podocarpium

noun1

1. •
   In certain members of the Podocarpaceae, a group of fleshy fused bracts beneath the female cone that swell to enclose the developing seeds and attract frugivores.

   • The laminae of these bracts are reduced so that only very short leaf tips are present. Whereas the podocarpium of the mature cone of P. elongatus and P. latifolius is always fleshy […] — 1975