parastichy

[ pi-ras-ti-kee ]

noun

, Botany.

, plural pa·ras·ti·chies.

1. one of a number of seemingly secondary spirals or oblique ranks winding around the stem or axis to the right and left in a spiral arrangement of leaves, scales, etc., where the internodes are short and the members closely crowded, as in the houseleek and the pine cone.

parastichy

/ pəˈræstɪkɪ /

noun

1. a hypothetical spiral line connecting the bases of a series of leaves on a stem
2. an arrangement of leaves so connected

Derived Forms

• paˈrastichous, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of parastichy¹

First recorded in 1870–75; para- ¹ + stich ¹ + -y ³

Word History and Origins

Origin of parastichy¹

C19: from para- ¹+ Greek stikhia, from stikhos row, rank