Rose Terminology and Anatomy
Auricle: ear like projection from the tip of the stipule.
Anther: the upper portion of a stamen which contains the pollen grains.
Apical Meristem: non maturing cells located at the tips of the shoots that are the major producer of the plant hormone auxin. These types of cells also are found at the tips of the roots
Axil: angle on the upper side where the leaf and stem join.
Axillary: term applied to buds or branches occurring in the axil of a leaf. These are the buds that begin to grow after pruning and eventually produce the next flush of flowers.
Bark: refers to the outer layers of the stem of the rose.
Basal Break: a new cane (stem) originating from or near the Petaloid: a transitional phase between petal and stamen. bud union.
Bud: an embryonic shoot that may be either vegetative or reproductive or indeterminate.
Bud Union: that area between the roots and the stems where the bud of the desired variety was grafted onto the rootstock. This is only found on roses that have been reproduced by grafting. Own root roses, those grown from cuttings, do not have a bud union.
Bract: a leaf, unlike ordinary foliage leaves, that is usually smaller or of a different shape, which grow from the peduncle just below a flower. The colored parts of a poinsettia are actually bracts and not petals.
Calyx: the first, counting from the peduncle, of a series of floral parts, composed of sepals. The calyx in roses is usually green and somewhat leaf-like.
Cane: the stems of the rose are called canes.
Carpel: an organ bearing ovules along its margins; the unit of structure of a compound pistil.
Compound Leaf: a leaf composed of two or more parts or leaflets. Rose leaves are known as pinnately compound.
Corolla: the second, counting from the peduncle, of the series of floral parts, composed of the petals. The corolla consists of all of the petals of the rose.
Filament: the stalk of the stamen which supports the anther. Floral Tube: a cup like structure formed by the fusion of the basal parts of the sepals, petals and stamens. This structure is often incorrectly called the calyx tube.
Fruit: a ripened ovary containing the seeds and any adjacent parts. The fruit of the rose is called a hip and rose hips contain the rose seeds.
Hip: the fruit of the rose. Rose hips contain the rose seeds. Indeterminate Bud: buds that produce vegetative growth that may become reproductive as is the case with roses.
Lateral Buds: a term applied to buds occurring anywhere along the sides of a stem.
Leaf: an organ of limited growth, arising laterally from superficial tissues of a shoot apex. It is flat in structure and may be simple or compound. It usually consists of blade and petiole.
Leaf Scar: a mark left on the stem when the leaf detaches. There is a bud just above each leaf scar. The leaf scars are quite noticeable on rose canes for at least a year after the leaf has detached and it is just above a leaf scar that the pruning cut should be made to minimize dead stumps of canes from forming.
Meristem: localized tissue composed of cells that do not mature, but remain capable of further growth and division These tissues are present at all growing tips on the rose. Mixed Buds: buds that produce both leaves and flowers. This is the type of bud found on many fruit trees and contains leaves and flowers.
Ovary: the swollen basal portion of a pistil; the part containing the ovules or seeds.
Ovule: a structure composed of embryo sac, nucellus, integuments, and stalk. Following fertilization, the ovule develops into the seed.
Peduncle: the main stem of an inflorescence (group of flowers), or of an individual flower.
Pedicel: the stem of an individual flower when there is more than one on a peduncle.
Perianth: the collective term for the calyx and corolla, or all of the petals and sepals combined.
Petal: one of the units of the corolla of the flower. Roses may have from four to well over 100 petals depending on the variety. Most often petaloids are visible in single and semi double roses as deformed looking petals in the center of the rose.
Petiole: the stalk of the leaf. These are the small branchlike structures emanating from the rose cane that has the leaflets attached to it.
Petiolul: a subdivision of the petiole which connects lateral leaflets to the petiole.
Pinnately Compound: a compound leaf with the leaflets arranged along the sides of a common axis and one leaflet on the end of the axis. Roses may have 3, 5, 7, 9, or more leaflets per leaf. They may also have a leaf with just one leaflet.
Pistil: the central organ of the flower, composed of one or more carpels and enclosing the ovules.
Pith: soft inner portion of the rose stems.
Prickle: a spine like superficial outgrowth of the epidermis of the stem. (This is what roses have, but since the word thorn is so ingrained in our vocabulary, a rose prickle will probably always be called a thorn).
Roots: the underground parts of the rose that have two functions. The first is to support the upper portions of the rose plant. The second function of the roots is to absorb water and nutrients and to supply these to the upper parts of the plant.
Sepal: one of the units of the calyx. Generally roses have five sepals. These are the green outer coverings of a flower bud that open to reveal the petals of the rose. Generally there are three different morphological types of sepals on each rose flower.
Spine: another type of projection much like a thorn or a prickle. However, spines are modified leaves, and are the sharp structures found commonly on cactus.
Stamen: the organ of the flower producing the pollen; it is composed an anther and filament.
Stigma: the summit of the pistil; the part that receives the pollen grains.
Stipule: a leaf appendage that is usually present in roses and is found on the lower part of the petiole often partly attached to the stem.
Style: the part of the pistil that connects the ovary and stigma.
Thorn: a branch that has become hard, woody and pointed, (many locust trees have spectacular thorns as does pyracantha). For rose thorns see "Prickle".
Terminal Buds: the name applied to buds occurring at the end of stems.
Vegetative or Leaf Bud: a bud that produces only leaves and no flowers. This is the type of bud that would be found on trees that produce only vegetative growth and no flowers.
