Sign Up
Login
Take a Tour
Need Help?Plant Characteristics
A list of specialist words which might be used in field guides ... more.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
Filter terms by difficulty level:
P
| Pachycaul : | - |
| Parent Term: | Habit |
| Paleaceous : | With small membranous scales, chaffy. |
| Parent Term: | Surface_texture |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Palinactinodromous : | Actinodromous, the primary veins with one or more subsidiary radiations above the primary one. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_venation_(hickey) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Palm tree : | - |
| Parent Term: | Tree_(any_size) |
| Show examples » | |
| Palmate : | Arranged like fingers on a hand, i.e. with more than three (often 5) lines radiating from main axis. If unspecified, implies a palm |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Palmately lobed : | (Simple leaf) with lobes and main nerves diverging like fingers on a hand; more than three distinct lobes whose main nerves meet at |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Palmately veined : | Pattern of nerves with more than 3 basal nerves plus the midrib (whether or not the leaf is lobed as well). See trinerved. |
| Parent Term: | Venation |
| Palmatifid : | Cut palmately. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_blade_shape |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Palmatisect : | Palmately divided almost down to the midrib, i.e. almost digitately compound. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_blade_shape |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Panduriform : | (=Pandurate) Fiddle-shaped, obovate with a sinus in each side below the middlle and small basal lobes. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_blade_shape |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Panicle : | A compound, much-branched inflorescence, where at least some of the branches have more than one flower. |
| Parent Term: | Inflorescence_type |
| Plural: | Panicles |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pannose : | With a felty texture. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_blade_colour |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Papilla : | A (microscopic) short, rounded nipple-like bump or projection of an epidermal cell. |
| Parent Term: | Surface_texture |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Papillose : | Covered with papillae. |
| Parent Term: | Surface_texture |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pappus : | Hairs, simple or feathery, or sometimes bristles or scales formed outside the corolla and surrounding the apex of the fruit, in the |
| Parent Term: | Fruit_details |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Parallelodromous : | With two or more primary veins originating beside one another at the blade base and running more or less parallel to the apex where they converge. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_venation_(hickey) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Parietal : | Attached to the margins of a structure; of a placenta, having the ovules attached to placentas on the wall of the ovary. |
| Parent Term: | Placenta |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Paripinnate : | Pinnate leaf with leaflets all strictly arranged in pairs, all opposite (or sub opposite, very nearly opposite). |
| Parent Term: | Pinnate_leaf |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Parted : | Indentations or incisions cut 1/2-3/4 distance to midrib. |
| Parent Term: | General_part_terms |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pathology : | - |
| Parent Term: | Plant_parts |
| Plural: | Pathologies |
| Synonyms: |
Disease
|
| Child Terms: |
Gall |
| Show examples » | |
| Pattern : | - |
| Parent Term: | General_terms |
| Child Terms: |
Lax Mosaic |
| Pedate : | Palmately lobed but with the lateral lobes themselves divided into smaller segments, the midribs of which do not directly run to th |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pedicel : | - |
| Parent Term: | Flower_part |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pedicellate : | - |
| Parent Term: | Flower_part |
| Peduncle : | - |
| Parent Term: | Inflorescence_part |
| Plural: | Peduncles |
| Synonyms: |
pedunculate
|
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Peduncle pedunculate : | - |
| Parent Term: | Inflorescence_part |
| Pellucid : | Letting light through (=translucent ); especially for gland spots in leaf. |
| Parent Term: | Transparency |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Peltate : | Leaf with petiole attached to under-surface, not to edge. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_blade_shape |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Perennial : | A plant that lives for more than two years. |
| Parent Term: | Habit |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Perfoliate : | Having base completely surrounding stem. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_base |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Perianth : | The calyx and corolla, of outer part of most flowers, especially used when there is little difference between petals and sepals. |
| Parent Term: | Flower_part |
| Child Terms: |
Corolla Epicalyx Calyx Perianth_segment Petaloid Tepal |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Perianth segment : | The lobes of a perianth, especially when sepals and petals cannot be distinguished. |
| Parent Term: | Perianth |
| Plural: | Perianth segments |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pericarp : | The fruit wall, developed from the ovary wall, often merely-skin like; see mesocarp. |
| Parent Term: | Fruit_details |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Perigynous : | A flower where the base of the perianth and stamens are carried up around, or raised above the base of the ovary, but are not attac |
| Parent Term: | Flower_part_arrangement |
| Perpendicular : | Directed straight downwards, or at right angle with some other body: e.g. the top line of a T is perndedicular to the vertical line |
| Parent Term: | Position |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Persistent : | Remaining attached, not falling off, even though the original function of the organ has ceased, e.g. of petals not falling after fl |
| Parent Term: | Attachment |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Petal : | One of members of inner ring of the perianth, especially if brightly coloured; see corolla. |
| Parent Term: | Corolla |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Petaloid : | Petal-like; used for brightly coloured sepals, bracts or leaves, when these are arranged around the flower. |
| Parent Term: | Perianth |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Petiolate : | With a petiole, not sessile. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_parts |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Petiole : | The stalk by which the midrib or rachis of a leaf is attached to the stem. |
| Parent Term: | Leaf_parts |
| Synonyms: |
Leaf stalk
|
| Child Terms: |
Articulate Abscission Pulvinate Pulvinus Petiole_length_(simple_lvs) Petiole_length_(cpd__lvs) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Petiole length (non pinnate leaves) : | - |
| Parent Term: | Petiole_(simple_lf) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Petiole length (pinnate leaves) : | - |
| Parent Term: | Petiole_(simple_lf) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Petiole of compound leaf : | - |
| Parent Term: | Parts_of_compound_lvs |
| Synonyms: |
Petiole(compound leaf)
|
| Petiole_gland_(cpd leaf) : | - |
| Parent Term: | Gland_(petiole_or_rachis) |
| Plural: | Petiole_glands_(cpd leaf) |
| Petiolule : | The stalk by which the midrib of a leaflet is attached to the axis of a compound leaf. |
| Parent Term: | Parts_of_compound_lvs |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Phloem : | Tissue which conducts sugars and other nutrients; in tree trunks this is found in the cylinder of bark around the wood. |
| Parent Term: | Woody_stem |
| Pilose : | Hairy, covered with long, weak, soft, 'shaggy' hairs. |
| Parent Term: | Hairs |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pinnate leaf : | - |
| Parent Term: | Compound_leaf_types |
| Child Terms: |
Imparipinnate Paripinnate |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Pinnately lobed : | Of a leaf cut deeply into lobes that diverge from the midrib rather than a single points. |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Pinnatifid : | Of a leaf cut deeply into lobes, but not close to the midrib. |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pinnatisect : | Pinnately cut to the midrib but with the base of the resulting segments just meeting up along it, not quite separate. |
| Parent Term: | Lobe |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pioneer : | (Forest) Plant of which seedlings are found only under canopy gaps; i.e. the first plants to appear when a forest is disturbed; the |
| Parent Term: | Guilds |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pistil : | The female organ of a flower, formed by a single carpel or a group of fused carpels. |
| Parent Term: | Gynoecium |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pith : | Very soft and airy tissue at the centre of stems or roots. |
| Parent Term: | Stem |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Placenta : | The part within an ovary, to which the ovules are attached. |
| Parent Term: | Fruit_details |
| Child Terms: |
Axile Parietal |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Plant Groups : | - |
| Parent Term: | Taxonomy |
| Child Terms: |
Angiosperm Gymnosperm Pteridophytes Taxon Plant_types |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Plant Types : | - |
| Parent Term: | Plant_groups |
| Child Terms: |
Dicotyledon |
| Pneumatophore : | Root attachment arising above water/soil surface in swamps. |
| Parent Term: | Bole |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Pod : | - |
| Parent Term: | Fruit_type |
| Show examples » | |
| Pollen : | The powdery mass of male spores (powdery cells or bundles of cells) shed from the anthers of seed plants. |
| Parent Term: | Anther |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pollination : | - |
| Parent Term: | Flower |
| Show examples » | |
| Polymorphic : | With more than two distinct morphological variants. |
| Parent Term: | Taxonomy |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Polyploid : | Having three or more basic chromosome sets. |
| Parent Term: | Genetics |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Population terms : | - |
| Parent Term: | Ecology |
| Child Terms: |
Gregarious |
| Position : | - |
| Parent Term: | General_terms |
| Child Terms: |
Abaxial Adaxial Axil Axillary Basal Lateral Marginal Perpendicular Terminal Intrapetiolar |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Prickle : | - |
| Parent Term: | Spines__prickles_etc |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Show examples » | |
| Prickle prickly : | - |
| Parent Term: | Spines__prickles_etc |
| Prickly : | - |
| Parent Term: | Spines__prickles_etc |
| Process : | Small structure arising from end of another; outgrowth. |
| Parent Term: | General_shape |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Procumbent : | Trailing or spreading along the ground. |
| Parent Term: | Habit |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Prominent : | Raised above surrounding surface; (nerves, etc.) easily felt when stroked with finger. |
| Parent Term: | Vein_prominence |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Prop Root : | - |
| Parent Term: | Bole |
| Prostrate : | Lying flat on the ground. |
| Parent Term: | Habit |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pseudostipule : | Lower leaflets on PINNATE leaf which, surrounding twig, resemble stipules. |
| Parent Term: | Node |
| Plural: | Pseudostipules |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pteridophytes : | Ferns and fern allies, i.e. Lycopsida, Sphenopsida and Filicopsida. |
| Parent Term: | Plant_groups |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Puberulent : | - |
| Parent Term: | Hairs |
| Synonyms: |
puberulous
|
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pubescent : | Hairy, but neither densely, nor roughly so. |
| Parent Term: | Hairs |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pulvinate : | Petiole which has a pulvinus (or two of them). |
| Parent Term: | Petiole_(simple_lf) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pulvinus : | A swelling at the base of the petiole, often glandular, jointed (like a knee) or even responsive to touch. |
| Parent Term: | Petiole_(simple_lf) |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Punctate : | Spotted with glands (or small, undefined, flat, translucent dots). |
| Parent Term: | Gland_dots |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pungent : | Strong, slightly alarming smell or taste like black pepper (we do not use this word in the alternative sense of prickly). |
| Parent Term: | Smells |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pustule : | Raised bump or wart-like spot. |
| Parent Term: | Hairs |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Putrid : | Disgusting smell = foetid. |
| Parent Term: | Smells |
| Difficulty Level: |
|
| Pyrene : | The ?stone? of a drupe or similar fruit ? sometimes synonymous with but or nutlet. |
| Parent Term: | Fruit_details |
| Pyriform : | Pear-shaped. |
| Parent Term: | Shapes__3d |
| Difficulty Level: |
|