A Grammatical Dictionary of Botanical Latin

Arista, awn, a stiffish bristle-shaped appendage (Fernald 1950); “the awn or beard of corn, or any such process” (Lindley); “an awn, the beard of corn” (Jackson); the hair-point in mosses, “usually formed by an excurrent costa; e.g., Tortula” (Magill 1990); arista,-ae (s.f.I) abl. sg. arista, nom.pl. aristae, acc. pl. aristas, dat. & abl. pl. aristis [> L. arista,-ae (s.f.I), the awn or beard of grain (Lewis & Short)]; syn. spica,-ae (s.f.I), a spike, “in particular, of grain, an ear, spike (syn. arista); a top, tuft, head of other plants” (Lewis & Short); see awn; cf. seta;

- omnes ebracteatae sunt, sed characteres e carpellorum aristis v. eorum dehiscentia sumpti in aliis etiam speciebus observantur (B&H), all are ebracteate, but characters taken from the hairpoints of the carpels or the dehiscence of them are observed even in other species.

- connectivum nunc mucronatum v. in aristam setaceam productum, nunc.muticum (B&H), the connective smoetimes mucronate or extended into a setaceous awn, sometimes muticous.

- carpella matura ab axi secedentia, erostria v. apice in rostra v. aristas erecto-conniventia producta (B&H), mature carpells splitting apart from the axis, beakless or extended at the apex into an erect-connivent beak or awns.

- nervo in aristam maxime elongatam flavide hyalinam serratam producto, with the nerve extended into an awn, very much elongate, yellowish, hyaline, serrate.