UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATION NO. 110 



Washington, D. C. 



Issued July, 1931 

 Revised June, 1950 



GLOSSARY OF BOTANICAL TERMS 

 COMMONLY USED IN RANGE RESEARCH 



Compiled by W. A. Dayton, Forester {Dendrology), 

 Branch of Research, Forest Service 1 



FOREWORD 



This glossary has been collated at the request of field officers of 

 the Forest Service primarily for use in connection with the impor- 

 tant western floras and other botanical publications which contain 

 no glossaries. The text as originally prepared included only mor- 

 phological and taxonomic terms but has been enlarged somewhat 

 to include some of the more common terms used in plant ecology, 

 physiology, and other phases of botany, as well as a few of the more 

 common abbreviations and symbols used in the botanical sciences. 



It is obvious that such a reference list as this can lay exceedingly 

 scant, if any, claim to originality but is essentially a compilation; 

 moreover, in view of the circumstances and the nature of these terms, 

 it seems neither necessary nor desirable to attempt to cite authorities 

 consulted; such authorities would be very numerous and, save per- 

 haps in a very few cases, could hardly be claimed as original sources 

 of terminology. 



The argot of the botanical sciences is so voluminous that no effort 

 has been made to incorporate herein more than what appears to 

 be a fair share of the terminology in most common use. 



SOME COMMON SYMBOLS USED IN BOTANICAL WORKS 



= absent, wanting, or none. 



co =an indefinite (mostly large) num- 



O = (an) annual. 



ber. 



© = (a) biennial. 



! = indication that the writer has per- 



% = perennial. 



sonally checked up and corrobo- 



$ = a hermaphrodite, or perfect, flower. 



rated a specific name, or other 



9 =pistillate, or female. 



citation of fact. 



cf =staminate, or male. 



?=indication of uncertainty, e. g., 



X =sign of a hybrid, or cross. 



that the writer is not sure that a 



§=a section, or subgenus. 



specific name used is the correct 



5=a shrub. 



one. 



+ =an undershrub, or suffruticose 



°=feet; degree (s). 



plant. 



/ =inch(es); minute (s). 



>=is greater than, is longer than, or 



"=line(s) (i. e., twelfths of an inch); 



surpasses. 



second (s). 



<=is less than, is shorter than. 



.*. = therefore, hence. 



± =more or less. 





1 The writer wishes to express his appreciation to Frederick V. Coville and S. F. Blake, 

 of the Bureau of Plant Industry, for numerous valuable criticisms and suggestions. A 

 considerable number of the terms are illustrated by 76 small text figures, prepared under 

 the writer's supervision : 70 by the late Mrs. A. E. Hoyle ; 5 by Leta Hughey ; and 1 by 

 C. L. Taylor, of the Forest Service, 



Note. — Definitions not appearing in the 1931 edition are added on page 41. 



