| Class: | angiosperms |
| Order: | Dipsacales |
| Family: | Caprifoliaceae |
| Genus: | Sambucus |
| Herbar: | list records   |
| Description: | Leaves imparipinnate. Flowers small, flat in dense corymbose-paniculate inflorescences. Fruit a juicy berry. |
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| species: 2 |
| Habit (i)general appearance of a plant | |
| Growth form: (i)Herb, shrub, tree or climber. | shrub, subshrub or semishrub (i)Shrub, multi-stemmed, mostly (0.2) 0.5 - 5 m high, shoots woody up to the tip
example: Caragana leucophloea   inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: shrub, subshrub or semishrub
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| Parasite status: (i)Is the plant a half- or full parasite? | no parasite/saprophyte (i)Plant fully autonomous, leaves with chlorophyll
example: Most plants, Ranunculus inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: no parasite/saprophyte
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| Water or terrestrial plant: (i)Where do the plants grow? | terrestrial (i)Plant grows on dry land
example: Orostachys spinosa inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: terrestrial
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| Leaf (i)expanded, usually photosynthetic organ of a plant (including phylloclades) | |
| Leaf arrangement: (i)Arrangement of leaves at the stem. | opposite, opposite-decussate (i)Two leaves per node
example: Lamiaceae, e.g. Phlomis   inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: opposite, opposite-decussate
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| Simple or divided leaves: (i)Are the leaves simple or completely divided in several parts? Blade of the leaf entire or (more or less) deeply dissected. Attention: There are various appearances of the leaf margin (from entire to toothed and lobed). Here, we ignore this and ask only for dissections that separate the leaf for more than one third of its length or width, whatever is smaller. Sometimes, it is difficult to tell apart compound leaves from a shoot system with simple leaves: look for stipulae and/or axillary buds at the ground of the leaves: if only some possess these structures, the others are most likely leaflets of a compound leaf. | imparipinnate / ottpinnate (i)A pinnate leaf with an central unpaired terminal leaflet
compound (i)Composed of several similar parts
pinnate (i)With leaflets on both sides of an axis, at least 2 pairs or more
example: Onobrychis 
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| Leaf veination: (i)Arrangement of the main veins of a leaf. | pinnate (i)One main vein, several side veins, sometimes inconspicuous
example: Cicerbita    inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: pinnate
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| Flower (i)reproductive portion of the plant, consisting of sepals, petals, stamens, and pistils | |
| Perianth arrangement: (i)Attention: in some plants, flowers may be dimorphic in different ways (dioecious or gynodioecious). If flowers vary, record the characters of the most showy flowers. | double, different (i)Two types of perianth leaves, differently coloured (sepals: outer periant leaves, usually greenish, and petals: inner perianth leaves, usually coloured)
example: Parnassia   inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: double, different
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| Diameter of flower: (i)Diameter of flower or flower head. | to 5 mm (i)
example: Aruncus
from 5 mm to 10 mm (i)
example: Stellaria
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| Flower form: (i)common forms of flowers ? Veronica | simple (flat) - Do not confuse with inflorescences as in some Asteraceae (i)Petals spread out, flower appearing flat
example: Mollugo, Trientalis, Pulsatilla, Saxifraga 
tubular to funnel-shaped (i)Petals form a tube, are often partially united to a cylindrical corolla, often surrounded by a calyx 
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| Sepal number: (i)Number of sepal leaves (outer perianth leaves, calyx leaves, mostly greenish). Attention, this character applies only for flowers separated in sepals and petals, thus excluding most monocots. Be aware of the bracts (involucral leaves) of Asteraceae flowerheads, do not qualify these as sepals! Be also aware in Rosaceae is often an epicalyx developed, in this case count all parts. | 5 (i)
example: Polemonium inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: 5
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| Petal / Tepal number: (i)Number of petal leaves (inner perianth leaves, usually coloured). | 5 (i)
example: Potentilla inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: 5
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| Petal / Tepal fusion: (i)To which degree are the petal leaves connected? Petals sympetalous. | fused (i)petal leaves united, only tips are free (gamopetalous, sympetalous)
example: Linnaea, Adenophora, Stellera inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: fused
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| Stamen number: (i)Attention: We ask for the reproductive organs of the flower dispersing pollen. Count only fully fertile stamens, not staminodia (e.g. Parnassia). | 4 (i)Extremely rare, may be absent
example: Plantago inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: 4
5 (i)
example: Peucedanum inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: 5
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| Stamen fusion: (i)To which degree are the stamens fused? Attention: Whereas the pollen sacs itself are often free., their stalks (filaments) may be fused. Here, we count them as fused if they are together over at least one thirth of their length. | fused with a corolla (calyx in Thymelaeaceae) (i)Stamens with perianth leaves at least one third of the length of the filament
example: Orobanche, Salvia, Stellera inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: fused with a corolla (calyx in Thymelaeaceae)
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| Ovary position: (i)For entirely or partly fused carpels, describe their position in relation to the insertion point of perianth leaves (best done by doing a longitudinal section of a flower). | intermediate ovary (i)Ovary partly or fully underneath the perianth leaves, ovary not fused with axis but surrounded by a flower cup
example: Prunus, a lot of Rosaceae   inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: intermediate ovary
inferior (i)Ovary below the point where perianth leaves are inserted, always fused to an ovary
example: Vaccinum   inherited by family Caprifoliaceae: inferior
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| Inflorescence (i)flowering part of a plant, describes the arrangement of the flowers on the flowering axis | |
| Inflorescence: (i)Structure of the inflorescence. | Flowers in inflorescence (i)No solitary flowers
Compound inflorescences (i)Flowers on shoots of higher orders (complex branched)
example: Solidago 
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| Appearance: (i)Outer look of the inflorescence. | terminal (i)Inflorescence is the highest point of the plant and may consist of a single flower only
example: Cypripedium, Rhaponticum, Ligularia sibirica, Echinops
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| Inflorescence type: (i)Types of inflorescence. Attention: We here ask for the botanical nomenclature of inflorescences, which is sufficiently complicated. Tick only, if you are certain, or tick all inflorescence types that appear similar of these of the plant in question. | others (in traits_comments nicht aufgeführt) (i)Not as above
example: Sparganium: globose capitate
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| Root / shoot below ground (i)plant part below ground (in most cases), including below ground shoots, without leaves | |
| Root type: (i)Organisation of the roots. | allorhizous (i)Plant with a conspicuous tap root, one larger tap root with side roots
example: Dicotyledonae inherited by order Dipsacales: allorhizous
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