Plant habit
In the case of plants , the growth form is the morphological development of a plant in terms of its lifespan, the duration of its individual parts, its branching, etc. The term overlaps strongly with life form and is often used synonymously.
According to another definition (by W. Rauh), the growth form is the organizational principle, the construction plan. The way of life is therefore the actual form of what is possible in the living space within the range of the building plan. For example, the results that gardeners achieve for the "fruit tree" growth form are summarized under the cultivated form (fruit trees) .
In the literature, however, no distinction is made between life form and growth form, both terms are used synonymously, with growth form dominating in the English-speaking area and life form in German.
For an overview of the growth forms, see life form (botany) . For the growth forms of algae, see organizational level .
The growth forms are roughly divided into woody and herbaceous:
- Lignified growth forms or woody plants are essentially trees , shrubs , dwarf shrubs and liana .
- Herbaceous plants
Individual evidence
- ^ Gerhard Wagenitz : Dictionary of Botany. The terms in their historical context . 2nd expanded edition. Spectrum Academic Publishing House, Heidelberg / Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-8274-1398-2 .
- ^ A b Peter Sitte , Elmar Weiler , Joachim W. Kadereit , Andreas Bresinsky , Christian Körner : Textbook of botany for universities . Founded by Eduard Strasburger . 35th edition. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg 2002, ISBN 3-8274-1010-X , p. 989 .