Basal part of a plant, where the main stem connects to roots.
Berry
Succulent fruit, in whose fleshy pulp the seeds are embedded. They are almost always small, but hard. The pulp usually has a vivid color, to attract animals, specially birds. Grapes, oranges, tomatoes and watermelons are berries.
Biannual
Plant that requires two seasons of growth to complete its life cycle from seed to seed (and that therefore, does not conclude the cycle within a year.
Bilabiate
Flower with a corolla with two tips, upper and lower.
Bird of Paradise
Tropic flower.
Bisexual
Plant that possess hermaphroditic flowers (with stamens and pistils).
Blade
Flat part of the leaf; terminal and broad part of the petal, in contrast with the narrow basal section; the upper part of the calyx or the corolla of certain flowers, in contrast with the lower tubular portion.
Bleeding
When sap drips from a damaged or cut stem. This is clearly observed in plants like the christ plant, false rubber plant or fig, which secrete a white, milky latex.
Blue rose
Bouvardia
Originally from South America. Named in honor of Charles de Bouvard, physician do Louiss XIII, and manager of the Jardin du Roi.
Bract
Modified leaf, generally colored and with form intermediate between leaf and petal.
Branch
Subdivision of the stem
Bud
Embryo of an immature stem, leaf or flower. A terminal or apical bud occurs on the tip of a stem or lateral branch; the axillary bud occurs in the axilla of the petiole. Growth buds are generally protected from damage and low temperatures by overlapping and compact scales or bracts. (Also see Axial).
Bulb
Type of stem, usually underground, with fleshy scales and with one or more buds, each of which can develop into an adult plant
Bush
A compact plant, with a woody and branching stem, that usually branches from the soil. Normally, it is difficult to establish the difference between a large bush and a small tree.
Flower: Generally the most visible characteristic of a plant, the flower is an organ made of very specialized parts, related with sexual reproduction. Some plants produce flowers with only male organs (stamens) or female organs (pistils). These parts are generally surrounded by a ring of colored petals and green sepals. In the majority of plants, a flower has both male and female organs; however some species have male flowers and female flowers, like the begonia: the male flowers have a series of brightly colored petals with stamens full of pollen, whereas the female flowers have a large winged sac of seeds, behind the petals.
