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In botany
Botany

Botany, plant science, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of biology and is the Scientific method of plant life and development....
, a tendril is a specialized stem
Plant stem

A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaf, inflorescence , conifer cones or other stems etc....
, leaf
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
 or petiole
Petiole (botany)

In botany, the petiole is the small stalk attaching the leaf blade to the Plant stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem....
 with a threadlike shape that is used by climbing plants for support and attachment, generally by twining around whatever it touches.

earliest and most comprehensive study of tendrils was Charles Darwin's
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin Royal Society was an English people natural history who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolution over time from common descent, through the process he called natural selection....
 monograph On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants, which was originally published in 1865.






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Vine
In botany
Botany

Botany, plant science, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of biology and is the Scientific method of plant life and development....
, a tendril is a specialized stem
Plant stem

A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaf, inflorescence , conifer cones or other stems etc....
, leaf
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
 or petiole
Petiole (botany)

In botany, the petiole is the small stalk attaching the leaf blade to the Plant stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem....
 with a threadlike shape that is used by climbing plants for support and attachment, generally by twining around whatever it touches.

History

The earliest and most comprehensive study of tendrils was Charles Darwin's
Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin Royal Society was an English people natural history who realised and presented compelling evidence that all species of life have evolution over time from common descent, through the process he called natural selection....
 monograph On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants, which was originally published in 1865. This work also coined the term circumnutation to describe the motion of growing stems and tendrils seeking supports.

Biology of tendrils

In the garden pea, it is only the terminal leaflets that are modified to become tendrils. In other plants such as the yellow vetch (Lathyrus aphaca
Lathyrus aphaca

Lathyrus aphaca is a legume known as the yellow pea or yellow vetch. It is native to southern Europe, parts of Asia, and North Africa....
) the whole leaf is modified to become tendrils while the stipule
Stipule

In botany, stipule is a term coined by Carolus Linnaeus which refers to outgrowths borne on either side of the base of a leafstalk . A pair of stipules is considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many species the stipules are inconspicuous or entirely absent ....
s become enlarged and carry out photosynthesis
Photosynthesis

File:Seawifs global biosphere.jpgPhotosynthesis is a metabolic pathway that converts carbon dioxide into organic compounds, especially sugars, using the energy from sunlight....
. Still others use the rachis
Rachis

The rachis is the main axis of the inflorescence, or spike, of wheat and other cereals, to which the spikelets are attached. It is also the part of the axis that the pinnae are attached to in ferns, the main stem of a compound leaf , or the main axis in compound inflorescences in other angiosperms....
 of a compound leaf as a tendril, such as members of the genus Clematis
Clematis

Clematis is a genus of mostly vigorous climbing lianas, with attractive flowers. Some species are shrubby, and some others are herbaceous perennial plants....
.

The specialised pitcher traps of Nepenthes
Nepenthes

The Nepenthes , popularly known as Tropical pitcher plants or Monkey Cups, are a genus of carnivorous plants in the monotypic family Nepenthaceae that comprises roughly 120 species, numerous List of Nepenthes natural hybrids and many cultivated hybrids....
 plants form on the end of tendrils. The tendrils of aerial pitchers are usually coiled in the middle. If the tendril comes into contact with an object for long enough it will usually curl around it, forming a strong anchor point for the pitcher. In this way, the tendrils help to support the growing stem of the plant.

Tendril can also be used to describe a wisp of hair or indeed anything that resembles the tendrils of plants.

Gallery

Image:Nep raf211.jpg|Nepenthes rafflesiana
Nepenthes rafflesiana

Nepenthes rafflesiana , or Raffles' Pitcher-Plant, is a species of pitcher plant. It has a very wide distribution covering Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia, and Singapore....
 upper pitcher with coiled tendril. Image:Spiky_plant_tendril.jpg|Spiky Plant Tendril. Image:VC Tendril.JPG|Virginia creeper
Virginia creeper

Virginia creeper may refer to:* Parthenocissus quinquefolia, plant, Virginia creeper or five-leaved ivy* Parthenocissus_vitacea, plant, False Virginia Creeper...
 adhesive Tendril.