Lexic.us

Definition of Defoliate

1. Adjective. Deprived of leaves.

2. Verb. Strip the leaves or branches from. "They defoliate the trees"; "Defoliate the trees with pesticides"

Definition of Defoliate

1. a. Deprived of leaves, as by their natural fall.

Definition of Defoliate

1. Verb. (transitive) To remove foliage from (one or more plants), most often with a chemical agent. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Defoliate

1. [v -ATED, -ATING, -ATES]

Lexicographical Neighbors of Defoliate

defocus defocused defocuses defocusing defocussed defocusses defocussing defog defogged defogger

defoggers defogging defogs defoliant defoliants defoliate (current term) defoliated defoliates defoliating defoliation

defoliations defoliator defoliators defolliculated deforce deforced deforcement deforcements deforceor deforceors

Literary usage of Defoliate

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The American Year Book: A Record of Events and Progress by Francis Graham Wickware, (, Albert Bushnell Hart, (, Simon Newton Dexter North, William M. Schuyler (1917)
"A blister rust and a needle rust of spruce have been reported in Scotland where they defoliate the trees in case of severe attack. ..."

2. Report of the Secretary of Agriculture by United States Dept. of Agriculture (1884)
"He also stated that the larvée had been so numerous on many of the hedges in his immediato neighborhood as to completely defoliate the trees before they ..."

3. The Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture: A Discussion for the Amateur, and by Liberty Hyde Bailey (1914)
"Large, green or brown, smooth caterpillars occasionally defoliate the vines. Treatment.—Hand-picking. Annona. FLORIDA WAX SCALE.—See Citrus. Anthurium. ..."

4. Biodiversity and the Management of the Madrean Archipelago: The Sky Islands edited by Leonard F. DeBano (1999)
"However, most of the trees defoliate more gradually. Midwinter rains may delay leaf-fall of certain species. ..."

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