Leaf sheath

Leaf sheath u. a. Share the kinky foxtail grass

The leaf sheath is the bulbous or tubular base of the leaf that encompasses the stem axis in many monocotyledons , such as grasses . Leaf sheaths can also be formed in the dicots , for example in the umbelliferae .

Most of the time the vagina is split, i.e. i.e., the edges are free and superimposed. On the other hand, the leaves of the half-grass have closed sheaths or those with no free edges. In many leaves the scabbard is only hinted at or is missing entirely. Sometimes there is a ligule at the transition point between the vagina and the upper side of the blade .

Nesting leaf sheaths on some perennials form a pseudo stem , u. a. with bananas .

There may also be auricles on leaf sheaths.

literature

• Ulrich Kull: Outline of general botany . Reprint of the 2nd edition. Schweizerbart, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-510-65218-5 .