A Field Guide to Grasses and Grass-like Plants of Idaho

🌾 The Wheel of Spikelets 🌾

I’m excited to share something I created for my recent grass identification course at Rinker Rock Creek Ranch — the Wheel of Spikelets! This visual tool is meant to be a fun way to learn about grasses and their different characteristics.

At the center of the wheel is the grass family (Poaceae). From there, the wheel moves outward to show the BOP Clade (one of the major lineages of grasses). After that, each tribe is introduced — forming smaller hubs around the wheel.

From each tribe, spokes radiate outward. Each spoke shows the common name, scientific name, and the page number in A Field Guide to Grasses and Grass-Like Plants of Idaho for more detailed information about that species. Additionally, at the end of each spoke is the image and a short description of the species, including key characteristics and a few ⚠️ markers where I’ve added important notes or reminders.

I also included the PACMAD Clade, which points students to check the separate Tribe packet for more details, but it still has a spoke leading to the Danthonieae Tribe — where two spokes start close together and then branch outward to two different species that we studied during the class.

This wheel is both a learning tool and a visual summary of what we covered together in the field, including the tribe handout mentioned in this visual — which I’ll be posting here on Facebook in the near future.

🔍 The text on the wheel is pretty small and may be hard to read on a screen. If you’d like to take a closer look, feel free to message me and I can send you a copy by email.

💬 What do you think — should I create more of these types of visual tools for grasses?