''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the

grass family Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns and ...

. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in

Botanical Latin Botanical Latin is a technical language based on New Latin, used for descriptions of botanical taxa. Until 2012, International Code of Botanical Nomenclature mandated Botanical Latin to be used for the descriptions of most new taxa. It is still the ...

, referring to the colour of the mature spikelets. The members of ''Anthoxanthum'' are widespread in temperate and subtropical parts of Africa and Eurasia, with a few species in tropical mountains. Some species have become naturalized in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, New Zealand, and the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

. '' Anthoxanthum odoratum'' is a common species of

acid In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...

ic grassland and

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

s in northern Europe. All the species reportedly contain the compound coumarin, used medicinally in many countries. The genus '' Hierochloe'' is included in ''Anthoxanthum'' by some recent authors. Others, however, continue to treat them as separate genera, and we provisionally treat them as such here pending further research.Hope, Tom, & Gray, Alan, ''Grasses of the British Isles: BSBI Handbook No. 13'', Botanical Society of the British Isles, 2009, p 312. . ; SpeciesThe Plant List search for ''Anthoxanthum''
/ref> * '' Anthoxanthum aethiopicum'' - Ethiopia * '' Anthoxanthum amarum'' - Spain, Portugal * '' Anthoxanthum aristatum'' - Mediterranean and neighboring areas from

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

to the Aegean * '' Anthoxanthum borii'' - India * '' Anthoxanthum dregeanum'' - Cape Province of South Africa * ''

Anthoxanthum ecklonii ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colou ...

''- South Africa,

Lesotho Lesotho ( ), officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a country landlocked country, landlocked as an Enclave and exclave, enclave in South Africa. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the Thabana Ntlenyana, highest mountains in Sou ...

, Malawi * ''

Anthoxanthum gracile ''Anthoxanthum gracile'' is an ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden v ...

'' - Mediterranean from Morocco to the Aegean * ''

Anthoxanthum hookeri ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colour ...

'' - Guizhou, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan, Bhutan, Nepal, Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh,

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

* '' Anthoxanthum horsfieldii'' - Southeast Asia, New Guinea, Assam, Taiwan, Guizhou * ''

Anthoxanthum japonicum ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colour ...

'' - Honshu * ''

Anthoxanthum madagascariense ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colour ...

'' - Madagascar * ''

Anthoxanthum nivale ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colou ...

'' - mountains of central Africa ( Zaïre,

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania) * '' Anthoxanthum odoratum'' - widespread from Iceland to the

to Mongolia; naturalized in North and South America, South Africa,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, East Asia, and various islands * ''

Anthoxanthum ovatum ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colour ...

'' - Mediterranean from Spain to the Aegean * ''

Anthoxanthum pallidum ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colou ...

'' - Sichuan, Yunnan * ''

Anthoxanthum sikkimense ''Anthoxanthum'' (Latinised Greek for "yellow blossom"), commonly known as hornworts, vernal grasses, or vernalgrasses, is a genus of plants in the grass family. The generic name means 'Yellow flower' in Botanical Latin, referring to the colou ...

'' - Nepal, Yunnan, Sikkim, Bhutan, Arunachal Pradesh * '' Anthoxanthum tongo'' - Cape Province of South Africa ; formerly included numerous species now considered better suited to other genera. Most important is '' Hierochloe;'' others include ''

Centotheca ''Centotheca'' is a genus of African, Asian, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family. ; Species * '' Centotheca lappacea'' (L.) Desv. - tropical western + central Africa; Madagascar, China, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, numerous islands of t ...

Crypsis In ecology, crypsis is the ability of an animal or a plant to avoid observation or detection by other animals. It may be a predation strategy or an antipredator adaptation. Methods include camouflage, nocturnality, subterranean lifestyle and ...

Dichelachne

Dimeria ''Dimeria'' is a genus of Asian, Australian, Madagascan, and Pacific Island plants in the grass family. Many of the species are endemic to India. ; Species ; formerly included see ''Arthraxon'' * ''Dimeria scrobiculata - Arthraxon hispidus ...

Festuca Perotis Saccharum''

References

Pooideae Poaceae genera Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Pooideae-stub

See also

References