Leaf shape

Leaf shape
Chart illustrating leaf morphology terms. Click the image for the details.
Oddly pinnate, pinnatifid leaves (Apium graveolens, Celery).
Perfoliate bracts completely surrounding the plant stem (Lonicera sempervirens).
palmately compounded leafs
A single laciniate leaf of Adenanthos sericeus

In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms (botanical Latin terms in brackets):

  • Acicular (acicularis): Slender and pointed, needle-like
  • Acuminate (acuminata): Tapering to a long point
  • Acute: pointed, having a short sharp apex angled less than 90°
  • Aristate (aristata): Ending in a stiff, bristle-like point
  • Asymmetrical: With the blade shape different on each side of the midrib
  • Bipinnate (bipinnata): Each leaflet also pinnate
  • Compound: Not simple; the leaf is broken up into separate leaflets, and the leaf blade is not continuous
  • Cordate (cordata): Heart-shaped, with the petiole or stem attached to the cleft
  • Cuneate (cuneata): Triangular, stem attaches to point
  • Deltoid (deltoidea) or deltate: Triangular, stem attaches to side
  • Digitate (digitata): Divided into finger-like lobes
  • Elliptic (elliptica): Oval, with a short or no point
  • Falcate (falcata): Sickle-shaped
  • Filiform (filiformis): Thread- or filament-shaped
  • Flabellate (flabellata): Semi-circular, or fan-like
  • Hastate, spear-shaped (hastata): Pointed, with barbs, shaped like a spear point, with flaring pointed lobes at the base
  • Laciniate: Very deeply lobed, the lobes being very drawn out, often making the leaf look somewhat like a branch
  • Laminar: Flat (like most leaves)
  • Lance-shaped, lanceolate (lanceolata): Long, wider in the middle
  • Linear (linearis): Long and very narrow
  • Lobed (lobata): With several points
  • Mucronate: Ending abruptly in a sharp point[1]
  • Obcordate (obcordata): Heart-shaped, stem attaches to tapering point
  • Oblanceolate (oblanceolata): Top wider than bottom
  • Oblong (oblongus): Having an elongated form with slightly parallel sides
  • Obovate (obovata): Teardrop-shaped, stem attaches to tapering point
  • Obtuse (obtusus): With a blunt tip
  • Orbicular (orbicularis): Circular
  • Ovate (ovata): Oval, egg-shaped, with a tapering point
  • Palmate (palmata): Consisting of leaflets[2] or lobes[3] radiating from the base of the leaf.
  • Pedate (pedata): Palmate, with cleft lobes
  • Peltate (peltata): Rounded, stem underneath
  • Perfoliate (perfoliata): Stem through the leaves
  • Pinnate (pinnata): Two rows of leaflets
    • Odd-pinnate, imparipinnate: Pinnate with a terminal leaflet
    • Paripinnate, even-pinnate: Pinnate lacking a terminal leaflet
    • Pinnatifid and pinnatipartite: Leaves with pinnate lobes that are not discrete, remaining sufficiently connected to each other that they are not separate leaflets.
    • Bipinnate, twice-pinnate: The leaflets are themselves pinnately-compound
    • Tripinnate, thrice-pinnate: The leaflets are themselves bipinnate
    • Tetrapinnate: The leaflets are themselves tripinnate.
  • Pinnatisect (pinnatifida): Cut, but not to the midrib (it would be pinnate then)
  • Pungent: Having hard, sharp points.
  • Reniform (reniformis): Kidney-shaped
  • Retuse: With a shallow notch in a broad apex
  • Rhomboid (rhomboidalis): Diamond-shaped
  • Round (rotundifolia): Circular
  • Sagittate (sagittata): Arrowhead-shaped
  • Simple: Leaf blade in one continuous section, not divided into leaflets (not compound)
  • Spear-shaped: see Hastate.
  • Spatulate, spathulate (spathulata): Spoon-shaped
  • Subulate (subulata): Awl-shaped with a tapering point
  • Subobtuse (subobtusa): Somewhat blunted, neither blunt nor sharp
  • Sword-shaped (ensiformis): Long, thin, pointed
  • Trifoliate (or trifoliolate), ternate (trifoliata): Divided into three leaflets
  • Tripinnate (tripinnata): Pinnately compound in which each leaflet is itself bipinnate
  • Truncate (truncata): With a squared off end
  • Unifoliate (unifoliata): With a single leaf

See also

References

  1. ^ Mucronate, Answers.com, from Roget's Thesaurus.
  2. ^ "Cumulative Glossary for Vascular Plants". Flora of New South Wales. http://www.anbg.gov.au/glossary/fl-nsw.html. 
  3. ^ "palmate (adj. palmately)". GardenWeb Glossary of Botanical Terms. http://glossary.gardenweb.com/glossary/palmate.html. 

1


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • leaf shape — noun any of the various shape that leaves of plants can assume • Syn: ↑leaf form • Hypernyms: ↑natural shape • Part Holonyms: ↑leaf, ↑leafage, ↑foliage …   Useful english dictionary

  • Leaf — For other uses, see Leaf (disambiguation). The leaves of a Beech tree …   Wikipedia

  • leaf form — noun any of the various shape that leaves of plants can assume • Syn: ↑leaf shape • Hypernyms: ↑natural shape • Part Holonyms: ↑leaf, ↑leafage, ↑foliage …   Useful english dictionary

  • Leaf miner — is a term used to describe the larvae of many different species of insect which live in and eat the leaf tissue of plants. The vast majority of leaf mining insects are moths (Lepidoptera) and flies (Diptera), though some beetles and wasps also… …   Wikipedia

  • Leaf spot — Leaf Spots are round blemishes found on the leaves of many species of plants, mostly caused by parasitic fungi or bacteria. A typical spot is zonal , meaning it has a definite edge and often has a darker border. When lots of spots are present,… …   Wikipedia

  • leaf — leafless, adj. leaflike, adj. /leef/, n., pl. leaves /leevz/, v. n. 1. one of the expanded, usually green organs borne by the stem of a plant. 2. any similar or corresponding lateral outgrowth of a stem. 3. a petal: a rose leaf. 4. leaves… …   Universalium

  • Leaf — /leef/, n. Munro /mun roh /, 1905 76, U.S. author and illustrator of books for children. * * * I Any flattened, green outgrowth from the stem of a vascular plant. Leaves manufacture oxygen and glucose, which nourishes and sustains both plants and …   Universalium

  • Leaf spring — Originally called laminated or carriage spring , a leaf spring is a simple form of spring, commonly used for the suspension in wheeled vehicles. It is also one of the oldest forms of springing, dating back to medieval times.Sometimes referred to… …   Wikipedia

  • leaf — n 1. frond, leaflet, foliole, blade, All Bot. bract, bractlet, bracteole; flag, needle, pine needle, pad, lily pad; petal, seed leaf, Bot. cotyledon, Bot. calyx, Bot. sepal. 2. foliage, foliation, foliature; verdure, Bot. vernation, frondescence …   A Note on the Style of the synonym finder

  • leaf insect — /ˈlif ɪnsɛkt/ (say leef insekt) noun a phasmid which disguises itself in the shape and colour of a leaf, as the spiny leaf insect …  

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”