plant morphology

Question 1

7 main ranks of biological classification

Answer 1

King Phillip Can Order Fine Green Soup

Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species

Question 2

gymnosperms

Answer 2

non-flowering seed plants such as cedar, pine, redwood, hemlock, firs

Question 3

angiosperms

Answer 3

dominant plant type today, have flowers and bear seeds enclosed in protective covering called a fruit

Question 4

petiole

Answer 4

stem of a leaf

Question 5

stipule

Answer 5

flat, leaflike appendage/flap at the base of the petiole, usually one on each side of the petiole (but not present on all leaves); can be highly modified into tendrils, spines, scales, etc

Question 6

margin

Answer 6

edge of the leaf

Question 7

sessile leaves lack ______

Answer 7

petioles

Question 8

blade

Answer 8

the flat, expanded portion of the leaf

Question 9

leaflet

Answer 9

a portion of a leaf blade that is subdivided into several smaller blades (not attached to main stem)

Question 10

simple

Answer 10

having a single blade attached to the stem; can be lobed, toothed, etc; (look for axillary bud, everything above it is one leaf)

Question 11

compound

Answer 11

composed of two or more leaflets attached to a rachis; (look for axillary bud, everything above it is one leaf); can be twice or thrice-pinnately compound

Question 12

palmately compound

Answer 12

leaflets radially diverge from the petiole like the spread of fingers on a hand

Question 13

pinnately compound

Answer 13

leaflets are arranged on each side of a common rachis

Question 14

alternate

Answer 14

a single leaf at each node

Question 15

opposite

Answer 15

two leaves at each node (e.g. maples)

Question 16

fascicle

Answer 16

bundle of 2 to 5 leaves enclosed at their base by a sheath (e.g. pines)

Question 17

clustered

Answer 17

in false whorls, at tips of lateral spurs, w/o a basal sheath

Question 18

decussate

Answer 18

successive leaf pairs are perpendicular. In effect, successive pairs of leaves cross each other (e.g. Western Redcedar)

Question 19

whorled

Answer 19

multiple leaves per node

Question 20

axillary bud

Answer 20

the bud on the axil - the angle between the leaf and the stem

Question 21

pinnately lobed

Answer 21

lobes arising along the length of the mid-line of the leaf

Question 22

palmately lobed

Answer 22

lobes arising from one point at the base of the leaf

Question 23

leaf shapes: ovate

Answer 23

egg-shaped with the larger end at the bottom

Question 24

leaf shapes: elliptic

Answer 24

shaped like an ellipse, tapered at both end & with curved sides

Question 25

leaf shapes: oblong

Answer 25

tapered to both ends, but w/ the sides more or less parallel

Question 26

leaf shapes: lanceolate

Answer 26

shaped like the tip of a lance, broadest at the base and tapered to a long point (e.g. Oemleria cerasiformis)

Question 27

leaf shapes: linear

Answer 27

very long and thin, w/ the sides parallel

Question 28

stomatal bands

Answer 28

waxy, whitish strips on the top and/or bottom of the needle

Question 29

conifer ID hints (4)

Answer 29

bud shapes (pointed/rounded); stomatal bands (#, location); branching pattern (cruciform); attachments (leaf scale scar, sterigmata)

Question 30

leaf venation types (4)

Answer 30

pinnate (dendritic); palmate (e.g. Acer); arcuate (arcing towards point; e.g. dogwood); parallel (e.g. grasses)

Question 31

leaf margins: entire

Answer 31

leaf margins w/o divisions, lobes, or teeth

Question 32

leaf margins: lobed

Answer 32

leaf margins w/ elongated, pointed, or rounded extensions

Question 33

leaf margins: serrate

Answer 33

leaf margins toothed, teeth pointing upward or forward

Question 34

leaf tips: acuminate

Answer 34

leaf tip gradually tapering to the apex, long pointed

Question 35

leaf tips: acute

Answer 35

leaf tip sharply pointed, but not drawn out

Question 36

leaf tips: notched

Answer 36

leaf tip indented at the apex

Question 37

leaf tips: obtuse

Answer 37

leaf tip blunt or rounded at the apex

Question 38

leaf tips: truncate

Answer 38

leaf tip ending abruptly, as if cut off at the end

Question 39

leaf margins: revolute

Answer 39

turned under (e.g. Alnus rubra)

Question 40

petiolate

Answer 40

leaf attachment w/ a petiole (vs. sessile)

Question 41

node

Answer 41

point from which a leaf or branch emerges on a stem

Question 42

bract

Answer 42

leaflike structure (modified leaf), provides a function other than photosynthesis (e.g. Pseudotsuga menziesii cones)

Question 43

pith

Answer 43

vascular plant stem tissue, composed of soft, spongy parenchyma cells, which store and transport nutrients throughout the plant