Microscopic features of monocotyledonous plants

Here we present 104 features of culms and 103 features of rhizomes of crosssections of monocotyledonous plants occurring in the temperate and Mediterranean zone along altitudinal gradients from the lowland to the alpine zone. It is the first time that a synthesis of monocotyledonous-anatomical features of Western European plants is presented. The feature list is based on microslides from 580 species within 28 families. Included are culms of grasses, sedges and rushes and flower stalks of many other plants. Culms of grasses can be made of dry, herbarium material. For all other species only fresh material allows to make sections without drying artefacts. Blue-red color photographs in magnification of 100 and 400 times contain information about lignification and many structural features. The list of features clearly shows, that the anatomical variability with monocotyledonous plants is almost as high as in dicotlyedons. The features indicate relations to taxonomy and ecological conditions.