sepal

plural sepals

1. biologyOne of the component parts of the calyx, particularly when such components are not fused into a single structure.

   When the sepals are distinct, or separate from each other, the calyx is said to be polysepalous.

   1836, The Family Magazine, Or Monthly Abstract of General Knowledge, Volume III, Redfield & Lindsay, page 367

   2 more examples

   The sepal and the petal are essentially leaf-like in form and anatomy but generally simpler in detailed structure than a foliage leaf.

   2009, Shubhrata R. Mishra, Understanding Plant Reproduction, Discovery Publishing House, page 164

   In tomato, for example, the first sepal primordium is formed as an outgrowth at the periphery of the apex and the subsequent sepal primordia are initiated in a helical fashion at an angle of approximately 137° from the previous one.

   2017, Taylor A. Steeves, Vipen K. Sawhney, Essentials of Developmental Plant Anatomy, Oxford University Press, page 29