dendro-, dendr-, dendri-, -dendria, -dendrite, -dendritic, -dendra, -dendron

(Greek: trees, tree-like structures)

The forest is a peculiar organism of unlimited kindness and benevolence that makes no demands for its sustenance and extends generously the products of its life activity; it provides protection to all beings, offering shade even to the axeman who destroys it.

—Gautama Buddha, Founder of the Buddhist religion, circa 525 B.C.
philodendron (s) (noun), philodendra (pl)
1. Any of various climbing tropical American plants of the genus Philodendron, many of which are cultivated as houseplants: A philodendron is an evergreen plant characterized by smooth, shiny, and showy leaves.
2. Etymology: Via Modern Latin, from Greek, philodendros, "loving trees" because it climbs or twines around trees in its native habitat.
rhododendron
An evergreen shrub of the heath family that is native to southern Asia but is widely grown in temperate regions for its cluster of brightly colored flowers. Via Latin, "oleander", from Greek, rhodon, "rose" plus dendron, "tree".
teledendrite
telodendria
1. One of the terminal branches into which the axon of a nerve cell divides.
2. One of many terminal arborizations into which the axon of a neuron branches; an axon ending.

It is not uncommon to find many telodendria assembled into a network, but in some instances axons are seen to branch into only one or two such terminal processes.

telodendron
toxicodendrol
A nonvolatile irritant oil that is the active constituent of various plants (as poison ivy) of the genus Rhus.
Toxicodendron
1. In some classifications: comprising those members of the genus Rhus having foliage that is poisonous to the touch; of North America and northern South America.
2. An alternative genus for six species of poison ivies and poison oaks within the genus Rhus.
3. A genus (formerly rhus) of shrubs, vines, or trees that yields a highly allergenic oleoresin which causes a severe contact dermatitis.

The most toxic species are toxicodendron vernix (poison sumac), toxicodendron Diversilobum (poison oak), and toxicodendron Radicans (poison ivy). Toxicodendron Vernicifera yields a useful varnish from which certain enzymes (laccases) are obtained.

tree (s), trees (pl)
A tree is a perennial woody plant with three basic characteristics that distinguish it from all other plants.
  1. Size: In maturity it is much bigger than all other plants.
  2. Form: A typical tree has a single stem which bears branches at a distance above the ground.
  3. Way of life: Under natural conditions trees grow in stands (forests) which dominate their area of land.
  4. By the wood of their trunks, their fruits, and the special kind of environment they create, trees influence life on earth more than any other kind of plant.

    1001 Questions Answered about Trees by Rutherford Platt; Dodd, Mead & Company; New York; 1959.
Ulodendron
A genus of fossil trees.
zoodendrium (s), zoodendria (pl)
The branched, and often treelike, support of the colonies of certain Infusoria.

Infusoria is one of the classes of Protozoa, including a large number of species, all of minute size.

They are found in all seas, lakes, ponds, and streams, as well as in infusions of organic matter exposed to the air. They are distinguished by having vibrating lashes or cilia, with which they obtain their food and swim about. They are devided into the orders Flagellata, Ciliata, and Tentaculifera.

Formely the term Infusoria was applied to all microscopic organisms found in water, including many minute plants, belonging to the diatoms, as well as minute animals belonging to various classes; such as, the Rotifera, which are worms; and the Rhizopoda, which constitute a distinct class of Protozoa. Fossil Infusoria are mostly the siliceous shells of diatoms; sometimes they are siliceous skeletons of Radiolaria, or the calcareous shells of Foraminifera.