Glossary of plant terms
A
ACHENE: a one-seeded,
dry fruit derived from a
simple pistil.
ACUMINATE: tapering to a
sharp point, with the
margins somewhat
concave.
ACUTE: tapering to a
sharp point, the margins
straight.
ALTERNATE: leaves,
scales or branches singly at
a node and on different
sides of the stem.
APICULATE: with a short,
sharp point at the apex
which otherwise may be
rounded.
ARBUSCULAR: branching
like or growing in a treelike
fashion.
AWL-SHAPED: a scale or
leaf, round in cross section,
narrowed and sharply
pointed at the apex.
AXIL: angle formed
between the base of a leaf
and the stem.
AXILARY: growing where
the leaf joins the stem
(axil).
B stem.
BASAL: leaves situated at
the base of the stem.
BERRY: a soft, fleshy,
usually many-seeded fruit.
BLADDER: a hollow, gland-
like sac on the stems and
leaves, as in Utricularia.
BLADE: the flattened or
broad portion of a leaf.
Adapted from "How to Know the Aquatic Plants." by G.W. Prescott.
BRACT: a small scale or
leaf-like organ; a scale
that bears floral organs.
C
CALYX: the outer cycle of
bracts in the perianth of a
flower, usually composed of
sepals.
CILIATE: with a fringe of
hairs.
CLASPING: leaf partially
surrounding the stem.
COMPOUND: with more
than one part; a leaf with
more than one blade on a
CORDATE: heart-shaped.
CORYMB: a flattened or
round-topped cluster of
flowers; a type of
inflorescence.
CULM: the erect, often
leaf-less stem of sedges
and rushes.
D
DECIDUOUS: falling away
in age, or at the end of a
growing season;
temporary.
DELTOID: shaped as the
Greek letter D; triangular.
DENTATE: toothed, as a
dentate leaf margin;
rounded, tooth-like
projections.
DENTICULATE: with small
(usually numerous) teeth.
DISSECTED: with deep
divisions; deeply cut into
separate parts or lobes.
1
Glossary of plant terms (continued)

G K NUTLET: a small, dry

DIVIDED: incisions to fruit as an achene.
the base; deeply cut GLABROUS: smooth, KEEL: a central
into separate parts. without hairs or longitudinal ridge, like O
bristles. the keel of a boat.
OPPOSITE: leaves
GLOBULE: a special L arranged in pairs along
branch forming a the stem.
globular (spherical) LANCEOLATE:
body that contains the lance-shaped;
E flowers reproductive narrowly elliptic and
parts. tapering at both ends.
ELLIPTIC: in the
GLUME: a bract at the
shape of an ellipse;
base of a grass
oval with poles
spikelet.
narrowly rounded.
ORBICULAR: nearly
round; approximately
globular.
LINEAR: a narrow and
elongate shape (leaf or OVOID: a figure (leaf,
lobe); several times e.g.) oval but with
EMERGENT: longer than broad with broadly rounded ends
Emersed: growing parallel or sub-parallel and sub parallel
above or extending margins usually. margins.
above the water
surface.

ENTIRE: a smooth or H
even leaf margin. LOBE: a part
HERBACEOUS: herb extended from the
like, non-woody; whole; a segment.
annual plants.
P
I
PALMATE: with
INCISED: with sharp divisions radiating from
cuts along margin, a common center (as
F sometimes deep. lobes of a leaf or veins
N of a leaf).
FASCICLED: INVOLUCRE: scales,
bracts or leaves NERVES: thin veins; a
bunched, as in a thin rib.
cluster of leaves on a supporting
stem. reproductive flower
parts, or a group of NODE: a section of a
flowers stem or axis which
FILIFORM: like a bears a branch or
thread, long, narrow, leaves.
often lax. PANICLE: A loose,
open, branching
FLORET: a single cluster of flowers that
grass flower; referring bloom from the center
to one of a cluster or or bottom toward the
spike of flowers. edges or top, such as

Adapted from "How to Know the Aquatic Plants." by G.W. Prescott. 2

Glossary of plant terms (continued)

in the grass family PUBESCENT: with

inflorescence. PERIGYNIUM: a flask hairs, usually soft and
like covering of the short. SERRATED: sharply
nutlet in the genus R toothed along the
Carex. margin.
RACEME: an
inflorescence with
stalked flowers
arranged along a
PETIOLE: the stalk of common axis.
a leaf, bearing one or SHEATH: a thin
PEDICEL: a flower more blades. (usually) membranous
stalk, the stem which expansion of a petiole
bears the flower. base which encloses
the stem wholly or in
part; a scale like collar
which surrounds the
stem at the nodes.

PHOTOTROPISM: RHIZOME: a thick,

response or movement horizontal underground
in the direction of light stem.
source.

PHYLLODE: a
PEDUNCLE: a bladeless leaf petiole.
flowering stem which
may bear several SPADIX: a flowering
PINNATE: like a shoot, usually thick
pedicels and their feather; a compound
individual flowers. bearing a compact
leaf with leaflets head or cylinder of
arranged along a ROOTSTOCK: a
PELTATE: shield like, many small flowers,
central axis; looking thickened basal part of
as a leaf with the usually enclosed by a
feather like. a plant with root like
petiole attached in the broad sheath, the
characters.
center of the blade, as spathe.
in Brassenia. ROSETTE:
arrangement of leaves
in a radiating pattern at
the base of the plant.

PISTIL: the female

reproductive part of a
flower including and
ovary, style (usually
present as a slender
stalk) and stigma
PERIANTH: the (pollen receiver). S SPATHE: a broad
involucre of a flower; involucral scale or a
the sterile parts about POD: a dry, many- SAGGITATE: arrow- membranous envelope
the reproductive seeded fruit such as shaped. about a spadix.
elements, composed characteristic of the
of both petals and pea family. SPATULATE: a figure
sepals or only one of (leaf) decidedly
these series. broader and rounded

Adapted from "How to Know the Aquatic Plants." by G.W. Prescott. 3

Glossary of plant terms (continued)

at the apex, narrowing

toward the base. SUCCULENT: thick
and fleshy, swollen
and often juicy.

T
TENDRIL: a twisted or
coiled, slender U
outgrowth of a stem or
petiole by which UMBEL: a flat-topped Images by: images on next page)
(Additional
climbing plants cling. inflorescence, either
SPIKE: a straight, simple or compound “Through the Looking
stout inflorescence TERETE: round in (with several smaller Glass…A Field Guide
with flowers closely cross section. umbels involved to to Aquatic Plants” By
arranged along the form an inflorescence). Susan Borman, Robert
axis at the apex of the TERNATE: with major Korth, & Jo Temte.
stem or lateral shoot. divisions in 3's; Available online at:
pinnately compound www.uwsp.edu/cnr/uw
leaves with the exlakes/publications/fie
terminal leaflets ldguide/
arranged in 3's.
http://www.mciap.org/h
erbarium/Glossary.php

http://www.ci.la.ca.us/B
STIGMA: the pollen-
OSS/streettree/Street_
collecting surface of a
pistil. V Tree_Text_Glossary.ht
m
STIPULE: a wing like VERTICIL: a whorl of
THALLUS: a plant flower-bearing stalks at http://www.hgca.com/h
or scale like organ
body without true a stem node or stem gca/wde/Definitions/glu
attached to the base of
roots, stem and tip. mes.html
a leaf petiole or on the
stem at the point of leaves, as in lemna.
http://www.mswn.com/
leaf attachment; the
TUSSOCK: a Landscape%20Plants
stipule sometimes
hummock bound %20Key.htm
taking the form of a
thorn, or a tendril. together by plant roots,
especially those of http://www.thefreedicti
grasses and sedges. onary.com/

TRANSLUCENT: www.illinoiswildflowers
permitting light to pass .info
through, not entirely
transparent. http://courses.bio.psu.
STOLONS: stems
which grow at the soil W edu/bio414/terms.html
TRUNCATE: flattened http://www.floranordica
surface or below
at the apex; abruptly WHORLED: with .org/gamladokument/te
ground form new
rounded at the apex several leaves, scales rmlistfiler/eng-eng.html
plants at the ends or at
the nodes, often often or branches arising at
one level from all sides http://etc.usf.edu/clipart
called runners.
of a stem or axis. /galleries/Science/bota
ny_10.htm
STOLONIFEROUS:
bearing or forming
stolons

Adapted from "How to Know the Aquatic Plants." by G.W. Prescott. 4

 (Whorled leaves)

Look-Alike Fanwort
Cabomba caroliniana
Submerged Plants EXOTIC!

with Feathery
Leaves
(Whorled leaves)

(Whorled leaves)

Coontail Eurasian milfoil

Ceratophyllum Myriophyllum spicatum
Native EXOTIC!

(Whorled leaves)

Variable milfoil
Myriophyllum heterophyllum
Bladderwort EXOTIC!
Utricularia
Native

(Whorled leaves)

(Whorled leaves)

Waterweed
Elodea Native milfoil
Native Myriophyllum humile
Native
Reprinted with permission from A. Smagula, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services 
 Look-alike Native and Exotic Aquatic Plants
Coontail- Native
Elodea- Native

Bladderwort- Native

Fanwort- EXOTIC

Native
milfoil

Eurasian milfoil- EXOTIC

Variable milfoil- EXOTIC