|
juvenile |
- when a plant or parts of a plant
are incapable of sexual reproduction they are said to be
juvenile or juvenile tissue.
Unlike
animals,
all parts of a plant do not
automatically reach maturity with age. For example, as long as
an English ivy (Hedera
helix) plant is in the vine stage, you will never see
flowers on it. This may last for decades. However, if the plant
produces an upright, bushy form, that part will be mature and
will bear flowers and seeds.
In trees, an indication of
juvenile tissue occurs when leaves of
deciduous
plants do not drop off in the fall.
Oak and
beech trees are noted for having some branches that hold
their leaves while others are totally bare in the winter. You
will not see acorns or beech nuts on those branches that hold
onto their leaves.
Hostas in
the juvenile stage are usually
exemplified by more pointed, narrower leaves, fewer vein pairs,
thinner marginal variegation, faster growth rate, and often
smaller leaf and clump size than will be exhibited by an older mature
specimen. |
