Kids Encyclopedia

Asparagus — Asparagus officinalis is a flowering plant species in the genus Asparagus from which the popular vegetable known as asparagus is obtained. It is native to most of Europe, northern Africa and western Asia. It is now also widely cultivated as a vegetable crop. Asparagus is a herbaceous perennial plant growing to 100-150 cm tall, with stout stems with …

Ash, Flowering — An ash can be any of four different tree genera from four very distinct families, but originally and most commonly refers to trees of the genus Fraxinus (from Latin “ash tree”) in the olive family Oleaceae. The ashes are usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous though a few subtropical species are evergreen. The leaves are opposite …

Ash, European — Fraxinus excelsior (Ash; also European Ash or Common Ash on occasion to distinguish it from other ash species), is a species of Fraxinus native to most of Europe with the exception of northern Scandinavia and southern Iberia, and also southwestern Asia from northern Turkey east to the Caucasus and Alborz mountains. The northernmost location is in the …

Ash, White — Fraxinus americana (White Ash or American Ash) is a species of Fraxinus native to eastern North America found in mesophytic hardwood forests from Nova Scotia west to Minnesota, south to northern Florida, and southwest to eastern Texas. It is a large deciduous tree growing to 20–30 m tall, exceptionally to 50 m, with a trunk 0.5–1.8 m …

Arum — Arum is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the family Araceae, native to Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean region. They are rhizomatous, herbaceous perennial plants growing to 20-60 cm tall, with saggitate (arrowhead-shaped) leaves 10-55 cm long. The flowers are produced in a spadix, surrounded …

Artichoke — The Globe Artichoke (Cynara scolymus) is a perennial thistle originating in southern Europe around the Mediterranean. It grows to 1.5-2 m tall, with arching, deeply lobed, silvery glaucous-green leaves 50–80 cm long. The flowers develop in a large head from an edible bud about 8–15 cm diameter with numerous triangular scales; the individual florets are purple. The edible …

Arbutus — Arbutus is a genus of at least 14 species of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae, native to warm temperate regions of the Mediterranean, western Europe, and North America. North American members of the genus are called Madrones, from the Spanish name madroño. The European species are called Strawberry Trees from the superficial resemblance of the fruit to …

Arborvitae — Thuja is a genus of coniferous trees in the Cupressaceae (cypress family). There are five species in the genus, two native to North America and three native to eastern Asia. They are commonly known as arborvitae (from Latin for tree of life) or thujas; several species are widely known as cedar but because they are not true cedars …

Apricot — The Apricot is a species of Prunus, classified with the plum in the subgenus Prunus. The native range is somewhat uncertain due to its extensive prehistoric cultivation, but most likely in northern and western China and Central Asia, possibly also Korea and Japan. It is a small tree 8–12 m tall, with a trunk up to 40 cm diameter …

Apple — The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family Rosaceae. It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits. The tree is small and deciduous, reaching 5–12 m tall, with a broad, often densely twiggy crown. The leaves are alternately arranged simple ovals 5–12 cm long and 3–6 cm …