Definition of

Branch

Trees

The process that leads to the development of tree branches is called branching.

Branching is the process and result of branching . This verb can refer to a concrete issue (when branches of a plant or tree emerge and grow ) or to something symbolic (a topic or fact that is divided into different units or that spreads to different places).

To understand what branches are, therefore, we must understand the concept of a branch . Branches are the extensions that are generated by the trunk or stem and that support fruits, flowers and leaves. It can also be something that is secondary or accessory and that arises from a main structure.

Branching in trees

If we focus on trees, therefore, branching is the development of branches in different directions . For example: “The gardener will have to do something with the branches of the orange tree, since they are about to reach the window,” “I never thought that this plant would have so many branches.”

Within the field of biology, as we see, the term we are analyzing is also used. Thus, there are monocaules plants, which do not have any type of branching, and then there are pluricaules that do have them. However, within this second group, there can be two different types of branching: dichotomous, in which the apex is divided into two, and lateral, in which the branches are produced in axillary buds from the which would be one of the second or third branches of the aforementioned apex.

Likewise, we must not forget that within the dichotomies, there are two different classes: the monopodic system and the sympodic system.

Other uses of the term

Within the scientific and mathematical world we can also say that the term in question is used. In that specific case, we talk about branching and pruning, an algorithm design that serves to resolve issues related to branching. In this specific case, this technique becomes a tree of solutions in which each branch serves to reach a subsequent solution.

A ramification, on the other hand, can be the derivation of an event or the prolongation of some issue beyond its original point: “The ramifications of this corruption case are very complex since they involve important officials of the national government,” “ “The ramifications of drug trafficking reach all strata of society.”

blood vessels

The extension of blood vessels through extensions that arise from a common trunk is called branching.

Branching in anatomy

In the context of anatomy , branching is the prolongation of blood vessels through extensions that arise from the same trunk: “The patient is being treated for an occlusion in the branching of the vena cava.”

Furthermore, we cannot ignore, for example, that the bronchi are tubes that have progressive tree-shaped branches and whose objective is to facilitate the entry of air into the lungs.

However, it must be said that the left and right bronchus are different for one fundamental reason, because while the first has two branches, upper and lower, the second has three: upper, middle and lower.