Great beginning, Ritesh ji. Best of luck
-- Dr. Gurcharan Singh Retired Associate Professor SGTB Khalsa College, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 Res: 932 Anand Kunj, Vikas Puri, New Delhi-110018. Phone: 011-25518297 Mob: 9810359089 http://people.du.ac.in/~singhg45/ On Sun, Dec 5, 2010 at 5:32 PM, Ritesh Kumar Choudhary <[email protected] > wrote: > Dear all, > > Welcoming you in the celebration of GRASS WEEK on eflora! > > Due regards to Dr. Gurucharan sir, Vijayshankarji and all moderators, who > came forward with a nice idea to celebrate a weekly episode every month with > special emphasis on a particular plant family. > > Followed by the successful coordination on Apocynaceae by Dr. Balkar sir, > I've been assigned to co-ordinate the episode on Poaceae. > > Honestly speaking, I have a very little knowledge on grasses. But the > inspirational words received from Gurucharanji and a desire to learn grasses > have promoted me to take over this difficult task. > > Hope, I'll get full support and co-operation from all the members and > moderators in this regard. > ----------------------------------------------------------- > > Here are some basic information on grasses which i've compiled from various > sites: > > > > *The English word grass probably comes from a German word 'gras', > generally used to describe any herbage suitable for livestock grazing. In > general, we consider “grass” to those plant species most commonly used in > lawns and pastures, or used to cover road shoulders. > > > > *Botanically three major characteristics separate the grass family from all > other plant families: > > > > 1. The flowers lack petals and are borne between bracts in a leafless > inflorescence. > > 2. The leaves are flat, long and slender, and form a sheath around the > stem. > > 3. The stems are round, generally hollow, and somewhat swollen at the > nodes. > > > > P.S.: Although an unknown plant specimen may possess one or even two of > these characteristics, that does not necessarily mean you are looking at a > grass. It is the combination of all three characteristics that defines the > grass family. > > -------------------------------------------------------- > > > Distribution: Grasses are the most widely distributed group of flowering > plants, occurring from well above the Arctic Circle through the temperate > and tropical regions to Antarctica. Indeed, grasses are the only flowering > plants to grow on the Antarctic continent. (P. Singh, 2008) > > > *INDIAN SCENARIO* (Ref.: P. Singh, 2008) > > > > Hooker in Flora of British India in 1896 reported 135 genera and 734 > species from areas of present day India. > > > > Bor recognized 220 genera and 1165 species and infraspecific taxa from > India. > > > > Bor while publishing his monumental work on grasses of Burma, Ceylon, India > and Pakistan, in 1960 divided the grasses into two subfamilies Panicoideae > and Pooideae . > > > > According to Clayton and Renvoize (1986) the family is represented by about > 10,000 species in the world spread under 651 genera under 40 tribes and 6 > subfamilies. > > > > Karthikeyan et al (1989) recognized 263 genera of grasses in India. > > > ----------------------------------------------------------------- > > Links for the beginners (that may be useful in identification of grasses): > > > > 01. www.offwell.free-online.co.uk/grass_id/index.htm > > Also attaching some pdf files that could be of help for those who are > Grassophobics like me. > > My 2nd mail will provide information on the classical taxonomic works and > recent phylogenetic works carried out on grasses. > > The 3rd mail will provide information on the links on grasses already > discussed on eflora. > > Further, I request all the moderators/members to post > photographs/links/literature on grasses as much as possible during this > week. > > Best regards, > Ritesh. > >
