telegraph plant

n. A tropical Asian plant (Codariocalyx motorius) in the pea family, having trifoliolate compound leaves whose two small lateral leaflets move by jerks in response to sunlight.

telegraph plant

n (Plants) a small tropical Asian leguminous shrub, Desmodium gyrans, having small leaflets that turn in various directions during the day and droop at night

Thesaurus

Noun

telegraph plant - erect tropical Asian shrub whose small lateral leaflets rotate on their axes and jerk up and down under the influence of sunshineCodariocalyx motorius, Desmodium gyrans, Desmodium motorium, semaphore plantCodariocalyx, genus Codariocalyx - used in some classifications for plants usually included in genus Desmodiumbush, shrub - a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems

Telegraph Plant

(Desmodium gyrans), also telegraph tick-clover, a shrub of the family Leguminosae. The leaves are ternate. The somewhat elongate terminal leaflet is many times larger than the oblanceolate lateral leaflets. The flowers are papilionaceous and gathered in racemose inflorescences. The fruit is a moniliform pod. The telegraph plant grows in tropical Asia. During the day the lateral leaflets execute rotatory, sometimes jerky, movements, describing a complete ellipse with their apices in 30 seconds. The mechanism of the movement is a change in the turgor of cells of the thickened articulations of leaflet petioles with the leaf axis. The telegraph plant is cultivated in botanical gardens and greenhouses. It is used for classroom demonstrations.

telegraph plant

Related to telegraph plant: Codariocalyx motorius

noun

Synonyms for telegraph plant

noun erect tropical Asian shrub whose small lateral leaflets rotate on their axes and jerk up and down under the influence of sunshine

Synonyms

Codariocalyx motorius
Desmodium gyrans
Desmodium motorium
semaphore plant

Related Words

Codariocalyx
genus Codariocalyx
bush
shrub