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Grass family🌾
Poaceae
イネ科
One of the most successful monocot families. Includes major cereal crops such as rice, wheat, and maize. Forms the foundation of grassland ecosystems and covers over 40% of Earth's land surface.
Key Characteristics
- ●Stems (culms) are hollow with distinct nodes
- ●Leaves are elongated; leaf sheaths wrap around the stem
- ●Spikelets: distinctive floral units unique to grasses
- ●Wind-pollinated; petals reduced
- ●Leaf venation is parallel
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Parallel / Pinnate / Palmate
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Shrub / Tree / Vine / Herb
Evergreen/Deciduous
Evergreen / Deciduous
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Aromatic
Aromatic / None
Petal count
3 petals / No petals
Petal fusion
Free
Ovary position
Superior
Plant sex
Dioecious / Hermaphrodite / Monoecious
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Monocots > Commelinids > Poales > Poaceae
Divergence Era
Late Cretaceous to Paleogene (approx. 80–70 million years ago)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Independent evolution of C4 photosynthesis (in multiple lineages)
- ・Formation of grassland ecosystems (from the Neogene onward)