| Stem: | a supporting and conducting organ mostly developing from the epicotyl and usually negatively gravitropic |
Apical Meristem [See Cytology and Meristems Vocabulary]
Embryonic Axis [See Seeds and Seedlings Vocabulary]
Stem Components
| Apical bud: | an immature shoot at the stem tip |
| Axillary bud= Lateral bud: | an immature shoot found in the axil of the leaf |
| Bud: | an immature shoot |
| Hypocotyl: | the portion of stem between the cotyledon and the root in epigeous species |
| Internode: | the growing portion of the stem between nodes |
| Node: | the non-growing portion of the stem at which leaves attach |
| Prickle: | a sharp-pointed outgrowth of the epidermis or cortex |
| Mature Stem Parts Xylem/Phloem Arrangements Xylem Maturation Patterns Stele types | [See Root Anatomy Vocabulary] |
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Shoot Origins
| Adventitious: | developing from dedifferentiated parenchyma from a root |
| Apical: | developing from the apical meristem of the shoot |
| Secondary= lateral: | developing from an shoot meristem in the axil of a leaf |
Growth and Development
| Acropetal: | developing upward toward the apex |
| Basipetal: | developing downward toward the base |
| Centrifugal: | developing from the inside outward or from apex downward |
| Centripetal: | developing from the outside inward or from bottom upward |
| Determinate: | Growth to a limited size with meristematic activity ceasing thereafter |
| Indeterminate: | Growth continuous with uninterrupted meristematic activity |
| Long shoots: | stems with normal growth in internodes |
| Short shoots: | stems with very short internodes |
Branching patterns
| Dichotomous: | branching into two equal parts |
| Flabellate: | branching forming a fan-shape |
| Monopodial: | branching with a main axis and reduced laterals |
| Sympodial: | branching without a main axis but with many more-or-less equal laterals |
Specialized Stem Types
| Basal Plate of Scaly Bulb: | a short erect underground stem usually surrounded by fleshy leaves |
| Cladode: | a flattened main stem resembling a leaf |
| Corm: | an upright underground fleshy storage stem |
| Culm: | flowering stem of grasses |
| Rhizome: | a horizontal underground stem |
| Scape: | a naked flowering stem usually from corms or bulbs |
| Spur: | a short shoot producing flowers |
| Stolon: | a generally-leafless aboveground stem |
| Tendril: | a long, slender, coiling stem adapted for climbing (but most are leaf-derived) |
| Tiller: | a grass shoot produced from the base of a stem |
| Tuber: | a swollen stem at the end of a rhizome |
This page © Ross E. Koning 1994.
The CBE citation style for this page would be: Koning, Ross E. 1994. "Herbaceous Stem Vocabulary". Plant Physiology Website. http://koning.ecsu.ctstateu.edu/plant_biology/stemvocab.html (your visit date)
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