Poaceae (Gramineae) -- the grass family (650-660/10,000; cosmopolitan)
Habit herbs, shrubs or trees; rhizomatous or stoloniferous; stems mostly round with swollen nodes, mostly hollow (sometimes a pith); intercalary meristems
Leaves alternate or basal; simple; two ranked; leaf bases with open sheath surrounding stem, upper margins of the sheath may bear small ear-like apical lobes called auricles; parallel venation; ligulate; blades flat or absent
Inflorescences spikes and spikelets that are 2º clustered into inflorescences (spikes, racemes, or panicles); each spikelet subtended by 2 basal bracts (glumes), then within the spikelet, each flower subtended by two bractlets (lemma to the outside and palea to the inside) all attached to the rachilla
Special floral characters lodicules are interpreted as reduced perianth parts; wind- pollinated; glumes or lemma can be ornamented with awns
Perianth 2 (3) lodicules distinct, fleshy and becoming turgid at anthesis
Androecium 3 (1-2 or 4-6) stamens, distinct (rarely filaments connate in groups)
Gynoecium 3 carpels (only 2 apparent), connate; superior with 1 locule and 1 basal ovule usually adnate to ovary wall; styles 2 (1 or 3), distinct or united
Fruit= caryopsis (achene, utricle, nut, or drupe), often shed from the plant together with the enclosing bracts
(Floral formula: A 3 G 2 )