leaf
Sign in to savethumb|The diversity of leaves, including Bismarckia, [[Araucaria, Euphorbia, Nymphaea, Colocasia, Hildegardia, Picea, Melocactus, Cycas, Acer, Yucca, Ferocactus, and Ocimum.|401x401px]] thumb|Leaf of Tilia tomentosa (silver linden tree) thumb|Diagram of a simple leaf. thumb|Top and right: staghorn sumac, Rhus typhina (compound leaf) Bottom: skunk cabbage, [[Symplocarpus foetidus (simple leaf) ]]
AI overview
A leaf is a flattened plant part that grows from stems and varies widely in shape and structure across different plant species. Leaves matter because they are where plants capture sunlight and conduct photosynthesis, the process that produces the food and oxygen that sustains most life on Earth.
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Article
43 sectionsContents
- General characteristics
- Morphology
- Basic leaf types
- Arrangement on the stem
- Divisions of the blade
- Characteristics of the petiole
- Veins
- Morphology changes within a single plant
- Anatomy
- Medium-scale features
- Small-scale features
- Major leaf tissues
- Epidermis
- Mesophyll
- Vascular tissue
- Leaf development
- Ecology
- Biomechanics
- Interactions with other organisms
- Seasonal leaf loss
- Evolutionary adaptation
- Terminology
- Shape
- Edge (margin)
- Apex (tip)<span class="anchor" id="Apex (tip)"></span>
- Base
- Surface
- Hairiness
- Timing
- Venation
- Classification
- Hickey system
- Other systems
- Other descriptive terms
- Diagrams of venation patterns
- Size
- See also
- References
- Bibliography
- Books and chapters
- Articles and theses
- Websites
- External links
thumb|The diversity of leaves, including Bismarckia, [[Araucaria, Euphorbia, Nymphaea, Colocasia, Hildegardia, Picea, Melocactus, Cycas, Acer, Yucca, Ferocactus, and Ocimum.|401x401px]] thumb|Leaf of Tilia tomentosa (silver linden tree) thumb|Diagram of a simple leaf. thumb|Top and right: staghorn sumac, Rhus typhina (compound leaf) Bottom: skunk cabbage, [[Symplocarpus foetidus (simple leaf) ]]
A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, flower, and fruit collectively form the shoot system. In most leaves, the primary photosynthetic tissue is the palisade mesophyll and is located on the upper side of the blade or lamina of the leaf, but in some species, including the mature foliage of Eucalyptus, palisade mesophyll is present on both sides and the leaves are said to be isobilateral. The leaf is an integral part of the stem system, and most leaves are flattened and have distinct upper (adaxial) and lower (abaxial) surfaces that differ in color, hairiness, the number of stomata (pores that intake and output gases), the amount and structure of epicuticular wax, and other features. Leaves are mostly green in color due to the presence of a compound called chlorophyll, which is essential for photosynthesis as it absorbs light energy from the Sun. A leaf with lighter-colored or white patches or edges is called a variegated leaf.