Stalk of a plant bearing an inflorescence or solitary flower
In
botany, a peduncle is a stalk supporting an
inflorescence or a solitary
flower, or, after
fecundation, an
infructescence or a solitary
fruit. The peduncle sometimes has
bracts (a type of
cataphylls) at nodes. The main axis of an inflorescence above the peduncle is the
rachis. There are no flowers on the peduncle but there are flowers on the rachis.[1][2][3]
When a peduncle arises from the ground level, either from a compressed aerial
stem or from a subterranean stem (
rhizome,
tuber,
bulb,
corm), with few or no bracts except the part near the rachis or
receptacle, it is referred to as a
scape.[2]
The
acorns of the
pedunculate oak are borne on a long peduncle, hence the name of the tree.
^Harris, James G.; Harris, Melinda Woolf (2001). Plant Identification Terminology: An Illustrated Glossary (2nd ed.). Spring Lake, Utah: Spring Lake Publishing.
ISBN978-0-9640221-6-4.
OCLC45951032.