Glossary of Botanical Terms

The botanical terms below are those that occur in the Descriptions of the Flowers.

ADVENTITIOUS. Of organs or tissues developing  in an abnormal position, e.g. roots developing  from stems.

ANNUAL. A plant that completes its entire life  cycle in one year.

ANTHER. The pollen bearing organ of a flower.

 AQUATICS. Plants that grow naturally in water  (usually fresh water), either rooted in soil  or free-floating.

AURA. A ringlike area of colour that surrounds  the centre of a flower.

AXIL. The angle that a leaf or flower makes  with the stem or branch that bears it.

AXILLARY. Situated in or growing from an axil.

BASAL. Attached to the plant at soil level.

BIENNIAL. A plant that completes its life cycle  in two years, usually developing vegetative  growth during the first year and flowering,  fruiting and dying in the second.

BILABIATE. Two-lipped; a flower with the corolla  or calyx divided into two parts suggesting lips.

BRACT. A modified protective leaf, often  colourful, that usually surrounds the flower  or flower cluster.

BULB. A nearly spherical underground stem that serves as a storage organ, sending roots downwards and stems, leaves and flowers upwards. E.g. onion, lily.

BULBOUS. Having a bulb; growing from or bearing a bulb.

BUTTRESS. The broadened base of a tree trunk or a thickened vertical part of it.

BUTTRESS ROOT. A root, often adventitious, that helps to keep a plant upright.

CALYX (pi. calyces). The outer covering or cup of a flower, composed of modified leaves (usually green) that appear just beneath the petals of a flower. They may be joined or separate; if separate they are called sepals.

CAMPANULATE. Bell-shaped.

CANE. The hollow jointed stem of giant reeds and grasses or the solid stem of slender palms.

CATKIN. A type of flower spike, often pendulous and elongated, made up of tiny stalkless flowers that are very tightly clustered on the stem and often appear and feel soft.      E.g. Acalypha, Pussy willow.

CLAWED PETAL. A more or less broad petal with a long narrow stalklike base.

COMPOSITAE. One of the largest families of  flowering plants in which the flower is actually a head made up of disc and ray florets. E.g. Daisy, Sunflower, Chrysanthemum.

CORDATE. Heart-shaped.

CORM. A solid swollen underground bulblike stem that may be covered with a protective papery layer but has no separate layers as in a bulb. E.g. Gladiolus.

COROLLA. The circle or whorl of petals, usually colorful and showy, that form the inner envelope of a flower; it may be trumpet- shaped, funnel-form, two-lipped, etc.

CORONA. A crownlike or trumpet-shaped outgrowth that arises from the centre of a flower, inside the corolla. E.g. Daffodil.

CORYMB, CORYMBOSE. A raceme with the lower flower stalks longer than those above so that all the flowers are at the same level.

CRENATE. With notched or round-toothed edges.

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CULTIVAR. A horticultural variety that exhibits some special characteristic, such as larger or more brilliantly coloured flowers, which distinguishes it from the original species. It can occur naturally or through controlled hybridising and selection.

CYME. An inflorescence in which the terminal bud is a flower bud and subsequent flowers are borne in a similar way at the ends of lateral branches.

DECIDUOUS. Not evergreen; a plant that sheds all or nearly all of its foliage each year.

DIGITATE. Diverging from a central point, like the fingers of a hand. See also PALMATE.

DISC FLORETS. The tiny tubular flowers in the centre of the flower head of most Compositae, as distinguished from the ray florets. Occasionally the disc florets make up the whole flower head, as in Centaurea cyanus, the Bachelor's button. See also COMPOSITAE and RAY FLORETS.

DOUBLE FLOWER. A flower with many more than the usual number of petals.

EFFLORESCENCE. A flowering or blossoming forth.

EPIPHYTE. A plant that grows on another plant for support but does not derive its nourishment from it as parasites do. The exposed roots take nutrients only from the air and water.      E.g. Orchids.

EVERGREEN. A plant that retains the majority

of its green leaves throughout the year.

EXSERTED. Protruding from the surrounding  parts, as in stamens protruding from the  corolla.

FILAMENT. The slender stalk of the stamen which  bears the anther.

FLORET. A small flower, usually part of a dense  cluster or a head, as in Compositae. See DISC FLORETS and RAY FLORETS.

FLORIFEROUS. Producing many flowers.

FOLIAGE. Leaves; a cluster of leaves.

FOLIATE. Having leaves; having a specified number of leaves (bifoliate, trifoliate, etc.).

FUNNELFORM. Funnel-shaped; a flower that has a unified corolla in the shape of a funnel with a narrow tube gradually expanding into a wide flat limb. E.g. Morning glory.

GENUS (pi. genera). A taxonomic rank of plants (though occasionally only one plant) that are more or less closely related. Similar genera are grouped into a "family", the next higher order.

GLABROUS. Free from hair; smooth-skinned.

GLOBOSE. Globe-shaped; spherical.

GROUNDCOVER. Spreading and low-growing plants grown in mass.

HABIT. The particular form in which a plant tends naturally to grow.

HERB. A plant without woody stems, often valued for its savory, medicinal or aromatic qualities.

HERBACEOUS. Pertaining to herbs; not woody.

HORT. Indicates a plant name used by horticulturists that has no botanical standing.

HYBRID. A plant resulting from the cross- breeding of two different species of plants and possessing some of the characteristics of each parent plant.

INCURVED. Bent or curved inwards.

INFLORESCENCE. A general term for the flowering part of a plant; it may be an individual flower or many flowers grouped together.

LANCEOLATE. Lance-shaped; a leaf with the broadest part towards the base and tapering regularly to the tip.

LATEX. The milky juice of plants.

LIMB. The flat expanded part of the calyx or corolla which usually has a tubular base. E.g. Morning glory.

LIP. The upper and lower limbs of a bilabiate or two-lipped flower; or the lower central petal, especially of orchids, which is often of a different shape or is larger than the other petals and of a bright or contrasting colour. See also BILABIATE.

LOBE. Rounded segment of a divided flower or leaf.

MIDRIB. The main, usually central, rib of a leaf or leaflet or leaflike part; a continuation of the leaf stalk.

OBOVATE. Egg-shaped, with the narrow end towards the base.

ORBICULAR. Circular or nearly so.

OVARY. The part of the pistil that contains the future seed.

OVATE. Roughly egg-shaped, rounded at both ends but broadest below the middle.

OVATE-CORDATE. Egg-shaped in general outline but heart-shaped at the base.

OVOID. A solid body with the shape of an egg, such as the pseudobulbs of several species of orchids.

PALMATE. Hand-shaped; a leaf that is divided into fingerlike segments or lobes, usually fr resembling an open hand. (Digitate indicates a similar shape but without the palm; it is composed of separate fingerlike leaflets which are joined at a common stalk.)

PANICLE. An irregularly branched flower cluster in which a main stem gives rise to several branches, each bearing a number of stalked flowers, the newest flowers appearing at the top of each branch.   E.g.  Phlox.

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PAPILIONACEOUS. Butterfly-shaped; flowers resembling a butterfly, usually of the pea family.  E.g. Sweetpea.

PARASITE. A plant that lives in or upon another plant and draws nutrients directly from it.

PEDUNCLE. The stalk of a flower or inflorescence.

PELTATE. A leaf attached to the stalk on its underside, near the centre, not at the leaf- edge. E.g. Water-lily pad.

PENDULOUS. Hanging downwards. P

ERENNIAL. A plant that lives for more than two years, usually flowering every year.

PETAL. A segment of a divided corolla, usually coloured and more or less showy.

PINNATE. Feather-shaped: a compound leaf constructed somewhat like a feather, with leaflets arranged on both sides of a single leaf-stalk.

PISTIL. The female reproductive organ of a flower, consisting of, from the top down, the ovary, style and stigma.

PITHY. Stems and branches composed of or containing spongy tissue.

POLLEN. The fertilising powder contained in the anthers of flowers that carry the male sex cells.

PSEUDOBULB. A thickened portion of the stem borne above the ground as in certain orchids; it can be globose, club-shaped or cylindrical according to species.

PUBESCENT. Covered with short soft fine hairs.

RACEME. An elongated unbranched flower head in which each flower has a short individual stalk. The cluster grows from the tip, with older flowers near the base and new buds towards the tip.

RAMBLING. A weak-stemmed plant that leans on and scrambles over surrounding vegetation.

RAY FLORETS. Small elongated petal-shaped flowers that form the outer part of the flower head in most Compositae. Occasionally the ray florets make up the whole flower head, as in double Chrysanthemums. See also COMPOSITAE and DISC FLORETS.

RECURVED. Bent or curved downwards or backwards.

RENIFORM. Kidney-shaped.

RHIZOMATOUS. Producing basically horizontal stems on or under the ground which send up a succession of leaves or stems at the tip. The rhizome may be thick as in Iris or bamboo, or thin as in many grasses.

RHOMBOIDAL. A leaf having roughly the shape of a rhomboid; four-sided with opposite sides and angles even.

ROSETTE. Rose-shaped; a group of leaves arising from a short stem and lying close together in a roselike pattern near the ground.

ROTATE. Wheel-shaped; a flower with rounded petals radiating from the centre like the spokes of a wheel.

SAGITTATE. Shaped like an arrowhead with the barbs pointing backwards.

SALVERFORM. A corolla in which the lower part is long and tubular and the whole upper part spreads horizontally.

SCANDENT. Climbing.

SCAPE. A leafless flower stalk arising directly from the ground and bearing one or many flowers.  E.g. Narcissus, Zephyranthes.

SEMI-DOUBLE. A flower with more than the normal number of petals but not fully double.

SEPAL. A leaf or segment of a divided calyx, usually small and green but occasionally coloured and petal-like as in Waterlilies and Iris.

SERRATE. Saw-toothed; a type of leaf edge with angled teeth like a saw.

SESSILE. Stalkless; flowers or leaves without stalks that arise directly from the stem or shoot.

SHRUB. A woody plant that remains relatively low and produces many stems rather than a single trunk. See also SUBSHRUB.

SINGLE FLOWER. A flower with only one row of petals.

SP. An abbreviation for species. Used in this book with the generic name of a plant to indicate that the Mother gave the significance to one particular species but the general epithet has not been determined.

SPP. An abbreviation to indicate more than one species. Used in this book with the generic name of a plant to indicate that the Mother's significance applies to more than one species having the characteristics in the description.

SSP. An abbreviation for subspecies.

SPADIX. A thick fleshy flower spike in which the tiny flowers are usually embedded in the surface; it is commonly surrounded by a spathe. E.g. Anthurium, Calla lily, Spathiphyllum.

SPATHE. A large bract usually surrounding or enclosing a spadix or flower head; it may be leafy or fleshy and is often colourful.

SPATULATE. Spoon-shaped or spatula-shaped, broader towards the tip.

SPECIES. The members of a genus consisting of related plants capable of interbreeding. They may appear quite similar, differing only in a small detail, or look superficially different, revealing their similarity only under close examination, but they will always breed true to the main characteristic.

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SPIKE. A slender elongated flower cluster having numerous stalkless flowers; it is sometimes used loosely to refer to any elongated flower cluster.

SPIKELET. A secondary spike; the arrangement of flowers of certain grasses in which a spike gives rise to small crowded secondary spikes.

SPINE. A strong but relatively thin (hornlike growth on any part of a plant.

SPUR. A tubular or saclike projection from the base of a petal or sepal, usually containing nectar.

STAMEN. The male reproductive organ of a flower consisting of the filament and pollen-bearing anther.

STEM. The main stalk of a plant which bears the flowers and leaves.

STIGMA. The sticky uppermost part of the pistil which receives the pollen grains.

STRIATE. A linear mark on a surface that can be slightly ridged or furrowed.

STYLE. The more or less elongated tubular part of the pistil which channels the pollen from the stigma to the ovary.

SUBSHRUB. A shrubby perennial with woody stems at the base, or a very low shrub.

SUCCULENT. A plant whose stems and leaves are juicy, fleshy and often thick. Succulents are xerophytes, plants that can live under severe drought conditions by storing water.

TENDRIL. A slender leafless shoot that attaches itself to another body for support.

TERETE. Cylindrical and usually tapering at the ends.

TERMINAL. At the tip; borne at the end of a shoot limiting further growth.

TOMENTOSE. Covered with densely matted short woolly hairs.

TREE. A woody plant that produces one main trunk which branches at some distance from the ground and has a more or less distinct and elevated crown. TRIFOLIATE. Having three leaves, or a leaf having three leaflets.

TUBEROUS. Having a swollen stem or root, usually below the ground, that serves as a storage organ.

TWINER. A plant that grows by coiling around a support.

UMBEL. A flower cluster in which the flower stalks all arise from the same point at the end of the main stem, similar to an umbrella. The stalks often end in a set of smaller stalks which bear the flowers.

UNDERSHRUB. A small shrublike plant; often used synonymously with the term subshrub.

VARIEGATED. Marked with irregular patches of colour. There most common variegations are white or cream-white but pink, purple and yellow are also frequently seen.

VINE. A woody plant with a more or less slender stem that trails or climbs.

VISCID. Sticky; a plant with sticky hairs.

WHORL. A group of flowers or leaves radiating in a circle around the stem.

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