The New Student's Reference Work/Internode

In′terno′de. In seed plants and also in some fern plants the stem exhibits a series of definite joints, at which points the leaves or branches arise. The joints are called the “nodes,” and the more or less elongated portions of the stem which separate the nodes from one another are called the internodes. The length of the internodes determines the distance apart of the leaves, and therefore the growth of internodes is an important factor in the life relations of leaves.