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Contents
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1General characteristics
1.1Bracts
1.2Terminal flower
1.3Phyllotaxis
1.4Metatopy
2Organization
2.1Simple inflorescences
2.1.1Indeterminate or Racemose
2.1.2Determinate or Cymose
2.2Compound inflorescences
2.3Other
3References
4Bibliography
General characteristics[edit]
Inflorescences are described by many different characteristics including how the flowers are arranged on
the peduncle, the blooming order of the flowers and how different clusters of flowers are grouped within
it. These terms are general representations as plants in nature can have a combination of types.
Bracts[edit]
Inflorescences usually have modified shoots foliage different from the vegetative part of the plant.
Considering the broadest meaning of the term, any leaf associated with an inflorescence is called
a bract. A bract is usually located at the node where the main stem of the inflorescence forms, joined to
the main stem of the plant, but other bracts can exist within the inflorescence itself. They serve a variety
of functions which include attracting pollinators and protecting young flowers. According to the presence
or absence of bracts and their characteristics we can distinguish:
Bracteate inflorescences: The bracts in the inflorescence are very specialised, sometimes
reduced to small scales, divided or dissected.
Leafy inflorescences: Though often reduced in size, the bracts are unspecialised and look like
the typical leaves of the plant, so that the term flowering stem is usually applied instead of
inflorescence. This use is not technically correct, as, despite their 'normal' appearance,
these leaves are considered, in fact, bracts, so that 'leafy inflorescence' is preferable.
If many bracts are present and they are strictly connected to the stem, like in the family Asteraceae, the
bracts might collectively be called an involucre. If the inflorescence has a second unit of bracts further
up the stem, they might be called an involucel.
Ebracteate inflorescence.
Bracteate inflorescence.
Leafy-bracted inflorescence.
Leafy inflorescence.
Terminal flower[edit]
Determinate inflorescence: Sympodial (cymose) growth. The terminal bud forms a terminal
flower and then dies out. Other flowers then grow from lateral buds.
Indeterminate inflorescence with the subterminal flower to simulate the terminal one (vestige
present)
In determinate inflorescences the terminal flower is usually the first to mature (precursive
development), while the others tend to mature starting from the bottom of the stem. This pattern is
called acropetal maturation. When flowers start to mature from the top of the stem, maturation
is basipetal, while when the central mature first, divergent.
Phyllotaxis[edit]
As with leaves, flowers can be arranged on the stem according to many different patterns. See
'Phyllotaxis' for in-depth descriptions.
Alternate flowers
Opposite flowers
Metatopy[edit]
Metatopy is the placement of organs out of their normally expected position: typically metatopy occurs in
inflorescences when unequal growth rates alter different areas of the axis and the organs attached to the
axis.
When a single or a cluster of flower(s) is located at the axil of a bract, the location of the bract in relation
to the stem holding the flower(s) is indicated by the use of different terms and may be a useful diagnostic
indicator.
Typical placement of bracts include:
Some plants have bracts that subtend the inflorescence, where the flowers are on branched
stalks; the bracts are not connected to the stalks holding the flowers, but are adnate or attached to
the main stem (Adnate describes the fusing together of different unrelated parts. When the parts
fused together are the same, they are connately joined.)
Other plants have the bracts subtend the pedicel or peduncle of single flowers.
When the bract is attached to the stem holding the flower (the pedicel or peduncle), it is said to
be recaulescent; sometimes these bracts or bracteoles are highly modified and appear to be
appendages of the flower calyx. Recaulescences is the fusion of the subtending leaf with the stem
holding the bud or the bud itself,[1] thus the leaf or bract is adnate to the stem of flower.
When the formation of the bud is shifted up the stem distinctly above the subtending leaf, it is
described as concaulescent.
Concaulescence
Solanum lycopersicum(concaulescence)
Recaulescence
Tilia cordata(recaulescence)
Organization[edit]
There is no general consensus in defining the different inflorescences. The following is based on Focko
Weberling's Morphologie der Blten und der Bltenstnde (Stuttgart, 1981). The main groups of
inflorescences are distinguished by branching. Within these groups, the most important characteristics
are the intersection of the axes and different variations of the model. They may contain many flowers
(pluriflor) or a few (pauciflor). Inflorescences can be simple or compound.
Simple inflorescences[edit]
Indeterminate or Racemose[edit]
Indeterminate simple inflorescences are generally called racemose /rsmos/. The main kind of
racemose inflorescence is the raceme (/rsim/, from classical Latin racemus, cluster of grapes).[2] The
other kind of racemose inflorescences can all be derived from this one by dilation, compression, swelling
or reduction of the different axes. Some passage forms between the obvious ones are commonly
admitted.
An umbel is a type of raceme with a short axis and multiple floral pedicels of equal length that
appear to arise from a common point.
A flower head or capitulum is a very contracted raceme in which the single sessile flowers
share are borne on an enlarged stem. It is characteristic of Dipsacaceae.
A catkin or ament is a scaly, generally drooping spike or raceme. Cymose or other complex
inflorescences that are superficially similar are also generally called thus.
Raceme
Epilobium angustifolium
Spike
Racemose corymb
Umbel
Spadix
Arum maculatum(spadix)
Head (round)
Dipsacus fullonum(head)
Determinate or Cymose[edit]
Determinate simple inflorescences are generally called cymose. The main kind of cymose inflorescence
is the cyme (pronounced 'saim', from the Latin cyma in the sense cabbage sprout, from
Greek kuma anything swollen[3]).[4] Cymes are further divided according to this scheme:
Only one secondary axis: monochasium
Secondary buds always develop on the same side of the stem: helicoid
cyme or bostryx
The successive pedicels are aligned on the same plane: drepanium
Double cyme
Double cyme
Hypericum perforatum(bostryx)
Gladiolus imbricatus(drepanium)
Symphytum officinale(cincinnus)
Dichasium
Umbelliform cyme
Botryoid
Berberis vernae(botryoid)
A reduced raceme or cyme that grows in the axil of a bract is called a fascicle. A verticillaster is a
fascicle with the structure of a dichasium; it is common among the Lamiaceae. Many verticillasters with
reduced bracts can form a spicate (spike-like) inflorescence that is commonly called a spike.
Gentiana lutea(fascicles)
Lamium orvala(verticillaster)
Mentha longifolia('spike')
Compound inflorescences[edit]
Simple inflorescences are the basis for compound inflorescences or synflorescences. The single
flowers are there replaced by a simple inflorescence, which can be both a racemose or a cymose one.
Compound inflorescences are composed of branched stems and can involve complicated arrangements
that are difficult to trace back to the main branch.
A kind of compound inflorescence is the double inflorescence, in which the basic structure is repeated
in the place of single florets. For example a double raceme is a raceme in which the single flowers are
replaced by other simple racemes; the same structure can be repeated to form triple or more complex
structures.
Compound raceme inflorescences can either end with a final raceme (homoeothetic), or not
(heterothetic). A compound raceme is often called a panicle. Note that this definition is very different
from that given by Weberling.
Compound umbels are umbels in which the single flowers are replaced by many smaller umbels
called umbellets. The stem attaching the side umbellets to the main stem is called a ray.
Compound spike
Compound capitulum
Panicle
Cymose corymb
Anthela
Thyrse
Aesculus hippocastanum
Thyrsoid
Syringa vulgaris
Other combinations are, of course, possible. For example, heads or umbels may be arranged in a
corymb or a panicle.
Other[edit]
The family Asteraceae is characterised by a highly specialised head technically called a calathid (but
usually referred to as 'capitulum' or 'head'). The family Poaceae has a peculiar inflorescence of small
spikes (spikelets) organised in panicles or spikes that are usually simply and improperly referred to
as spike and panicle. The genus Ficus (Moraceae) has an inflorescence called syconium and the
genus Euphorbia has cyathia (sing. cyathium), usually organised in umbels. For detailed descriptions,
see the respective articles.
Matricaria chamomilla(calathid)
Euphorbia tridentata(cyathium)
(Coleus-false spike)
References[edit]
1.
Jump up^ Kubitzki, Klaus, and Clemens Bayer. 2002. Flowering plants,
Dicotyledons: Malvales, Capparales, and non-betalain Caryophyllales. The Families and
genera of vascular plants, 5.Berlin: Springer. p. 77
2.
3.
Jump up^ Collins English Dictionary. 8th Edition first published in 2006
4.
Bibliography[edit]
WikimediaCommonshas
mediarelated
toInflorescence.
Focko Weberling: Morphologie der Blten und der Bltenstnde; Zweiter Teil. Verlag Eugen
Ulmer, Stuttgart 1981
Wilhelm Troll: Die Infloreszenzen; Erster Band. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart 1964
Wilhelm Troll: Die Infloreszenzen; Zweiter Band, Erster Teil. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart
1969
Wilhelm Troll: Praktische Einfhrung in die Pflanzenmorphologie. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Jena
1957
Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website[1]. Version 7, May 2006 [and
more or less continuously updated since].
R J Ferry. Inflorescences and Their Names. The McAllen International Orchid Society
Journal.Vol. 12(6), pp. 4-11 June 2011