.jpg)
caudex
Sign in to savethumb|The caudex of a tree fern resembles the trunk of a woody plant, but has a different structure. thumb|The caudex of Jatropha cathartica is [[pachycaul, with thickening that provides water storage.]] thumb|Certain cacti can develop a caudex too; here Acanthocereus maculatus A caudex (: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.
Article
4 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|The caudex of a tree fern resembles the trunk of a woody plant, but has a different structure. thumb|The caudex of Jatropha cathartica is [[pachycaul, with thickening that provides water storage.]] thumb|Certain cacti can develop a caudex too; here Acanthocereus maculatus A caudex (: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.
In the strict sense of the term, meaning a stem, "caudex" is most often used with plants that have a different stem morphology from the typical angiosperm dicotyledon stem; examples include palms, ferns, and cycads. The largest of all caudices is that of the ombu (Phytolacca dioica) of the Pampas of South America, which can reach up to 14 metres girth.