Glossary

arboreal

living in or amongst trees

angiosperm

a plant which has its seeds enclosed in an ovary

biodiversity

also biological diversity, the variety of all life forms - the different plants, animals and micro-organisms, the genes they contain, and the ecosystems of which they form a part

biogeography

study of the natural distribution of plants and animals, including consideration of how they disperse, barriers to dispersal, and geological and ecological events of the past

bryophytes

mosses and liverworts

calcicole

plant adapted to growing on limestone or soils derived from limestone

cultivar

a garden variety; a propagated selection from a species population, differing in some horticulturally desirable way

cryptogams

collective term for fungi, mosses, lichens and liverworts

dicotyledon

a plant of one of the two major groups of flowering plants (Angiosperms), characterised by a seed with two seed leaves (cotyledons)

ecology

study of the interaction between living things and their physical, chemical and biological environment

endangered species

a species likely to become extinct unless the circumstances and factors threatening its abundance and survival cease to operate, or its numbers have been reduced to such a critical level or its habitats have been so drastically reduced that it is in immediate danger of extinction

ethnobotany

study of plants used by humans

ex situ

off site; away from natural situation or location

flora

range of plant species occurring in a given area, site, ecological community, and so on

Gondwana

the ancient southern supercontinent which, in the last 100 million years, split into fragments that drifted apart to produce the present southern hemisphere continental arrangement

graft

artificially produced organic fusion of a branch taken from one plant (scion) and attached to another (rootstock)

habitat

home environment or general community type in which an organism lives

heath

a community dominated by low to medium-height (to 1.5 metres) sclerophyllous shrubs

herbarium

a collection of dried, pressed or preserved plant specimens with associated relevant data

in vitro

in sterile culture in glass containers, on, for example, agar medium

mallee

a sclerophyllous shrub or small tree that is multi-stemmed from a tuberous woody rootstock; a plant community dominated by this growth form

micropropagation

propagation of tissue, organs, embryo, seed, and so on, using sterile culture, and in vitro methods

monocotyledon

a plant of one of the two major groups of flowering plants (Angiosperms), characterised by a seed with a single seed-leaf (cotyledon), flower parts arranged in threes, and leaves with parallel veins; for example, grasses, lilies, palms

morphology

study of structure or form

mycorrhizal

of fungi that grow in association with the roots of other plants

nomenclature

names or terms forming a set or a system

pathogen

organism that causes disease

phylogeny

study of evolutionary origins

sclerophyll

plant with leaves containing much woody tissue, giving the leaves a hard, harsh feel

systematics

the classification of living things into groups based on phylogeny

taxon/taxa

grouping(s) of plants and animals

taxonomy

the theory and practice of describing, naming and classifying plants and animals

vascular plants

higher plants, including flowering plants, conifers and ferns

xeric

dry; used in a general sense to refer to communities that, because of their structure (open canopy in particular), are particularly subject to drying from sun, wind, and so on.