Parts of a Grass Plant – Labeled Diagram, Blade to Roots

All 13 parts on the diagram

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The whole plant 10

Blade The long, narrow part of a leaf, bending away from the stem.
Sheath The lower part of a leaf, wrapped around the stem.
Stem (culm) The upright flower stem, which carries the seed head. Also called a culm.
Node A solid joint on the stem. A leaf grows from each one.
Seed head The flowering part of the plant, made of many small spikelets.
Tiller A new shoot that grows from the crown beside the first.
Crown A very short stem at the soil line. New growth starts here.
Roots Thin, branching roots that anchor the plant and take up water.
Stolon A stem that creeps over the ground and roots at its nodes.
Rhizome A stem that runs under the soil and rises as new shoots.

Where blade meets sheath 3

Collar The band on the back of the leaf where blade meets sheath.
Ligule A thin flap, or a fringe of hairs, where blade meets sheath.
Auricles Small claw-like flaps at the blade's base. Not every grass has them.

How this list was compiled: Every name was checked on 2026-09-30 against sources read that day; a name is kept only when two of them use it. (1) Penn State Extension, The Cool-Season Turfgrasses: Basic Structures, Growth and Development, https://extension.psu.edu/the-cool-season-turfgrasses-basic-structures-growth-and-development (a mature, unmown grass plant is leaves, roots, stems and a seed head; a leaf is a blade, a sheath and the collar region with its collar, ligule and auricle, which not every grass has; roots fibrous, branching and very slender; three kinds of stem: the crown, the horizontal rhizomes and stolons, and the flower stem; tillers are shoots from the crown; the spikelet is the unit of the seed head; mown grass seldom shows flower stems or seed heads). (2) Oregon State University, Forage Information System, Grass structures, https://forages.oregonstate.edu/regrowth/how-does-grass-grow/grass-structures (culm, culm node, leaf blade, leaf sheath, collar, ligule, auricles as claw-like appendages, crown, tiller, stolon, rhizome, seed head; the collar region as the most useful place to tell grasses apart). (3) Wikipedia, text only: Poaceae, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poaceae (each leaf a lower sheath round the stem and a blade; the ligule, a membranous appendage or fringe of hairs at the junction of sheath and blade; culms; spikelets; the family includes cereals, bamboos and lawn grasses), Tiller (botany), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiller_(botany), and Auricle (botany), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auricle_(botany). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain curves; own work, nothing traced. A teaching plan, not one species. Licence: own work

How it works

The parts of a grass plant are leaves, stems, roots and a seed head. Each leaf has a blade and a sheath. The stems are the crown, the flower stem, and any stolons or rhizomes.

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Shoots, stems and roots

The first drawing is one plant left unmown. The crown sits at the soil line, and every leaf, tiller and root starts there. A stolon creeps over the ground and a rhizome runs under it; each can start a new plant. The drawing shows both, but many grasses have only one or neither.

The leaf joint

The second drawing enlarges the place where a blade meets its sheath. The collar, the ligule and the auricles differ from one grass to the next, so this joint is the usual place to look when telling grasses apart.

Mown lawn grass seldom shows a flower stem or a seed head. They are cut off before they grow.
A tiller grows up from the crown. A stolon or a rhizome grows sideways from it.

Questions and answers

What are the main parts of a grass plant?

Leaves, stems, roots and a seed head. A leaf is a blade and a sheath joined at the collar. The stems are the crown, the upright flower stem, and creeping stolons or rhizomes in the grasses that have them.

What is the difference between a stolon and a rhizome?

Both are stems that grow sideways and start new plants. A stolon creeps over the ground. A rhizome runs under the soil, then rises to the surface as a new shoot.

What is a ligule on a grass leaf?

A thin flap, or sometimes a fringe of hairs, at the joint between the blade and the sheath. Its size and shape vary, which helps in telling grasses apart.

What is a tiller?

A shoot that grows from the base of a grass plant, beside the first shoot. Tillers let one seedling grow into a tuft with many stems and seed heads.