Habit

(1) Habit [ Botany - Morphology ]	Dictionary of botanic terminology - index of names
Synonyms: Growth form, Plant shape


	The habit is the characteristic appearance of a plant, stem, leaves or other organ (including size, shape, colour, pattern of growth etc.)

Not to be confused with habitat.

(2) Habit of growth [ Botany - Morphology ]
Synonym: Vegetative Features, Growing habit


	The habit of growth or vegetative feature is the general aspect or mode of growth of a plant, it may be low-growing, tall, erect, prostrate, spreading, trailing, bushy, and so on.

There are several terms used to describe the habit of growth. The following are some of the more common terms:

Arborescent habit: A a tree-like plant with an erect trunk, side branches and a distinct crown, a tree.
Branched habit: Having one to many secondary branches arising from the main stem.
Clustering (syn: Clumping ) habit: A plant forming a tight or open clumps or groups of shoots.
Columnar:
Cylindrical (also: Cylindric) habit: With the shape of a cylinder or tube.
Discoidal habit: A succulent stem shaped like a disk, flat and circular.
Distichous habit: With leaves arranged in two rows on opposite sides of a stem and in the same plane
Elongate habit: A plant which is long and slender.
Fenestrate habit: With fenestrate leaves that grow below the surface of the soil;
Globose habit: Ball-shaped.
Groundcover habit: A prostrate, creeping species that tends to spread out more than growing tall.
Offsetting habit: Forming offsets, shoot, branch or stem.
Prostrate: Stretched out and lying flat at full length along the surface of the ground
Segmented habit: A plant that grow in distinctly successive articulated segments
Shrub habit: A trunkless plant characterized by several stems arising from the base
Tufted: Of plants having many stems growing in clusters which are attached at the base and free at the ends.
Unbranched (Syn: branchless, solitary) habit: Without branches, a plant with an unbranched stem.
Unsegmented habit: Having a stem composed by one part or piece, that is not divided into segments.

Habit of growth of cacti and succulents [ Botany - Morphology ]

Here a brief (still incomplete) compilation of terms dealing with growth habit of cactus and succulents:
Globose (Spherical): having a rounded form resembling that of a sphere or ball.	Clustering (syn: Clumping ): forming a tight or open clumps or groups of shoots.
Unbranced (Syn: brancheless, solitary): Without branches, with a single unbranched stem	Branched: Having one to many secondary branches arising from the main stem.
Segmented habit: A plant that grow in distinctly successive articulated segments or joints.	Elongate habit: A plant which is long and slender.
Distichous: With leaves arranged in two rows on opposite sides of a stem and in the same plane.	Fenestrate habit: With fenestrate leaves that grow below the surface of the soil;
Rosette: With leaves symmetrically arranged, flattened and radiating from the crown or centre at the base of a stem with very short internodes.	Cylindrical or cylindric habit: With the shape of a cylinder or tube.
Offsetting habit: Forming offsets, shoot, branch or stem and eventually an open clumps or groups of shoots.	Prostrate: Stretched out and lying flat at full length along the surface of the ground
Tufted: Of plants having many stems growing in clusters which are attached at the base and free at the ends.

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