Dynamics.

This book is the most up to date and thorough account of the natural history of the plants that comprise the most important food crop on Earth, the grasses and grasslands.

Part A and Part B of the fifth of twelve volumes of The Mycota deal with the mechanisms of interactions between fungi and plants and consider pathogenic as well as mutualistic associations. Nobody involved in the manipulation of plant populations can afford to ignore the fungi, so pervasive and important are fungus/plant interactions for the well-being of plant communities, both managed and natural. Consequently, these volumes will be of interest to a broad range of professionals involved in agriculture, forestry, horticulture, and conservation as well as plant pathology, mycology, ecology, and evolution.

Combines new findings on morphological aspects, the latest data on gene function in grasses, and the interaction of grasses with their habitats 45% of all arable land is covered by five grass crops: wheat, maize, rice, barley and sugar cane. This book demonstrates why crops and weeds are growing in characteristic environments today, and looks at how cropping practices may change in the future and how these changes will affect weed spectra. It explains the distribution of grasses and their role for mankind and summarizes our knowledge on grass genomes. Special emphasis is placed on the function of genes at defined developmental stages and in organs of grasses. The development of grasses is then described from the germination to fruit set with many unpublished examples. Grasses: Crops, Competitors and Ornamentals provides readers with a comparative description of selected grass organs (stem, root, leaf, inflorescence) and devotes several chapters to habitats of grasses and morphological characteristics that enable grasses to grow in special environments. In addition, some chapters deal with grasses as crops and weeds, and emphasis is placed on their adaptation to modern agriculture. Predicts how cropping practices may change in the future and how these changes will affect weed spectra Details grasses as crops and weeds, emphasizing their adaptation to modern agriculture Summarizes our knowledge on grass genomes Connects classical morphology with the latest tools in molecular biology as well as ecological aspects determining the wide distribution of grass species today Grasses: Crops, Competitors and Ornamentals will be of great interest to agricultural scientists who want to know more about crops and weeds, grassland specialists and breeders interested in special grass traits, and molecular biologists and ecologists who study the biology and habitat of grasses.

Grasses: Systematics and Evolution is a selection of the very best papers from the Proceedings of the Third International Symposium on Grass Systematics and Evolution held in Sydney, Australia in 1998. The papers represent some of the leading work from around the world on grasses and include reviews and current research into the comparative biology and classification. All 41 papers have been peer-reviewed and edited.

Divided into logical easy-to-use sections, Neotyphodium in Cool-Season Grasses is an up-to-date anthology of the latest knowledge on the genus Neotyphodium. This thorough text covers the molecular biology of Neotyphodium endophytes and their effects on grass hosts, invertebrate and vertebrate herbivores, and the plant communities in which they interact. The expert editors also include information on the commercial uses of endophytes in livestock and turf industries. Researchers and teachers in grass research, extension, agronomy, and animal toxicology, and university libraries with courses in these subjects should not be without this important text.

2008 NOMINEE The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries Annual Award for a Significant Work in Botanical or Horticultural Literature now we have easier and better access to grass data than ever before in human history. That is a marked step forward. Congratulazioni Professor Quattrocchi!-Daniel F. Austin, writing in Economic Botany &n

Invasions by exotic grasses, particularly annuals, rank among the most extensive and intensive ways that humans are contributing to the transformation of the earth’s surface. The problem is particularly notable with a suite of exotic grasses in the Bromus genus in the arid and semiarid regions that dominate the western United States, which extend from the dry basins near the Sierra and Cascade Ranges across the Intermountain Region and Rockies to about 105° longitude. This genus includes approximately 150 species that have a wide range of invasive and non-invasive tendencies in their home ranges and in North America. Bromus species that became invasive upon introduction to North America in the late 1800’s, such as Bromus tectorum and B. rubens, have since became the dominant cover on millions of hectares. Here, millenia of ecosystem development led to landscapes that would otherwise be dominated by perennial shrubs, herbs, and biotic soil crusts that were able to persist in spite of variable and scarce precipitation. This native ecosystem resilience is increasingly coveted by land owners and managers as more hectares lose their resistance to Bromus grasses and similar exotics and as climate, land use, and disturbance-regime changes are also superimposed. Managers are increasingly challenged to glean basic services from these ecosystems as they become invaded. Exotic annual grasses reduce wildlife and livestock carrying capacity and increase the frequency and extent of wildfi res and associated soil erosion. This book uses a unique ecoregional and multidisciplinary approach to evaluate the invasiveness, impacts, and management of the large Bromus genus. Students, researchers, and practitioners interested in Bromus specifically and invasive exotics in general will benefit from the depth of knowledge summarized in the book.

This 1990 text brings together a detailed review by acknowledged authorities of grass reproductive biology. Essential to contemporary awareness of grasses is an understanding of their role in sustaining ecologically fragile environments, and the relative importance of annual and perennial reproduction is examined here.

Most people have memories of playing on well-manicured lawns or running across the flat green surface of a local park, but we often don’t think of grasses as something we consume. Indeed, grasses include four species—wheat, rice, maize, and sugar—that provide sixty percent of human calorie intake, and we become more and more dependent on these as the world’s population increases. In this book, Stephen Harris explains the history of our relationship with these vital plants from the end of the last Ice Age to the present day. Combining biology, sociology, and cultural history, Grasses explores how these staple crops bear the mark of human influence more visibly than any other plant and how we, in turn, are motivated to protect green space such as public parks. Harris describes this symbiotic connection against the background of climate change, contending that humans must find a way to balance their need for grass as food, as living space, and potentially even as fuel. Providing an impressive exploration of the profound impact these plants have on our survival and our pleasure, this well-illustrated book is a must have for gardeners, foodies, and environmentalists.