slender and pliant, or composed of twigs of this form.
viscid, viscous: very sticky.
vitta: an oil-tube embedded in the pericarp of Umbelliferae, us. well seen in cross section of the fr.; pl. vittae; hence vittate.
whorl: an arrangement of 3 or more parts or organs at the same level round an axis; hence whorled.
wing: a thin membr. expansion of an organ or part. Also used of the lateral petals of a papilionaceous fl.
xerophilous: growing in dry places.
zygomorphic: having only one plane of symmetry; used especially of irregular fls.
