'hard-stemmed' originates from Modern English, specifically formed from the adjective 'hard' (from Old English 'heard') and 'stemmed' as the adjectival/past-participle form of 'stem' (from Old English 'stefn' or Proto-Germanic '*stammaz'), where 'hard' meant 'firm, solid' and 'stem' meant 'the main stalk of a plant'.

'hard' changed from Old English 'heard' (meaning 'firm' or 'hard') and 'stem' from Old English 'stefn' (with a Proto-Germanic ancestor '*stammaz'); the compound adjective 'hard-stemmed' was formed in Modern English by combining these elements to describe plants with firm stems.

Initially the elements meant 'firm' (for 'hard') and 'stalk' (for 'stem'); combined as 'hard-stemmed' the meaning became the specific botanical description 'having a hard or woody stem'.