Order POALES 
By JoHN KUNKEL, SMALL 
Annual or perennial, caulescent or acaulescent plants, mostly herbs, but 
sometimes shrubs or trees, commonly known as grasses or sedges. Stems or 
scapes (culms) simple or branched, often conspicuously jointed, the inter- 
nodes hollow or solid, more or less sheathed by the leaf-bases. Leaves alter- 
nate, the basal portion sheathing the stem or scape, with free or united margins, 
commonly bearing a glabrous or pubescent ring on the inner side at the top; 
blades usually narrow and elongate, entire or nearly so, but usually rough- 
margined. Inflorescence spicate, racemose or paniculate, the ultimate spikelets 
usually with 2-ranked or spiral closely imbricate bracts (scales, glumes). 
Flowers perfect, or rarely monoecious or dioecious, inconspicuous, incomplete, 
or with a perianth of scales and bristles. Androecium of 1-6, usually 3 sta- 
mens; filaments slender; anthers 2-celled, versatile or adnate. Gynoecium 
of 2 or 3 united carpels, or rarely 1-carpellary. Ovary 1-celled, 1-ovuled. 
Styles 2 or 3 and distinct or united, or sometimes single; stigmas slender or 
plumose. Fruit a caryopsis (grain) or an achene which is either naked or 
enclosed in an accrescent second bract (perigynium) thus forming a utricle- 
like structure, or rarely baccate. 
Leaves 2-ranked, their sheaths with generally ununited margins ; stems terete and mostly hollow; 
fruit a grain (caryopsis) or rarely baccate. . . Fam’. 1. POACEAE. 
‘Leaves 3-ranked, their sheaths with united margins; stems solid; fruit an 
achene. Fam. 2. CYPERACEAE. 
VOLUME 17, Part 1,-1909] 73 
