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An alphabetical listing of General terms and items. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Palate   A rounded projection of the lower lip of some irregular corollas, often closing the throat, as in Utricularia. Palea   The uppermost of the two scales forming the floret in a grass spikelet (often obscure). Palmate   Radiately lobed or divided, the axes of the individual segments originating at a common point or nearly so. Paludal   Pertaining to marshes. Pandurate   Fiddle-shaped. Panicle   An inflorescence composed of two or more racemes or racemiform corymbs. Paniculate   Bearing panicles Paniculiform   Panicle shaped. Pannate, Pannose   With a tight, densely tangled tomentum; Appearing felt-like. Panne   Typically, a moist interdunal depression, often scoured down to the water table, in calcareous sands on the lee sides of dunes near Lake Michigan -- the vegetation quite fen-like in composition. Papilionaceous   Butterfly-like; in the Fabaceae family particularly, having a corolla composed of a standard, keel, and two wing petals. Papilla   A minute, nipple-shaped projection. Papillate, Papillose   Bearing papillae; warty or tuberculate. Pappus   A modification of the calyx, usually in the Asteraceae family, such that the segments are manifest as a low crown, a ring of scales, or fine hairs. Papule   A single wart or tubercle. Parallel   Running side-by-side, from base to tip. Parallel-veined   A feature occurring largely in the Monocots, where, instead of a network, the observable veins are parallel to each other and the midrib, or nearly so. Parasite   A plant which grows on and derives nourishment from another living plant. Parenchymatous   Composed of thin-walled cells. Patina   A fine crust or film. Back to top Peat   Soil or substrate heavily invested with or even totally composed of partially decayed organic matter. Pectinate   Fringed or dissected in comb-like fashion. Pedicel   The stalk of a single flower in a cluster. Pedicellate   Having a pedicel. Peduncle   Characteristically referring to the second internode below a flower, but generally applied to any primary stalk which supports a head, flower cluster, or occasionally a single flower. Pedunculate   Having a peduncle. Pellucid   Clear; transparent. Peltate   Leaf/petiole relationship in which the petiole attaches to the blade away from the blade margin. Also similar relationships between stigmas and styles, indusium attachments to the frond surface, etc. Pendent   Hanging down. Pendulous   Drooping. Pepo   The specialized fruit in the gourd family -- essentially a large berry but possessing a thick rind. Perennial   Pertaining to a plant which lives for more than two years. Perfect   Pertaining to flowers which contain both stamens and pistils. Perfoliate   A condition in which the stem appears to pass through the leaf. Perfoliate Leaf   When the stem passes through the base of a stalk-less leaf. Perianth   Pertaining to the floral series of sepals, petals, or both, spoken of collectively. Pericarp   The wall of the matured ovary. Perigynium   Referring specifically to the often inflated sac which encloses the achene in the genus Carex. Perigynous   With the perianth surrounding the ovary. Persistent   Remaining attached, especially after withering; not caducous. Back to top Petal   A segment of the corolla. Petaloid   Colored like, or resembling, a petal. Petals   Flower-leaves forming part of a corolla. Petiolar, Petiolate   Having a leafstalk. Petiole   A leafstalk. Petiolulate   Having a leaflet stalk. Petiolule   The stalk of a leaflet. PH   The reciprocal of the hydrogen ion concentration of a medium. A value on a scale of 0 to14 gives a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a medium; pH values of 0 to 6.5 indicate acidic conditions, a pH value of 7.0 is neutral and pH values greater than 7.0 are alkaline Phloem   The conducting tissue of the vascular system that transports sugars and other compounds, primarily from the leaves, throughout the plant. Compare to xylem. Phyllary   An involucral bract in the Asteraceae family. Phyllodium   A somewhat dilated leafstalk having the form of and serving as a leaf blade. Pilose   Pubescent with soft hairs. Pinna   One of the principal divisions in a pinnate or pinnately compound leaf or frond. Pinnate   Referring to a foliar structure which is compound or deeply divided, the principal divisions arranged along each side of a common axis. Pinnatifid   Incompletely pinnate, the clefts between segments not reaching the axis. Pinnatisect   Pinnately dissected. Pinnule   One of the principal divisions of a pinna. Pistil   That organ comprised of ovary, style (when present), and stigma. Pistillate   Referring either to plants, inflorescences, or flowers which bear pistils but not stamens. Pith   The parenchymatous, often spongy or porous, central portions of stems and branchlets. Back to top Pitted   Beset with depressions or pits. Placenta   The inside portion of the ovary which bears the ovules. Plait   Specifically, referring to the folded, often fringed, membrane between the corolla lobes in the genus Gentiana. Plano-convex   Similar to lenticular, but with one of the faces flat instead of convex. Plicate   Folded into plaits, usually lengthwise, thus similar to corrugated. Plumose   Beset with numerous, fine, pinnately arranged hairs; resembling a feather. Pod   A general term used with different fruit types, such as legume (pea pod), follicle (milkweed pod), or for certain seed-bearing capsules (iris pod). Pollen   The fertilizing powder or male elements held by the anthers by of which the ovules are fertilized. Pollinium   A coherent mass of pollen, such as in the Orchidaceae family and Asclepiadaceae family. Plural: pollinia. Polygamous   Typically referring to an individual plant which contains both perfect and imperfect flowers. Polymorphic   Having a number of various forms. Pome   A fleshy fruit (as in the apple), formed from an inferior ovary with several locules. Pore   The small area which bursts open in some types of dehiscent capsules; also the opening in some anthers from which the pollen discharges. Poricidal   Dehiscing by means of pores. Posterior   Next to or close to the main axis; its opposite is anterior. Prickle   A sharp, usually slender, bristle or spine of the epidermis, though originating in the deeper cell layers. Primary   Principal; first order. Primocane   In Rubus, the cane of the first year (usually lacking flowers). Prismatic   Of the shape of a prism -- angulate with flat sides. Process   A projection or outgrowth from some parent tissue. Back to top Procumbent   Trailing or reclining, but not rooting at the nodes. Propagate   To increase numbers of or perpetuate a species by sexual (seed) or asexual reproduction Prostrate   Lying flat upon the substrate. Proximate   Near. The near end. Opposite meaning of distal. Puberulent   Minutely hairy. Pubescent   Hairy. Pulverulent   Appearing powdery or mealy. Pulvinus   A swelling or enlargement, typically in the axils of the branches in a grass inflorescence. Punctate   Dotted, particularly with dark or translucent dots or glands. Puncticulate   Minutely punctate. Pungent   Very sharp; acrid to the taste or smell. Pustular   Bearing blisters or pustules. Pyramidal   Broadest at the base, tapering apically; pyramid-shaped. Pyrene   The nutlet of a drupe, such as the seed and bony endocarp of a cherry. Pyriform   Pear-shaped. Back to top