compound leaf

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compound leaf

plant anatomy

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June 24, 2026

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A compound leaf is a leaf where the blade is divided into two or more distinct leaflets, which are attached to a common axis. This contrasts with a simple leaf, which has a single, undivided blade. Compound leaves can be further classified as palmate, where leaflets radiate from a single point, or pinnate, where leaflets form along either side of an extension of the petiole called the rachis. This structural variation is part of the broader diversity seen in angiosperm leaves, which are a fundamental part of the plant's basic structure, alongside roots and stems.12

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angiosperm
Leaves
In compound leaves, a blade has two or more subunits called leaflets: in palmately compound leaves, the leaflets radiate from a single point at the distal end of the petiole; in pinnately compound leaves, a row of leaflets forms on either side of an extension of…
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In compound leaves, a blade has two or more subunits called leaflets: in palmately compound leaves, the leaflets radiate from a single point at the distal end of the petiole; in pinnately compound leaves, a row of leaflets forms on either side of an extension of…
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Arecales
Characteristics
…pattern of development of the compound leaves of the palms is one of the unique features of this family and differs from all other flowering plants. In most plants with compound leaves, each pinna of the leaf develops from a separate meristem that grows independently from the rest of the…
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…pattern of development of the compound leaves of the palms is one of the unique features of this family and differs from all other flowering plants. In most plants with compound leaves, each pinna of the leaf develops from a separate meristem that grows independently from the rest of the…
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Fabales
Caesalpinioideae
…usually divided into leaflets (compound), or else the leaflets are again divided into leaflets (bicompound). The flowers also vary in symmetric form, from nearly radial to bilateral to irregular (symmetric in no plane). The sepals are usually separate and imbricate (overlapping in the bud). There are generally five separate…
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…usually divided into leaflets (compound), or else the leaflets are again divided into leaflets (bicompound). The flowers also vary in symmetric form, from nearly radial to bilateral to irregular (symmetric in no plane). The sepals are usually separate and imbricate (overlapping in the bud). There are generally five separate…
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Fabales
Characteristic morphological features
The leaves are usually compound, and in some the leaflets are secondarily compound. The simple leaves of some are presumably reduced from the compound forms. The most striking of these modified leaf forms are the several hundred species of Australian Acacia, in which the apparently simple leaf represents the…
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The leaves are usually compound, and in some the leaflets are secondarily compound. The simple leaves of some are presumably reduced from the compound forms. The most striking of these modified leaf forms are the several hundred species of Australian Acacia, in which the apparently simple leaf represents the…
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Fabales
Mimoseae
…are divided into secondary (compound) leaflets, and in many these leaflets are again divided (bicompound) and have a feathery, sometimes fernlike appearance. A striking exception is that of most of the Australian acacias (but not of the American kinds) mentioned above, in which the compound leaves have become modified,…
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…are divided into secondary (compound) leaflets, and in many these leaflets are again divided (bicompound) and have a feathery, sometimes fernlike appearance. A striking exception is that of most of the Australian acacias (but not of the American kinds) mentioned above, in which the compound leaves have become modified,…
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Sapindales
Characteristic morphological features
…species of Sapindales have pinnately compound leaves (with the leaflets of each compound leaf arranged along both sides of a central axis). They are rarely palmately compound (the leaflets radiating from the petiole apex) or simple. Leaves are generally alternately arranged along a stem and are only rarely opposite or…
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…species of Sapindales have pinnately compound leaves (with the leaflets of each compound leaf arranged along both sides of a central axis). They are rarely palmately compound (the leaflets radiating from the petiole apex) or simple. Leaves are generally alternately arranged along a stem and are only rarely opposite or…
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