GLOSSARY 



Morphological. Concerning the shape or form. 

 Morphology. The study of shape or form. 

 Mucronate. Tipped with a short straight point. 

 Mycorrhiza. Fungi living in symbiosis in the 

 roots or seeds of orchids. 



Naturalised. Introduced, but establishing itself 



as if a native. 

 Nectar. Honey. 

 Nectary. The organ wiiich secretes honey, 



usually the spur in orchids. 

 Nerves. The principal veins of a leaf, sepal, 



petal, etc. 

 Netted. Reticulated, net-veined. 

 Node. A knot in a stem or root. 

 Normal. The ordinary usual condition. 

 Nucleus. The kernel (embryo) of the seed. The 



minute body in a cell which plays a leading 



part in cell-division. 



Ob- (prefix). Inversely. 



Obconic. Conical, but attached by the narrower 



end. 

 Ob-cordate. Inversely heart-shaped. 

 Oblique. Slanting. 

 Oblong. Longer than broad, with nearly parallel 



sides. 

 Obovate. Inversely ovate. 

 Obscure. Difficult to see. 

 Obsolete. Wanting or rudimentary. 

 Obtuse. Blunt or rounded at the tip. 

 Opposite. At the same height on the stem, but 



on opposite sides (of leaves); one organ in 



front of another, as a stamen in front of a 



petal. 

 Orbicular. Round and flat. 

 Oval. Oblong with rounded ends, about twice 



as long as broad. 

 Ovary. The immature seed-vessel, formerly called 



the germen. 

 Ovate. Egg-shaped, but flat. 

 Ovule. The young seed before fertilisation. 



Palmate. Roughly hand-shaped, with finger-like 

 lobes. 



Papillas (Lat. a nipple). Small superficial pro- 

 tuberances. 



Papillose. Covered with papilla;. 



Parasite. A plant subsisting on the living tissues, 

 sap, etc., of another plant. 



Parietal. Borne on or belonging to a wall. 



Parietal placentae. The forked organs bearing 

 the ovules which arise from the walls of the 

 ovary. 



Patent. Spreading. 



Peduncle. The flower-stalk. 



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Peloria (Gr. a monster). An irregular flower 

 abnormally assuming an appearance of regu- 

 larity, as an orchid-flower with three petals or 

 three lips. Adj. peloric. 



Pendent. Hanging down. 



Perianth. The floral envelopes, i.e. sepals and 

 petals. 



Petaloid. White or coloured, with the semi- 

 transparent texture of a petal. 



Petals. The inner whorl of the floral envelopes, 

 in orcliids only two, the third having been 

 transformed into the lip. 



Petiole. The stalk of a leaf. 



Placenta. The part of the ovary which bears the 

 ovules. 



Pollen. The male element (pollen-grains) pro- 

 duced by the anther. 



Pollen-tetrads. PoUen-grains cohering in fours. 



Pollination. The placing of pollen on the 

 stigma. 



Pollinium, pi. pollinia. The body or bodies built 

 up of pollen-tetrads (or single poflen-grains in 

 Cephalantherd) in the Monandrs. 



Polystelic. With more than one stele. See Stele. 



Pseudo- (prefix), false. Pseudo-bulb, a thickened 

 and bulb-like internode in some orchids. 



Pubescent. Clothed with soft hair or down. 



Raceme. A spike with stalked flowers. 



Radical. Arising from the root or its crown. 



Raphides. Needle-shaped crystals in some cells 

 of certain plants. 



Recurved. Curved backwards or downwards. 



Reflexed. Bent or turned backwards or down- 

 wards. 



Reniform. Kidney-shaped. 



Reticulate. Forming a network. 



Retuse. With a shallow notch at the rounded apex. 



Rhizome. Rootstock — subterranean stem pro- 

 ducing roots and shoots. 



Rhomboidal. Obliquely square or oblong. 



Rib. A primary vein of a leaf, especially the 

 central or mid-rib. 



Rostellum. The floral mechanism of an orchid 

 for attaching the pollinia to visiting insects 

 by means of a viscid secretion which quickly 

 sets hard like cement. 



Round. As applied to the stem, circular in sec- 

 tion (terete). 



Rudiment. An imperfectly developed and func- 



tionless organ. 

 Rudimentary. Imperfectly developed. 

 Rugose. Wrinkled. 



Salep| (salop, saloop). Food prepared from the 

 dried tubers of certain orchids. 



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