SOME QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE ASPECTS OF NEW-ZEALAND DIVARICATING SHRUBS

Microphylly, development of short shoots, absence of terminal flowers, and interlacing of branches characterise divaricating woody plants. Quantitative analysis shows that their bifurcation ratios are usually small and within a range characteristic of most trees. Qualitative analysis shows a moderate range of shoot morphologies which in part can account for some quantitative features. It is concluded that divaricates are distinguished primarily by lack of organisational control of branch development and this truism serves to emphasise our limited knowledge of control of shoot expression in woody plants. The suggestion is made that detailed study and quantification of individual divaricating species is necessary and would help us to understand the generalised growth processes in trees. The paper is set against a background of modern studies on trees, using both qualitative and quantitative approaches. © 1978 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.