The following points highlight the eleven main schemes used to describe and identify a flowering plant. The schemes are: 1. Habitat 2. Habit 3. Root 4. Stem 5. Leaf 6. Inflorescence 7. Flower 8. Fruit 9. Seed 10. Floral Formula And Floral Diagram 11. Identification.
Scheme # 1. Habitat:
The natural abode or locality of the plant i.e. cultivated or weed etc.
Scheme # 2. Habit:
1. Annual, biennial or perennial herb.
2. Herb-Prostrate, erect, creeping, decumbent or procumbent.
3. Undershrub, shrub or tree.
4. Characteristic habit as parasite, epiphyte, xerophyte or hydrophyte.
Scheme # 3. Root:
1. Kind of root-tap or adventitious.
2. It may be branched or un-branched.
3. Modifications of roots i.e. conical, napiform, fusiform, fibrous, nodulated, tuberous, aerial etc.
Scheme # 4. Stem:
1. Stem is herbaceous, succulent, shrubby or woody.
2. It is erect, prostrate, twinning or climbing.
3. It may be branched or un-branched. Branched racemose or cymose. If cymose – uniparous, biparous or multiparous.
4. Duration of stem is annual, biennial or perennial.
5. Surface of stem is hairy, villous, tomentose, spiny, waxy, mealy, glaucose or glabrous.
6. Modification is rhizome, tuber, bulb, corm, runner, sucker, phylloclade, tendril, thorn etc.
7. Shape of stem is round, square, triangular, ribbed or flattened.
8. Internal appearance is solid or hollow.
Scheme # 5. Leaf:
1. Insertion of leaf is radical, cauline or ramal.
2. Phyllotaxy is alternate, opposite or whorled. If opposite whether superposed or decussate.
3. Petiolate, subsessile or sessile.
4. Stipulate or exstipulate. If stipulate, whether leafy, spiny, interpetiolar, ochreate etc.
5. Nature of leaf is base, whether connate, ligulate, perforate amplexicaul etc.
6. It is simple or compound.
A. If simple describe the following:
(a) Lamina-Acicular, linear, Oanceolate, elliptical, ovate, obovate, oblong, cordate, reniform etc.
(b) Venation – Unicostate, multicostate, reticulate or parallel.
(c) Incision of lamina – Pinnatifid, pinnatipartite, pinnatisect, palmatifid, palmatipartite, palmatisect.
(d) Margin – Entire, serrate, dentate, hairy, spiny, waxy, etc.
(e) Apex – Acute, acuminate, obtuse, emarginate, cuspidate, mucronate etc.
(f) Surface – Glabrous, scabrous, hairy, spiny, etc.
(g) Texture – Herbaceous, coriacious, fleshy etc.
B. If compound whether pinnate or palmate; if pinnate whether bipinnate, tripinnate, decompound, paripinnate or imparipinnate.
If palmate give number of leaflets-unifoliate, bifoliate, trifoliate, multifoliate. Describe the leaflet in the same manner as that of the simple leaf.
Scheme # 6. Inflorescence:
Simple, compound or special.
1. Simple:
Racemose or cymose.
(a) If racemose whether raceme, corymb, spike, catkin, spadix, umbel, capitulum.
(b) Cymose – Uniparous (helicoid or scorpioid), biparous, multiparous.
2. Compound:
Compound umbel, compound spike, compound corymb etc.
3. Special:
Verticellaster, cyathium, hypanthodium.
Scheme # 7. Flower:
1. Colour of flower is white, pink, red etc.
2. Pedicellate, subsessile or sessile.
3. Bracteate or ebracteate.
4. It may be complete or incomplete.
5. Hermaphrodite, or unisexual.
6. Symmetry of leaf is actinomorphic or zygomorphic.
7. Pentamerous, tetramerous or trimerous etc.
8. Nature of whorls whether hypo-, peri-, or epigynous.
Calyx:
1. Number of sepals.
2. Green or petaloid.
3. Caducous or persistent.
4. Poly – or gamosepalous. If polysepalous give number and shape of sepals. In case of gamosepalous condition, mention special form-, number and nature of incision.
5. Aestivation – Valvate, twisted imbricate, quincuncial etc.
6. Superior or inferior.
Corolla:
1. Colour.
2. Number of petals.
3. Poly – or gamopetalous, if polypetalous give number, shape or special form i.e. clawed, cruciform, papilionaceous etc. If gamopetalous state the special form like ligulate, tubular, campanulate, infundibuliform, bilabiate etc.
4. Number and nature of incision of the limb.
5. Aestivation.
6. Superior or inferior nature.
Perianth:
Describe it in the same way as calyx and corolla using the term poly or gamophyllous for the free and united conditions of tepals.
Androecium:
1. Number of stamens.
2. Free or fused. If fused adelphous, syngenesious or synandrous. If free didynamous, tetradynamous etc.
3. Epipetalous, antipetalous, obdiplostemonous or epiphyllous.
4. Nature of filament – long, short or flattened.
5. Fixation of anther – basifixed, adnate, dorsifixed or versatile.
Gynoecium:
1. Number of carpels – mono-, bi-, tri-, or poly-carpellary.
2. United or free i.e. syncarpous or apocarpous.
3. Superior or inferior.
4. Number of locules and number of ovules in each loculus.
5. Placentation – marginal, parietal, axile, free-central, basal or superficial.
6. Special form – hairy, obliquely placed, presence or absence of nectariferous hypogynous disc etc.
7. Style – free or united and its type.
8. Stigma – simple or lobed, feathery, capitate etc.
Scheme # 8. Fruit:
Fruit is simple, aggregate or composite, special kind if any.
Scheme # 9. Seed:
1. Seed is mono or dicotyledonous.
2. Albuminous or exalbuminous.
3. Any special feature.
Scheme # 10. Floral Formula And Floral Diagram:
The description of the plant should be accompanied by the floral formula, floral diagram, vertical section of the flower and the transverse section of the ovary to show the placentation.
Scheme # 11. Identification:
The reasons for the identification of family should be given:
1. Angiosperms,
2. Dicot or monocot,
3. Series,
4. Order,
5. Family, and
6. Genus.
If flowers are unisexual, the male and the female flowers should be described separately.