Cataphyll

The stems of Athrotaxis are covered with small flat pointed leaves called "scale leaves" or "cataphylls".

In plant morphology, a cataphyll (sometimes also called a cataphyllum[1] or cataphyll leaf[2]) is a reduced, small leaf.[3] Many plants have both "true leaves" (euphylls), which perform most of the photosynthesis, and cataphylls, which are modified to perform other functions.[4]

Cataphylls include bracts, bracteoles and bud scales, as well as any small leaves that resemble scales, known as scale leaves.[5] The functions of cataphylls, such as bud scales, may be short-lived, and they are often shed after their function is fulfilled.[6]

  1. ^ Stearn, W.T. (1992), Botanical Latin: History, grammar, syntax, terminology and vocabulary (4th ed.), David and Charles, ISBN 0-7153-0052-0
  2. ^ Jackson, Benjamin, Daydon; A Glossary of Botanic Terms with their Derivation and Accent; Published by Gerald Duckworth & Co. London, 4th ed 1928
  3. ^ Beentje, H.; Williamson, J. (2010), The Kew Plant Glossary: an Illustrated Dictionary of Plant Terms, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: Kew Publishing
  4. ^ Bell, A.D. (1997), Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology, Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ "Definition of CATAPHYLL". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2021-10-22.
  6. ^ Hickey, M.; King, C. (2001), The Cambridge Illustrated Glossary of Botanical Terms, Cambridge University Press