Glossary
The following definitions are taken from Guide to the Vascular Plants of Florida (1st ed., 1998) by Richard P. Wunderlin.
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apex – The tip.
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alternate – Situated one at each node.
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bipinnate – Compound leaves divided into segments (pinnae) with each segment again divided into segments.
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blade – The expanded part of a leaf or petal.
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crenate – Toothed with shallow, rounded teeth; scalloped.
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crown – Mass of foliage and branches growing upward from the trunk of the tree.
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drupe – A fleshy fruit in which the seed is surrounded by a hard covering; usually one-seeded.
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entire – A margin without teeth, lobes, or divisions.
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frond – Leaf of a fern or palm.
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glabrous – Without hairs.
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herbaceous – Lacking persistent woody parts.
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inflorescence – A cluster of flowers arranged on an axis.
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lacerate – Torn, or with an irregularly jagged margin.
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lanceolate – Lance-shaped; broadest near the base, gradually tapering to an apex.
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leaflet – A unit of a compound leaf; secondary leaf.
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midrib – The main vein of a leaf or leaflet.
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node – The place on the stem where a leaf or branch is attached.
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opposite – Situated directly across from each other at the same node or level.
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odd-pinnate – A pinnately compound leaf terminating with a single leaflet.
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ovate – Egg-shaped in outline; broader below the middle and rounded at both ends.
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palmate – Lobed, divided, or veined in a radiate or digitate manner.
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panicle – A branching, racemose inflorescence.
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pedicel – Stalk of one flower in an inflorescence.
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peltate – Attached to the stalk away from the margin toward the center.
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petaloid – Petal-like in texture and color.
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pinna (pl. pinnae) – The primary divisions or leaflets of a pinnately compound leaf.
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pinnate – A compound leaf divided once, with the leaflets arranged on both sides of the axis.
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rachis – The primary axis of an inflorescence or a pinnately compound leaf.
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rhizome – A horizontal stem, often underground.
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rosette – A cluster of leaves arranged in a circle at the base of a plant.
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serrate – Toothed along the margin with sharp, forward-pointing teeth.
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sessile – Without a stalk.
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sheath – Any long, tubular organ surrounding another organ.
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smooth – A surface not rough to the touch.
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spike – An unbranched, elongate, indeterminate inflorescence with sessile flowers.
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spikelet – A secondary spike; the floral unit of the Poaceae (Grass family), consisting of the rachilla , glumes, and one or more florets.
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sporangium (pl. sporangia) – A spore case.
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spore – The one-celled reproductive structure of the sporophyte generation.
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terminal – At the tip.
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trichome – A hair.
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truncate – With the base or apex nearly straight across.
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tuber – A short, congested, storage organ, usually an underground part of the root or rhizome, more rarely an aerial structure, used for reproduction.
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umbel – An inflorescence in which the pedicels arise from a common point.
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undulate – With wavy margin or surface.
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whorled – Arranged with three or more leaves at a node or another common point.