The list of sweet grasses is long. It includes both ornamental grasses and crops, usually referred to as cereals. Hobby gardeners are often surprised at which ornamental plants belong to the sweet grasses. Some examples of sweet grass species.
Which species are sweet grasses?
The types of sweet grasses include ornamental grasses such as pampas grass, Japanese grass, riding grass, pipe grass, reeds and bamboo, as well as useful plants such as rye, wheat, oats, corn, millet and rice. Sweet grasses can be recognized by their raised nodes and slightly triangular stems.
Sweet grasses – a family of plants with countless species
The sweet grasses are one of the largest plant families. There are more than 12,000 species worldwide, spread across around 780 genera. These include both perennial and annual species.
Not only the plants commonly referred to as grasses are sweet grasses. The list also includes species that don't look like grass at first glance.
Sweet grasses grow in very different locations such as forests, meadows and even deserts. They occur on steppes, meadows and savannahs as well as on dunes and often shape the vegetation there.
Examples of sweet grasses in the garden
In the garden, sweet grasses are grown in borders and perennial beds. Tall species provide a good, often wintergreen privacy screen.
Depending on the species, sweet grasses grow between ten centimeters and four meters high. Dwarf grass is one of the small-growing species. Bamboo, on the other hand, grows up to four meters high and does not look like sweet grass at first glance.
The list of sweet grasses commonly grown in the garden includes:
- all ornamental grasses:
- Pampas grass
- Japan grass
- Riding grass
- Pipegrass
- Reeds
- Bamboo
Cultivation of sweet grasses as a useful plant
Many of our staple foods are sweet grasses. All grains such as rye, wheat, oats, corn, millet and even rice are types of sweet grass.
Within the different species there are further subspecies. There are around 27 different types of oats known. However, there are only six types of rye.
Grain is not only grown as food. The stalks are also cut to serve as animal feed. In many regions of the world, the leaves are used as building materials or as material for kitchenware and clothing.
Tip
To tell the difference between sweet grasses and sour grasses, look at the stems. Sweet grasses are noticeable because of their raised nodes, which sour grasses lack. In addition, sweet grass stems are slightly triangular and contain pith.
