The Poaceae

Members of the Poaceae, or grass family, have...

• flowers arranged in spikelets
• leaves that have blades and sheathes, rather than blades and petioles

The Poaceae is one of the monocot families. Members have parallel leaf veins and embryos with a single cotyledon (characteristics of monocots). The only reason we are leaving off "monocots have perianth parts that occur in multiples of three" is that flowers of grasses have perianths that are extremely reduced and modified.

 

Grain crops come from domesticated members of the Poaceae. Bamboo comes from large and rigid members of the Poaceae. Identifying species in the Poaceae requires you to recognize...

• the parts of the spikelets and florets of the Poaceae
• specialized structures of the leaves of the Poaceae
• whether the plant is annual or perennial.