Tree Care Glossary & Encyclopedia

Roots that develop from non-root tissue, such as stems or branches, typically in response to environmental stress, buried stems, or high moisture conditions.

The thin cylinder of actively dividing meristematic cells between bark and wood that is responsible for producing all new wood and inner bark growth.

A porous area in the bark of woody stems and roots that allows gas exchange between internal tissues and the external atmosphere.

A region of undifferentiated plant cells capable of active division, responsible for all new growth in length and girth.

The living vascular tissue in plants that transports sugars and other organic compounds produced by photosynthesis from the leaves to the rest of the tree.

The transitional zone at the base of a tree where the trunk flares out and meets the major structural roots, also called the root flare or trunk flare.

Microscopic pores on leaf surfaces, flanked by guard cells, that regulate the exchange of gases (CO2 and oxygen) and water vapor between the leaf interior and the atmosphere.

The woody vascular tissue in trees that transports water and dissolved minerals upward from the roots to the leaves.