Poaceae is commonly known as the Grass Family. It is peculiar of its genera having the familiar grass-like appearance. It belongs to the Class Monocotyledonae and is represents by around 620 genera and about 10,000 species.
It falls under the taxonomic classification:
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Angiospermae
Class: Monocotyledonae
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Characteristic features of Family Poaceae:
* Habit: Most are herbs; some are shrubs, while a few are even trees (Bambusa).
* Habitat: Poaceae members are cosmopolitan in distribution. They are found almost all over the world in varying sizes, varying types and with specific genera features, most even specific to continents. The Genus Phragmites australis (Giant reed grass) is the flowering plant which has the widest geographic range and belongs to the Class Monocots and family Poaceae.
* Roots: Primarily adventitious root system, fibrous, stilt or branched.
* Stem: Herbaceous or woody, underground rhizomes in all perennials, cylindrical and with distinct nodes and internodes.
* Leaves: leaves are alternate and simple leaves. Sessile, leaf base forms tubular sheath which is open, sheath covers or encircles the internodes completely. Leaves are long, hairy or rough with linear, parallel veins.
* Inflorescence: Spikes or Panicles. Spike is compound, sessile or stalked. A single spike unit is a spikelet. Inflorescence hence may be a spike of spikelets or a panicle of spikelets.
* Flower: bracteate (bracts are present) , bracteolate, sessile (stalkless), incomplete, unisexual or bisexual, hypogynous (ovary is raised above the other floral parts), zygomorphic ( unequal size floral parts or irregular symmetry) and homochlamydeous (perianth not differentiated into calyx or corolla)
* Perianth: Membranous scales (lodicules), if present, numbering two, three or many.
* Androecium: Stamens are three or six. In rare cases one. Anther filaments are long, anthers are dithecous (having two thecae / cells / compartments), linear and versatile.
* Gynoecium: Monocarpellary, unilocular, single ovule, basal placentation (position of germinating ovule in the ovary), style may be absent or short, stigma is bifid, and the ovary is superior in position making the flower hypogynous.
* Fruit: fruit is a caryopsis (dry, one-seeded fruit), rarely a nut or a berry.
* Seed: Endospermic, single cotyledon
Examples of some common monocot Poaceae members:
Andropogon muricatus (Khas grass-oil yielding)
Avena sativum (Oat)
Bambusa vulgans. (Bamboo plant of commercial ornamental importance)
Cynodon dactylon (Dog grass)
Eucaliopsis binala (Bhabar grass)
Hordeum vulgare (Barley)
Oryza sativa (Rice)
Pennisetum typhoides (Bajra)
Saccharum officinarum (Sugarcane plant)
Sorghum vulgare (Jawar)
Themeda gigantia (Kapoor grass)
Triticum aestivum (wheat)
Zea mays (Maize)
