FRUITS | Types

Leaf Morphology: Complexity

whether a leaf is single bladed or split into several or many leaflets

Simple	a leaf with a single blade
Palmately Compound	leaflets radiate from the top of the petiole with no apparent rachis
Pinnately Compound	leaflets are attached laterally along the rachis
Trifoliate (compound)	a leaf that has three leaflets and may be either pinnate or palmate depending whether the terminal leaflet is attached to a rachis
Bipinnately Compound	the leaflets are attached to a second-order rachis
Tripinnately Compound	the leaflets are attached to a third-order rachis
Fan Palm	"compound" leaves of palms

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Simple

a leaf with a single blade

Palmately Compound

leaflets radiate from the top of the petiole with no apparent rachis

Pinnately Compound

leaflets are attached laterally along the rachis

Trifoliate (Compound)

a leaf that has three leaflets and may be either pinnate or palmate depending whether the terminal leaflet is attached to a rachis

Bipinnately Compound

the leaflets are attached to a second-order rachis

Tripinnately Compound

the leaflets are attached to a third-order rachis

Fan Palm

"compound" leaves of palms

All definitions are from J. W. Hardin, D. J. Leopold, and F. M. White. (2001). Harlow & Harrar's Textbook of Dendrology. Ninth edition. McGraw Hill, New York, New York, 534 pp. ISBN: 0073661716.