tree]]
In Botany , a is an above-ground Plant Organ specialized for Photosynthesis . For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat (laminar) and thin, to expose the Chloroplast containing cells ('''''chlorenchyma''''' tissue) to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues. Leaves are also the sites in most plants where Respiration , Transpiration , and Guttation take place. Leaves can store Food and Water , and are modified in some plants for other purposes. The comparable structures of Fern s are correctly referred to as Frond s.
A structurally complete leaf of an Angiosperm consists of a '' (leaf stem), a '''''lamina''''' (leaf blade), and ''''' Stipule s''''' (small processes located to either side of the base of the petiole). The point at which the petiole attaches to the stem is called the leaf '''''axil'''''. Not every species produces leaves with all of these structural parts. In some species, paired stipules are not obvious or are absent altogether; a petiole may be absent; or the blade may not be laminar (flattened). The tremendous variety shown in leaf structure (anatomy) from species to species is presented in detail below under Leaf types, arrangements, and forms.
A leaf is considered to be a plant organ, typically consisting of the following tissues:
# An that covers the upper and lower surfaces
# An interior ''chlorenchyma'' called the ''
# An arrangement of (the vascular tissue).
The Epidermis is the outer multi-layered group of cells covering the leaf. It forms the boundary between the plant and the external world. The epidermis serves several functions: protection against water loss, regulation of gas exchange, secretion of metabolic compounds, and (in some species) absorption of water. Most leaves show dorsoventral anatomy: the upper (adaxial) and lower (abaxial) surfaces have somewhat different construction and may serve different functions.
The epidermis is usually Transparent (epidermal cells lack chloroplasts) and coated on the outer side with a waxy that prevents water loss. The cuticle may be thinner on the lower epidermis than on the upper epidermis; and is thicker on leaves from dry climates as compared with those from wet climates.
The epidermis tissue includes several differentiated cell types: epidermal cells, guard cells, subsidiary cells, and epidermal hairs (trichomes). The epidermal cells are the most numerous, largest, and least specialized. These are typically more elongated in the leaves of Monocot s than in those of Dicot s.
The epidermis is covered with Pore s called '' (sing., ''stoma''), part of a '''stoma complex''' consisting of a pore surrounded on each side by chloroplast-containing '''guard cells''', and two to four '''subsidiary cells''' that lack chloroplasts. The stoma complex regulates the exchange of gases and water vapor between the outside air and the interior of the leaf. Typically, the stomata are more numerous over the abaxial (lower) epidermis than the (adaxial) upper epidermis.
or hairs grow out from the epidermis in many species.
Most of the interior of the leaf between the upper and lower layers of epidermis is a '' Parenchyma '' (ground tissue) or '' Chlorenchyma '' tissue called the (= middle leaf). This "assimilation tissue" is the primary location of photosynthesis in the plant. The products of photosynthesis are called '''assimilates'''.
In ferns and most flowering plants the mesophyll is divided into two layers:
- An upper of tightly packed, vertically elongated cells, one to two cells thick, directly beneath the adaxial epidermis. Its cells contain many more chloroplasts than the spongy layer. These long cylindrical cells are regularly arranged in one to five rows. Cylindrical cells, with the chloroplasts close to the walls of the cell, can take optimal advantage of light. The slight separation of the cells provides maximum Absorption of carbon dioxide. This separation must be minimal to afford Capillary Action for water distribution. In order to adapt to their different environment (such as sun or shade), plants had to adapt this structure to obtain optimal result. Sun leaves have a multi-layered palisade layer, while shade leaves or older leaves closer to the soil, are single-layered.
- Beneath the palisade layer is the . The cells of the spongy layer are more rounded and not so tightly packed. There are large intercellular air spaces. These cells contain less chloroplasts than those of the palisade layer.
The pores or ''stomata'' of the epidermis open into , connecting to air spaces between the spongy layer cells.
These two different layers of the mesophyll are absent in many aquatic and marsh plants. Even an epidermis and a mesophyll may be lacking. Instead for their gaseous exchanges they use a homogeneous (thin-walled cells separated by large gas-filled spaces). Their stomata are situated at the upper surface.
Leaves are normally Green in color, which comes from Chlorophyll found in Plastid s in the cells. Plants that lack chlorophyll cannot photosynthesize.
Leaves in Temperate , Boreal , and seasonally dry zones may be seasonally (falling off or dying for the inclement season). This mechanism to shed leaves is called ''' Abscission '''. After the leaf is shed, a '''leaf scar''' develops on the twig. In cold autumns they sometimes turn Yellow , bright Orange or Red as various accessory pigments (''' Carotenoid s''' and ''' Anthocyanin s''') are revealed when the tree responds to cold and reduced Sunlight by curtailing chlorophyll production.
The are the Vascular Tissue of the leaf and are located in the spongy layer of the mesophyll. They are typical examples of pattern formation through ramification.
The veins are made up of:
- Xylem , which brings water from the roots into the leaf.
- Phloem , which usually moves sap out, the latter containing the glucose produced by photosynthesis in the leaf.
The xylem typically lies over the phloem. Both are embedded in a dense parenchyma tissue (= ground tissue), called , with usually some structural '''collenchyma''' tissue present.
External leaf characteristics (such as shape, margin, hairs, etc.) are important for identifying plant species, and botanists have developed a rich terminology for describing leaf characteristics. These structures are a part of what makes leaves determinant, they grow and achieve a specific pattern and shape, then stop. Other plant parts like stems or roots are non-determinant, and will continue to grow as long as they have the resources to do so.
Leaves may be classified in many different ways, and the type is usually characteristic of a species, although some species produce more than one type of leaf. The terminology associated with describing leaf morphology is presented (with illustrations) at Wikibooks .
- Fern s have .
- Conifer leaves are typically needle-, awl-, or scale-shaped
- Angiosperm (flowering plant) leaves: the standard form includes ''stipules'', ''petiole'', and ''lamina''.
- Microphyll leaves.
- Sheath leaves (type found in most Grasses ).
- Other specialized leaves.
As a stem grows, leaves tend to appear arranged around the stem in a way that optimizes yield of light. In essence, leaves come off the stem in a spiral pattern, either clockwise or counterclockwise, with (depending upon the species) the same . There is a regularity in these angles and they follow the numbers in a Fibonacci Sequence : 1/2, 2/3, 3/5, 5/8, 8/13, 13/21, 21/34, 34/55, 55/89. This series tends to a limit of 360° x 34/89 = 137.52 or 137° 30', an angle known mathematically as the 'golden angle'. In the series, the numerator gives the number of complete turns or gyres until the leaf arrives at the initial position. The denominator gives the number of leaves in the arrangement. This can be demonstrated by the following:
- alternate leaves have an angle of 180° (or 1/2)
- 120° (or 1/3) : three leaves in one circle
- 144° (or 2/5) : five leaves in two gyres
- 135° (or 3/8) : eight leaves in three gyres.
The fact that an arrangement of anything in nature can be described by a mathematical formula is not in itself mysterious. Mathematics is the science of discovering numerical relationships and applying formulae to these relationships. The formulae themselves can provide clues to the underlying physiological processes that, in this case, determine where the next leaf bud will form in the elongating stem. However, we can more easily describe the arrangement of leaves using the following terms:
- — leaf attachments singular at nodes, and leaves ''alternate'' direction, to a greater or lesser degree, along the stem.
- — leaf attachments paired at each node; '''decussate''' if, as typical, each successive pair is rotated 90° going along the stem; or '''distichous''' if not rotated, but two-ranked (in the same plane).
- — three or more leaves attach at each point or node on the stem. As with opposite leaves, successive whorls may or may not be decussate, rotated by half the angle between the leaves in the whorl (i.e., successive whorls of three rotated 60°, whorls of four rotated 45°, etc). Note: opposite leaves may appear whorled near the tip of the stem.
- — leaves form a '''rosette''' ( = a cluster of leaves growing in crowded circles from a common center).
Two basic forms of leaves can be described considering the way the blade is divided. A leaf has an undivided blade. However, the leaf shape may be one of lobes, but the gaps between lobes do not reach to the main vein. A '''compound''' leaf has a fully subdivided blade, each '''leaflet''' of the blade separated along a main or secondary vein. Because each leaflet can appear to be a "simple leaf", it is important to recognize where the petiole occurs to identify a compound leaf. Compound leaves are a characteristic of some families of higher plants, such as the Fabaceae .
- ''Palmately compound'' leaves have the leaflets radiating from the end of the petiole, like fingers off the palm of a hand. There is no rachis, e.g. '' Cannabis '' (hemp) and '' Aesculus '' (buckeyes).
- ''Pinnately compound'' leaves have the leaflets arranged along the main or ''mid-vein'' (called a in this case).
- ---odd pinnate: with a terminal leaflet, e.g. '' Fraxinus '' (ash).
- ---even pinnate: lacking a terminal leaflet, e.g. '' Swietenia '' (mahogany).
- ''Bipinnately compound'' leaves are twice divided: the leaflets are arranged along a secondary vein that is one of several branching off the ''rachis''. Each leaflet is called a ''pinnule''. The pinnules on one secondary vein are called ''pinna''; e.g. '' Albizia '' (silk tree).
- ''trifoliate'': a pinnate leaf with just three leaflets, e.g. '' Trifolium '' (clover), '' Laburnum '' (laburnum).
- ''pinnatifid'': pinnately dissected to the midrib, but with the leaflets not entirely separate, e.g. some '' Sorbus '' (whitebeams).
;Characteristics of the ''petiole'':
- Petiolated leaves have a petiole.
- ---In leaves, the petiole attaches to the blade inside from the blade margin.
- or '''clasping''' leaves do not have a petiole. In sessile leaves the blade attaches directly to the stem. In clasping leaves, the blade partially or wholly surrounds the stem, giving the impression that the shoot grows through the leaf such as in ''Claytonia perfoliata'' of the purslane family ( Portulacaceae ).
In some '' Acacia '' species, such as the Koa Tree (''Acacia koa''), the petioles are expanded or broadened and function like leaf blades; these are called . There may or may not be normal pinnate leaves at the tip of the phyllode.
;Characteristics of the ''stipule''
- A stipule, present on the leaves of many Dicotyledon s, is an appendage on each side at the base of the petiole, resembling a small leaf. They may be lasting and not be shed (a ''stipulate'' leaf, such as in Rose s and Bean s); or be shed as the leaf expands, leaving a stipule scar on the twig (an ''exstipulate'' leaf).
- The situation, arrangement, and structure of the stipules is called the ''stipulation''.
- ---free
- ---adnate : fused to the petiole base
- ---ochreate : provided with ochrea, or sheath-formed stipules, e.g. Rhubarb ,
- ---encircling the petiole base
- ---interpetiolar : between the petioles of two opposite leaves.
- ---intrapetiolar : between the petiole and the subtending stem
There are two subtypes of venation, ''craspedodromus'' (the major veins stretch up to the margin of the leaf) and ''camptodromous'' (major veins come close to the margin, but bend before they get to it).
- Feather-veined, reticulate — the veins arise pinnately from a single mid-vein and subdivide into veinlets. These, in turn, form a complicated network. This type of venation is typical for Dicotyledon s.
- --- Pinnate-netted, penniribbed, penninerved, penniveined; the leaf has usually one main vein (called the ), with '''veinlets''', smaller veins branching off laterally, usually somewhat parallel to each other; eg '' Malus '' (apples).
- --- Three main veins originate from the base of the lamina, as in '' Ceanothus ''.
- --- Palmate-netted, palmate-veined, fan-veined; several main veins Diverge from near the leaf base where the petiole attaches, and radiate toward the edge of the leaf; e.g. most ''Acer'' (maples).
- Parallel-veined, parallel-ribbed, parallel-nerved, penniparallel — veins run Parallel most the length of the leaf, from the base to the apex. ''Commissural'' veins (small veins) connect the major parallel veins. Typical for most Monocotyledon s, such as Grasses .
- Dichotomous — There are no dominant bundles, with the veins forking regularly by pairs; found in '' Ginkgo '' and some Pteridophyte s.
;Shape
See Leaf Shape
The leaf margin is characteristic for a genus and aids in determining the species.
- entire: even; with a smooth margin; without toothing
- ciliate: fringed with hairs
- crenate: wavy-toothed; dentate with rounded teeth, such as ''Fagus'' (beech)
- dentate: toothed, such as ''Castanea'' (chestnut)
- ---coarse-toothed: with large teeth
- ---glandular toothed: with teeth that bear glands.
- denticulate: finely toothed
- doubly toothed: each tooth bearing smaller teeth, such as ''Ulmus'' (elm)
- lobate: indented, with the indentations not reaching to the center, such as many ''Quercus'' (oaks)
- ---palmately lobed: indented with the indentations reaching to the center, such as ''Humulus'' (hop).
- serrate: saw-toothed with asymmetrical teeth pointing forward, such as ''Urtica'' (nettle)
- serrulate: finely serrate
- sinuate: with deep, wave-like indentations; coarsely crenate, such as many '' Rumex '' (docks)
- spiny: with stiff, sharp points, such as some ''Ilex'' (hollies) and ''Cirsium'' (thistles).
- acuminate: long-pointed, prolonged into a narrow, tapering point in a concave manner.
- acute: ending in a sharp, but not prolonged point
- cuspidate: with a sharp, elongated, rigid tip; tipped with a cusp.
- emarginate: indented, with a shallow notch at the tip.
- mucronate: abruptly tipped with a small short point, as a continuation of the midrib; tipped with a mucro.
- mucronulate: mucronate, but with a smaller spine.
- obcordate: inversely heart-shaped, deeply notched at the top.
- obtuse: rounded or blunt
- truncate: ending abruptly with a flat end, that looks cut off.
- acuminate: coming to a sharp, narrow, prolonged point.
- acute: coming to a sharp, but not prolonged point.
- auriculate: ear-shaped
- cordate: heart-shaped with the norch away from the stem.
- Cuneate : wedge-shaped.
- hastate: shaped like an halberd and with the basal lobes pointing outward.
- oblique: slanting.
- reniform: kidney-shaped but rounder and broader than long.
- rounded: curving shape.
- sagittate: shaped like an arrowhead and with the acute basal lobes pointing downward.
- truncate: ending abruptly with a flat end, that looks cut off.
The surface of a leaf can be described by several botanical terms:
- farinose: bearing farina; mealy, covered with a waxy, whitish powder.
- glabrous: smooth, not hairy.
- glaucous: with a whitish bloom; covered with a very fine, bluish-white powder.
- glutinous: sticky, viscid.
- papillate, papillose: bearing papillae (minute, nipple-shaped protuberances).
- pubescent: covered with erect hairs (especially soft and short ones)
- punctate: marked with dots; dotted with depressions or with translucent glands or colored dots.
- rugose: deeply wrinkled; with veins clearly visible.
- scurfy: covered with tiny, broad scalelike particles.
- tuberculate: covered with tubercles; covered with warty prominences.
- verrucose: warted, with warty outgrowths.
- viscid, viscous: covered with thick, sticky secretions.
Leaves can show several degrees of hairiness. The meaning of several of the following terms can overlap. See also : Trichome .
- glabrous: no hairs of any kind present.
- arachnoid, arachnose: with many fine, entangled hairs giving a cobwebby appearance.
- barbellate: with finely barbed hairs (barbellae).
- bearded: with long, stiff hairs.
- bristly: with stiff hair-like prickles.
- canescent: hoary with dense grayish-white pubescence.
- ciliate: marginally fringed with short hairs (cilia).
- ciliolate: minutely ciliate.
- floccose: with flocks of soft, woolly hairs, which tend to rub off.
- glandular: with a gland at the tip of the hair.
- hirsute: with rather rough or stiff hairs.
- hispid: with rigid, bristly hairs.
- hispidulous: minutely hispid.
- hoary: with a fine, close grayish-white pubescence.
- lanate, lanose: with woolly hairs.
- pilose: with soft, clearly separated hairs.
- puberulent, puberulous: with fine, minute hairs.
- pubescent: with soft, short and erect hairs.
- scabrous, scabrid: rough to the touch
- sericeous: silky appearance through fine, straight and appressed (lying close and flat) hairs.
- silky: with adpressed, soft and straight pubescence.
- stellate, stelliform: with star-shaped hairs.
- strigose: with appressed, sharp, straight and stiff hairs.
- tomentose: densely pubescent with matted, soft white woolly hairs.
- ---cano-tomentose: between canescent and tomentose
- ---felted-tomentose: woolly and matted with curly hairs.
- villous: with long and soft hairs, usually curved.
- woolly: with long, soft and tortuous or matted hairs.
have evolved a red pigmentation in order to attract insects and birds to the central flowers, an adaptive function normally served by Petal s.]]
In order to survive in a harsh Environment , leaves can adapt in the following ways:
- Hairs develop on the leaf surface to trap humidity in dry climates, creating a large boundary layer to lessen water loss
- Leaves rustle to move humidity away from the surface reducing the boundary layer resistance between the leaf and the air.
- Plant prickles are modified clusters of epidermal hairs
- Wax y leaf surfaces form to prevent water loss
- Small, shiny leaves to deflect the Sun 's rays
- Thicker leaves to store water (e.g. Rhubarb )
- Change to spines instead of laminar (blade) leaves (e.g. Cactus )
- Shrink (to Phyllode s) or disappear (with the appearance of Cladode s), as photosynthetic functions are transferred to the leaf stem ( Acacia species)
- Change shape to deflect wind or reduce wind resistance
- Leaves to trap insects (e.g. Pitcher Plant )
- Change to bulb parts to store food (e.g. Onion )
- Produce aromatic oils to deter herbivores (e.g. Eucalypts )
- Protect as Spines , which are modified leaves.
- Change Color to attract Insects , Birds .(e.g. Poinsettia )
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