Field of Science

Find the gymnosperm leaf

Here's some leaves that the Phactor scanned after using them in a class. They are all tropical woody plants, but none are any more closer related than being members of the same order.  Note how similar they all are in shape and with a smooth margin. They all have a bit of a short drip tip, and all have pretty waxy cuticles. Now here's the fun part - one is a gymnosperm (Gnetum), one is basal angiosperm (Illicium), and the other two are from the Magnoliales (Myristica, Eupomatia).  Can you figure it out? Hey, does the Phactor have a cool collection of plants at his disposal or what? 

3 comments:

Maire Smith said...

Wow. I have no real idea. I want to say 'middle left', because its veining looks odd, but I have no idea.

Maire Smith said...

And now I've looked up 'gnetum' and I think it's the one on the right. The petiole is different on that, and not on the other three.

The Phytophactor said...

Well, what can TPP say about Maire Smith? Perhaps she's a plant savant because without a clue about why, she correctly picked out the Gnetum! Good job, Maire. The Gnetum actually has the strangest venation, but it is hard to see in the scanned images.