POACEAE (GRAMINEAE)

 

Very large family. Annual or perennial herbs rarely woody plants (Bamboos), roots fibrous, rhizomes present or absent, the stems erect, always closed nodes, leaves solitary at nodes, 2-ranked, usually parallel-veined,  composed of two parts, the sheath  and the blade, inflorescence spikelet, pedicelled or sessile, each spikelet composed of 1 or more sessile flowers and is composed of an axis  i.e. rachilla; at the base of the spikelets there are 2 bracts, lower termed as first glume and the next  second glume. Above the glume there is a very short section of rachilla followed by the flower and its bracts, collectively, the floret  which is composed of 2 bracts one is lemma  or flowering glume and the second palea; stamen  in a whorl of 3, hypogynous, anthers 2 celled basifixed but deeply sagittate as to appear and function as if versatile, the pistil with ovary superior, unlocular, 3 carpelled, the ovule 1, styles usually 2 , the stigmas papillate or more frequently plumose extensions of the styles; fruit mostly a caryopsis with  copious endosperm.