ovary at the base and style and stigma at the top. 
Several may make up a pistil. 
caruncle: an outgrowth of the seed coat forming a 
fleshy appendage at or about the hilum of a seed, 
cf. aril. 
caudate: having a tail-like extension as in the pod of 
Centrosema (Fig. 18). 
cauliflorous: bearing inflorescences on older 
branches or trunk. 
cauline: of leaves born on an aerial stem. 
chartaceous: having a papery texture. 
ciliate: with a row of evenly spaced hairs on the 
margin. 
circumsciss: opening by a transverse annular split 
around the circumference. 
circumtropical: occurring around the tropics; 
pantropical 
cladode: a stem which takes the function of a leaf, 
often flattened and green as in Bossiaea 
bossiaeoides (Fig. 17). 
clavate: club-shaped. 
claw: the narrowed petiole-like base of some petals 
or sepals, cf. limb (Fig. 15). 
climber: a plant rooted in the ground but supported 
by other plants. 
coccus: pl. cocci; a lobe or segment of a fruit, e.g. 
Poranthera (Fig. 77). 
colleter: a minute, multicellular, glandular appendage 
that secretes a viscid substance. 
colliculate: covered with small rounded projections. 
column: a fusion of the stamens into a tube or fusion 
of the stamens and style into a solid body, cf. 
androphore. 
compound: composed of several distinct parts, 
although sometimes reduced, as of a leaf 
(Fig. 80). 
concertina’d: folded backwards and forwards 
transversely, like the folds in a concertina. 
concolorous: of similar colour as in the two surfaces 
of a leaf. 
confluent: merging or blending together. 
conical: cone-shaped. 
connate: of similar parts so united they can only be 
separated by tearing. 
connective: tissue joining the locules of an anther to 
one another. 
connivent: coming into contact, but not united. 
conspecific: belonging to the same species. 
cordate: heart-shaped in outline, e.g. strongly lobed 
leaf bases (Fig. 80). 
cordiform: of a solid body shaped like a heart. 
coriaceous: leathery. 
corolla: the inner whorl of a perianth, made up of 
petals, usually conspicuous and showy (Fig. 1). 
corymb: a flat-topped inflorescence, hence 
239 
corymbose (Figs. 48,79). 
crenate: of a margin with obtuse or rounded teeth; 
scalloped (Fig. 80). 
crenulate: finely crenate (Fig. 80). 
crisped: of hairs that are curled, kinked or wrinkled. 
crustaceous: dry and brittle. 
cuboidal: approaching the form of a cube. 
cuneate: tapering gradually and 
wedge-shaped (Fig. 80). 
cupular: cup-like. 
cyathium: an inflorescence of unisexual flowers 
surrounded by a cupular involucre, as in 
Euphorbia. 
cymbiform: boat-shaped. 
evenly; 
decumbent: of branches lying on the ground but with 
the apex ascending. 
decurrent: extending downwards and adnate to the 
adjoining part, e.g. a stipule extending 
downwards to form a flange along the stem as in 
Crotalaria alata (Fig. 18,80). 
decussate: in opposite pairs with successive pairs 
rotated at 90 degrees to each other, thus forming 
4 rows (Fig. 80). 
deflexed: bent downwards as in pods of Indigofera 
hirsuta (Fig. 26). . 
dehiscent: splitting open at maturity to release the 
contents. 
deltoid: approaching the shape of a triangle with sides 
of similar length (Fig. 80). 
dendritic: with tree-like branching. 
dentate: with pointed teeth that are perpendicular to 
the margin (Fig. 80). 
denticulate: finely dentate (Fig. 80). 
diadelphous: with the staminal filaments united into 
two groups as in many Fabaceae (Fig. 15); cf. 
monadelphous. 
dichasium: pl dichasia; a cymose inflorescence with 
opposite branching below the flower that 
terminates each axis (Fig. 79). 
dichotomous: forking symmetrically, into two 
branches (Fig. 79). 
digitate: radiating from a common point, like the 
fingers of-an open hand. 
digitately trifoliolate: of a compound leaf with three 
leaflets arising from the same point on the rachis 
(Fig. 80). 
dimidiate: divided through the middle or appearing 
so, as in phyllodes of Acacia dimidiata (Fig. 4). 
dimorphic: having two forms. 
dioecious: having male and female reproductive 
structures on separate plants. 
disc: a band of tissue located beneath a superior ovary, 
on top of an inferior ovary or lining the floral 
