7/11/23, 3:57 PM Grass - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Grass
Grass is a type of plant with narrow leaves growing from the
base. Their appearance as a common plant was in the mid- Grasses
Cretaceous period. There are 12,000 species now.[3] Temporal range: Albian–Present

PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K PgN
A common kind of grass is used to cover the ground in places [1]
such as lawns and parks. Grass is usually the color green. That
is because they are wind-pollinated rather than insect-
pollinated, so they do not have to attract insects. Green is the
best colour for photosynthesis.

Grasslands such as savannah and prairie where grasses are

dominant cover 40.5% of the land area of the Earth, except
Greenland and Antarctica.[4]

Grasses are monocotyledon herbaceous plants. They include the

"grass" of the family Poaceae, which are called grass by ordinary
people. This family is also called the Gramineae, and includes
some of the sedges (Cyperaceae) and the rushes (Juncaceae).[5]
These three families are not very closely related, though all of
them belong to clades in the order Poales. They are similar
adaptations to a similar life-style.

With around 780 genera and around 12,000 species,[3] the Flowering head of meadow foxtail
Poaceae is the fifth-largest plant family, after the Asteraceae, Alopecurus pratensis
Orchidaceae, Fabaceae and Rubiaceae.[6]
Scientific classification
The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of Kingdom: Plantae
lawns (turf) and grassland. Uses for graminoids include food
(as grain, sprouted grain, shoots or rhizomes), drink (beer, Clade: Tracheophytes
whisky), pasture for livestock, thatching thatch, paper, fuel, Clade: Angiosperms
clothing, insulation, construction, sports turf, basket weaving
and many others. Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Many grasses are short, but some grasses can grow tall, such as
bamboo. Plants from the grass family can grow in many places Order: Poales
and make grasslands, including areas which are very arid or
Clade: Graminid clade
cold. There are several other plants that look similar to grass
and are referred to as such, but are not members of the grass Family: Poaceae
family. These plants include rushes, reeds, papyrus and water John Hendley Barnhart[2]
chestnut. Seagrass is a monocot in the order Alismatales.
Type genus
Grasses are an important food for many animals, such as deer,
Poa
buffalo, cattle, mice, grasshoppers, caterpillars and many other
L.
grazers. Unlike other plants, grasses grow from the bottom, so

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when animals eat grass they usually do not destroy the part that grows.[7] This is a part of why the
plants are successful. Without grass, soil may wash away into rivers (erosion).

Evolution of grass
Grasses include some of the most versatile plant life-forms. They became widespread toward the end
of the Cretaceous. Fossilized dinosaur dung (coprolites) have been found containing grass phytoliths
(silica stones inside grass leaves).[8] Grasses have adapted to conditions in lush rain forests, dry
deserts, cold mountains and even intertidal habitats, and are now the most widespread plant type.
Grass is a valuable source of food and energy for many animals.[9]

Grass and people

Lawn grass is often planted on sports fields and in the area around a building. Sometimes chemicals
and water is used to help lawns to grow.

People have used grasses for a long time. People eat parts of grasses. Corn, wheat, barley, oats, rice
and millet are cereals, common grains whose seeds are used for food and to make alcohol such as
beer.

Sugar comes from sugar cane, which is also a plant in the grass family. People have grown grasses as
food for farm animals for about 4,000 years. People use bamboo to build houses, fences, furniture
and other things. Grass plants can also be used as fuel, to cover roofs, and to weave baskets.

Language
In English, the word "grass" appears in several phrases. For example:

"The grass is always greener on the other side" means "people are never happy with what they
have and want something else".
"Don't let the grass grow under your feet" means "Do something".
"A snake in the grass" is about a person that will not be honest and will trick others.
All flesh is grass: Old Testament book of Isaiah, chapter 40, verses 6–8. A very true observation of
the present-day ecology. See the Miocene for the ecological relevance.
Grass is a slang term for cannabis (pot, weed, or marijuana).

References
1. Yan Wu; Hai-Lu You; Xiao-Qiang Li (2018). "Dinosaur-associated Poaceae epidermis and
phytoliths from the Early Cretaceous of China" (https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fnsr%2Fnwx145).
National Science Review. 5 (5): 721–727. doi:10.1093/nsr/nwx145 (https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fns
r%2Fnwx145).
2. Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (2009). "An update of the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group
classification for the orders and families of flowering plants: APG III" (https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1
095-8339.2009.00996.x). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 161 (2): 105–121.
doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.2009.00996.x (https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1095-8339.2009.00996.x).
3. Christenhusz, M.J.M.; Byng, J.W. (2016). "The number of known plants species in the world and
its annual increase" (http://biotaxa.org/Phytotaxa/article/download/phytotaxa.261.3.1/20598).
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Phytotaxa. 261 (3): 201–217. doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.261.3.1 (https://doi.org/10.11646%2Fphytot

axa.261.3.1). Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20160729085754/http://biotaxa.org/Phytotax
a/article/download/phytotaxa.261.3.1/20598) from the original on 2016-07-29.
4. Reynolds, S.G. "Grassland of the world" (http://www.fao.org/docrep/008/y8344e/y8344e05.htm).
www.fao.org. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20160920201355/http://www.fao.org/docrep/0
08/y8344e/y8344e05.htm) from the original on 2016-09-20. Retrieved 2016-10-04.
5. Chapman G.P. & Peat W.E. 1992. An introduction to the grasses. Oxford: CAB Internat.
6. "Angiosperm Phylogeny Website" (http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb). Archived (htt
ps://web.archive.org/web/20160323175342/http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/) from
the original on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
7. Cheplick G.P. 1998. Population biology of grasses. Cambridge University Press.
8. Piperno, Doris E. & Sues, Hans-Dieter 2010. Dinosaurs dined on grass. Science. 310 (5751), pp.
1126–1128.
9. Soderstrom T.R. et al (eds) 1987. Grass systematics and evolution. Smithsonian Institution Press,
Washington, D.C.

Related pages
Grassland
Cereals
Fertilizer
Bamboo
Thatching

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