Stem
Ginkgo branches grow in length by growth of shoots with regularly spaced leaves, as seen on most trees. From the axils of these leaves, "spur shoots" (also known as short shoots) develop on second-year growth. Short shoots have very short internodes (so they may grow only one or two centimeters in several years) and their leaves are usually unlobed. They are short and knobby, and are arranged regularly on the branches except on first-year growth. Because of the short internodes, leaves appear to be clustered at the tips of short shoots, and reproductive structures are formed only on them (see pictures below - seeds and leaves are visible on short shoots). In ginkgos, as in other plants that possess them, short shoots allow the formation of new leaves in the older parts of the crown. After a number of years, a short shoot may change into a long (ordinary) shoot, or vice versa.
Read more about this topic: Ginkgo Biloba
Famous quotes containing the word stem:
“The melon is growing but its stem is shriveling.”
—Russian popular saying, trans. by Vladimir Ivanovich Shlyakov (1993)
“Bite down
on the bitter stem of your nectared
rose, you know
the dreamy stench of death and fling
magenta shawls delicately
about your brown shoulders laughing.”
—Denise Levertov (b. 1923)
“The lotus’ stem is as long as the depth of water,
So men’s height is just as great as their inner strength.”
—Tiruvalluvar (c. 5th century A.D.)