ROOTED IN RESEARCH
TURFGRASSES— DIFFERENT AND SIMILAR
By Casey Reynolds, PhD
Ever wonder what makes turfgrasses so different from other plants we find in the landscape? Just as importantly, ever wonder what makes them so similar? Te answers to these questions are rooted in the origin of turfgrasses and where they fit in the plant kingdom. Understanding the origin of turfgrasses, and their relationships to other plants, provide insight into the role that turfgrasses play in our lives and why few other plants can perform a similar function. Tis edition of Rooted in Research probes into the origin of this beautiful, durable, and functional plant that is our shared passion.
along with important cereal and grain crops such as wheat, oats, and corn as well as rice, sorghum, and sugar cane. In fact, four of the five top food crops in the world are grasses: sugar cane, corn, wheat, and rice. Worldwide, grasses cover approximately 24 percent of the world’s surface and account for nearly 50 percent of human’s caloric intake.
While there are over 12,000 species of grasses in the Poaceae family, approximately 25 of them are used as turfgrasses. Te relationship of turfgrasses and other Poaceae members to all other flowering plants is designated by phylogenetics, the study of evolutionary history to determine relationships among organisms.
The floral features of turfgrasses are shown here, along with a comparative photo showing the similarities to a more widely-recognized plant f lower. Photos provided by Dr. Casey Reynolds
Tere are over 300,000 species of vascular plants that form the dominant vegetation covering the Earth’s surface. Vascular plants are defined by the presence of photosynthetic pigments and vascular tissues that carry water, minerals, and photosynthetic by-products throughout the plant. Within this group, flowering plants, also known as angiosperms, are a diverse group of land plants that are classified into 416 families.
Turfgrasses belong to the Poaceae family, which is the fifth largest family based on number of species and the third largest based on number of genera. Tey are placed here
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A complete picture of the current phylogenetics of flowering plant systematics can be found at the following link
http://www2.biologie.fu-berlin.de/sysbot/poster/poster1. pdf. In short, turfgrasses belong to the order Poales and are closely related to other well-known plants including sedges (Cyperaceae family), rushes (Juncaceae family), lilies and tulips (Liliales order), as well as irises and daffodils (Asparagales order).
While, botanically speaking, turfgrasses are just as much flowering plants as roses, tulips, daffodils, and many trees, they are often not thought of this way.
TPI Turf News November/December 2017
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