Plant terminology

Carl Linnaeus

Father of botany

Developed binomial system

Family suffix

-aceae

tribe suffix

-eae

Native plant

Historically occurs in a region without human involvement

Introduced plant

brought to a region through human involvement

Invasiveness depends on

harm to environment, economic or human health

Why does introduced not mean invasive

Not all introduced species cause issues in the environment or negatively affect human health or economics

Why does lacking vascular tissue constrain plant size or habitat?

Plant has less structure so it can only get nutrients and water with osmosis. Amount of intake is severely limited. With vascular tissue, it can control the flow of nutrients

Non vascular plants are restricted to moist environments because they can’t take up water and push it into extremities

Xylem

transports water and minerals UP

Phloem

transports water & minerals UP and DOWN

Vascular plants

• Vascular tissue

• Larger

• true roots, stems, leaves

• moves water up and down

  • Seeds and spores

Nonvascular plants

• no vascular tissue

• smaller, lower to ground

• no true roots, stems or leaves

• moves water/nutrients thru osmosis

• just has spores

Gymnosperms

No flowers or fruits

gymno - naked

appeared 200 mya

Angiosperms

Have flowers and fruit

Most diverse group of plants

Monocot

• One cotyledon

• Fibrous roots

• parallel veins

• leaves in 3

• always herbaceous

• Vascular bundle is scattered

• Pith and cortex not clearly separated

• No vascular cambium = no secondary growth

Dicots

• 2 cotyledons

• taproot

• netted veins

• leaves in 5

• woody or herbaceous

• Vascular bundle in a circle

• Distinct pith in center & cortex on outside

• Vascular cambium present = secondary growth

Agrostology

branch of botany focused on grasses (Family Poaceae)

Determinate growth

Oldest tissue at tip, youngest toward the base

Growth stops when the apical meristem differentiates into flower or inflorescence

1. Simple cyme

2. Compound cyme

Indeterminate growth

Youngest tissues at the apex, oldest toward base

Apical meristem remains active and continues to elongate

1. Raceme

2. Simple umbel

3. corymb

4. spike

5. panicle

6. head

culm

Hollow or pithy stalk or stem

Peduncle

main stalk that supports inflorescence

Inflorescence

arrangement of flowers on floral axis

Rachis

main axis of inflorescence

Pedicel

stalk of single flower in inflorescence

Sessile

something attached directly without a supporting stalk

• leaf without a petiole

• Spikelet without a pedicel

Spikelet

Made of a glumes and florets (lemma & palea)

Glume

pair of bracts at base of grass spikelet. Can be equal/unequal in size

Floret

1 to many per spikelet. Made of 2 bracts: lemma & palea

Simple cyme

Determinate inflorescence

Compound cyme

Determinate inflorescence

unbranched, elongated inflorescence with pedicellate flowers

Raceme

indeterminate inflorescence

No rachis, pedicle come from single point

Simple umbel

indeterminate inflorescence

lengthened pedicel

Corymb

indeterminate inflorescence

lacking pedicel

Spike

indeterminate inflorescence

branched

Panicle

indeterminate inflorescece

Dense cluster of sessile/subsessile flowers

Head

Indeterminate inflorescence

Caulescent

above-ground stem with leaves

Acaulescent

short stem with leaves close to the ground/basal leaves

Thorns

Modified stem. Comes from leaf axil

Spines

Modified leaves. Axillary bud at base

Prickles

Modified hair. Grows from epidermal tissue

Petiole

stalk joining leaf and stem

Simple leaf

Single leaf blade

Axillary bud at leaf-stem junction

Compound leaf

Multiple leaflets attached to petiole

Compound leaf types

Trifoliate: 3 leaflets

Even pinnate: no terminal leaflet

Odd pinnate: terminal leaflet

Palmate: leaflets from single point

Leaf arrangements

Alternate

Opposite

Whorled

Leaf venation

Pinnate: single main vein from base to tip (dicots)

Palmate: several main veins radiate from single point on leaf base

Parallel: veins run parallel to each other (monocots)

Leaf margins

Entire

Dentate: indents perpendicular to margin

Serrate: teeth point up

Revolute: leaf margin curls inward

pinnately lobed

Palmately lobed

Leaf attachment

Petiolate: stalk/petiole

Sessile: no petiole

Clasping: leaf grabs stem

Id floral symmetry?

Actinomorphic (radial)

2 or more planes of symmetry

Id floral symmetry?

zygomorphic (bilateral)

1 plane of symmetry

Id floral symmetry?

Asymmetrical

no plane of symmetry

The petals and sepals together makes the

Perianth

When the perianth is undifferentiated between petals and sepals is is

Tepals

group of petals

Corolla

Group of sepals

Calyx

Portion of pedicel upon which flower parts are born

Receptacle

Collective term for all male parts

Androecium

• stamen

  • (anther & filament)

Female part of a flower

Pistil/carpel

a pistil may consist of one or more carpels

Collective term for all pistils (carpels) parts

Gynoecium

• stigma

• style

• ovary: part of pistil where ovules develop into seeds after fertilization

• ovule: fertilized ovule develops into a seed

Ovary attached above point of attachment of the other floral whorls

Superior ovary (Hypogynous)

Ovary is attached beneath the point of attachment of other floral whorls

Inferior ovary (Epigynous)

the arrangement of ovules within a flower’s ovary

Placentation

Type of placentation?

Axile

# of locules = # of carpels

Type of placentation?

Parietal

# of locules = # of carpels

Floral formula order

Symmetry, Sepals, Petals, Stamens, Carpels

EX: *KCAG

ovary wall differentiates into 3 parts

1. exocarp

2. mesocarp

3. endocarp

Simple fruit

develop from single ovary of a single flower

EX: peaches, tomatoes, acorns

Aggregate fruit

Develop from multiple ovaries within a single flower

EX: blackberries, raspberries

Multiple fruits

develop from many flowers in an inflorescence that fuse together

ex: pineapples and figs

Accessory fruits

include non-ovarian tissue in structure

fleshy portion includes hypanthium or receptacle

EX: apples and strawberries