tepal

1. (botany) Any component of the perianth (outermost whorls of flower parts, not involved in reproduction), especially when the components are not distinguished into sepals and petals.Examples: "1982, H. Q. Varekamp (translator and editor), Z. Botschantzeva, Tulips: Taxonomy, Morphology, cytology, phytogeography and physiology, page 27, In Tulipa the pubescent tips of the tepals are quite interesting in particular those of T. fosteriana. The top of the tepal is initiated and develops before the reflexed, lateral parts."; "The species bears creamy white flowers with a yellow base and tepals often streaked with rose-pink."; "In our material of T. bulbosa, the abaxial outer tepal was larger at its inception than the lateral ones (Fig 8.4C), whereas the primordia of the outer tepals are of nearly equal size in both T. barrelieri (Fig 8.5E) and T. palustris (not shown)."